Hall of Honor

2023 Ernie Talley Lifetime Achievement Award:

Robert Briley, Briley Investments Inc., dba Aaron’s Sales & Lease Ownership

Native Texan Robert Briley began his career in rent-to-own more than 40 years ago when he and a buddy bought a Curtis Mathes franchise. In 1990, Briley bought out his partner and opened up Rent City, which he grew to 16 stores across his home state. Briley chose to convert his stores to Aaron’s in 2006, and has won both Aaron’s Franchise of the Year and Store of the Year awards.

Briley has been a career-long member of APRO, serving on the APRO Board of Directors for 11 years and leading the association for two terms as President. The same way he has given back to the RTO industry, Briley gives back to his community; he served on the Abilene, Texas City Council for six years, as well as on the boards of United Way of Abilene, St. John’s Episcopal School, and Fairway Oaks Country Club.

Briley and his wife of 47 years, Lou, enjoy time with their Dallas-based son Parker and his family, and daily with their eldest son Zach, who was born with spina bifida and hydrocephalus, has undergone dozens of surgeries over the years, is paralyzed from the waist down, and requires continual medical attention. Robert and Lou have also been active members of Abilene’s First Baptist Church for more than four decades.

Briley has referred to his rent-to-own company as “a family business in the business of helping families” – we couldn’t describe what we all do any better.

Lyn Leach, Ace Furniture & TV Inc., dba Ace Rent-To-Own

Native Texan Robert Briley began his career in rent-to-own more than 40 years ago when he and a buddy bought a Curtis Mathes franchise. In 1990, Briley bought out his partner and opened up Rent City, which he grew to 16 stores across his home state. Briley chose to convert his stores to Aaron’s in 2006, and has won both Aaron’s Franchise of the Year and Store of the Year awards.

Briley has been a career-long member of APRO, serving on the APRO Board of Directors for 11 years and leading the association for two terms as President. The same way he has given back to the RTO industry, Briley gives back to his community; he served on the Abilene, Texas City Council for six years, as well as on the boards of United Way of Abilene, St. John’s Episcopal School, and Fairway Oaks Country Club.

Briley and his wife of 47 years, Lou, enjoy time with their Dallas-based son Parker and his family, and daily with their eldest son Zach, who was born with spina bifida and hydrocephalus, has undergone dozens of surgeries over the years, is paralyzed from the waist down, and requires continual medical attention. Robert and Lou have also been active members of Abilene’s First Baptist Church for more than four decades.

Briley has referred to his rent-to-own company as “a family business in the business of helping families” – we couldn’t describe what we all do any better.

Susan Matthews, Benefit Marketing Solutions

Susan Matthews began her lifelong career in membership programs in 1987, joining Foresight, Inc. to sell add-on products that extend benefits to customers for an additional fee. A dozen years later, Matthews joined Benefit Marketing Solutions (BMS), a startup provider of membership programs specially designed for the rent-to-own industry.

Over the next quarter-century-plus, Matthews has helped shape BMS into a leading provider of RTO membership programs, offering valuable benefits like insurance protection on merchandise during its rental and warranty protection following its purchase. Today, BMS is part of Aon Corporation, and with Matthews as President, continues as the largest provider of customized programs for the rent-to-own industry.

Matthews is a longtime APRO Associate Member, expressing an intrinsic understanding of the symbiotic nature of the rental dealer-vendor relationship. She has received both the APRO Heritage Award and Vendor of the Year, and has been actively involved in rent-to-own legislative grassroots efforts – attending and sponsoring many APRO Legislative Conferences. Additionally, Matthews has been a dependable source of financial support for industry initiatives, giving generously from her personal funds to help fortify programs under the APRO Charitable Foundation and the APRO PAC Fund.

Matthews and her husband of 26 years, Dan, actually connected at an APRO convention in New Orleans in 1996 and wed the following year. Dan, a veteran rental dealer, retired from the industry several years ago, and has been patiently waiting for his wife to join him. Happily for Dan, but sadly for rent-to-own, Matthews is retiring at the end of August.

2023 President’s Award of Excellence:

Christine Hesse, Progressive Holdings, Inc. (PROG)

Christine Hesse is relatively new to the rent-to-own industry, but a deeply experienced attorney, lobbyist, and financial-services policy expert. With an undergraduate degree from Ohio’s Miami University and her law degree from Capital University Law School, Hesse launched her professional career as an aide in the Connecticut General Assembly. She moved on to become the Government Affairs Director for the Cleveland Area Board of Realtors, representing the organization before the Ohio General Assembly and the state Attorney General’s office.

Next, Hesse served as Legislative Counsel for the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, working on a broad spectrum of financial-services issues – including RTO – before joining the national law firm of Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer, & Feld, LLP. For the past couple of years, she has led the Government Affairs department at APRO member Progressive Leasing, a virtual rent-to-own company that works through some of America’s biggest retail stores.

Hesse has made the most of those two years in terms of getting involved in the RTO industry. She joined the APRO Board just last year, and promptly became one of the board’s most active members, serving on the Legislative Committee, the CEO Search Committee, and the Board Nominations Committee. She also worked closely with APRO President Michael Bennett to help manage the association’s business during the transition to a new CEO.

Bryan Pechersky, Upbound Group Inc. (formerly Rent-A-Center, Inc.)

Bryan Pechersky came into rent-to-own only three years ago, but in a big way – as Executive Vice President, General Counsel, and Secretary for Upbound Group, which includes operating brands Rent-A-Center and Acima.

With undergraduate and law degrees from The University of Texas at Austin, Pechersky began his professional career as a commercial litigation, corporate finance, and mergers & acquisitions attorney for global law firm Vinson & Elkins, LLP. He moved on to become Corporate Secretary and Deputy General Counsel for Unocal global oil and gas company, then Senior Vice President, Secretary, and Senior Corporate Counsel for Blockbuster.

Next, Pechersky became Senior Vice President, General Counsel, and Secretary for Harte Hanks, a global marketing services and targeted advertising firm, then spent a decade as Executive Vice President, General Counsel, and Corporate Secretary for Cloud Peak Energy, a Denver, Colorado-based mining company.

Pechersky also completed his MBA at the University of Michigan in 2020.

Pechersky has served as an APRO Board member for the past two years, chairing the Legislative Committee and spearheading this year’s Legislative Conference, the first in four years. He also worked with APRO President Michael Bennett to help manage the association’s business during the transition to a new CEO.

2023 Chuck Sims Rental Dealer of the Year:

Trooper Earle, The Premier Companies

Native Virginian, Trooper Earle, is a career rent-to-own man who has found his success in contributing to the success of others. Earle began in furniture at ColorTyme, then partnered with two others to run five ColorTyme stores, then bought out his partners – and within eight months, had grown the business to become ColorTyme’s third-largest rental dealer nationwide.

In 1996, Earle bought Premier Rental-Purchase and began building what has become one of RTO’s largest franchisors. The intent behind this new company was to help longtime industry managers become successful store owners, by helping them launch and supporting their growth with services that are available but not required.

Today, The Premier Companies includes Premier Rental-Purchase and Premier Home Furnishings, and operates 42 locations in 15 states. Five of those stores, acquired just last year, are located in San Antonio, Texas. Earle, who has been an active and supportive APRO member for more than 20 years, knows the value of a strong trade association and requires all Premier rental dealers to be APRO members as well.

Earle’s dedication to rent-to-own is second only to his devotion to his wife of over three decades, Shelley, and their daughters, Kaleigh and Marina.

2023 Heritage Award:

Spencer Smith, Smith Group dba Aaron’s Sales & Lease Ownership

Spencer Smith, Founder and CEO of the Smith Group, is a sort of renaissance man of franchising, with a 25+-year history of developing real estate and retail locations – including eight Aaron’s locations in Colorado, Oregon, Utah, and Wyoming. Smith also owns two Colorado locations of Big O Tires, American Family Care locations in Idaho, New Mexico, and Utah, and the Colorado-based Tire Max.

But Smith’s dedication to rent-to-own isn’t divided; he has been an APRO member for 18 years, attended this year’s Legislative Conference, and was the first to respond to APRO’s call for PAC Fund support. Additionally, Smith is spearheading the formation of the new Central Rockies Rental Dealers Association, which will include RTO companies in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming.

2023 Norm Smith Vendor of the Year:

David Goldman, VersiRent/Ideal Software Systems Inc.

Native Mississippian David Goldman founded his company – Ideal Software Systems – in 1985, to develop software and hardware designed especially for the rent-to-own, retail, check cashing, payday advance, title loan, and family entertainment center industries. For RTO businesses, this includes VersiRent, touted as “the world’s most versatile software,” a leading-edge product that has made many rental dealers’ lives easier since its initial launch more than a dozen years ago.

But Goldman doesn’t support the rent-to-own industry through premium products alone. He has also been an APRO associate member for the past quarter-century, consistently bolstering the association and its membership through both financial support and active participation. Goldman’s company is a sponsor and an exhibitor at RTO World, he sponsors and attends APRO’s Legislative Conference, and he donates generously to the APRO PAC Fund.

Goldman’s commitment to RTO – through his involvement with APRO and his company’s continued innovation in industry-improving technology – is extraordinary, enduring, and deserving of appreciation.

2023 Emerging Leader Award:

Joshua Ciesicki, Great Rooms Central, LLC

Joshua Ciesicki got his start in rent-to-own in 2005, but surfaced on the APRO scene when his inspiring story of how he got into the RTO industry won him a spot at the 2019 APRO Legislative Conference – his first. Ciesicki was a high-school dropout with a wife and four children to support, who was not feeling good about himself or his prospects for success when he landed in rent-to-own. RTO provided him with not just a job, but an opportunity to find fulfillment through his hard work.

Today, Ciesicki is the Co-Owner and Chief Operations Officer for Great Rooms Central, LLC, which includes two stores in Polk County, Florida – right at the center of the state’s peninsula. He strives to connect personally with his customers, and as a result, faithful customers have followed Ciesicki along his rent-to-own path. Every year since 2014, he has held a Back-To-School Party at his stores, giving away 100 backpacks full of school supplies at each location.

Ciesicki is active with the Florida Rental Dealers Association, has been an APRO member for almost five years, and returned to APRO’s Legislative Conference this year with a clear understanding of the importance of rental dealers building relationships with elected officials.

2023 RTO Tiger Award:

Larry Carrico, SKC Enterprises Inc., dba Rent One

Native Missourian Larry Carrico began in rent-to-own in 1981 as a $4-an-hour manager-in-training for Crista Rentals. Just four years later, Carrico got the opportunity to launch his own business; today, Rent One is one of America’s largest independently owned RTO companies, and Carrico also leads the extremely successful RNR Tires Midwest.

Carrico has been involved in APRO since 1990, served as a board member for 14 years – including two terms as APRO President – and has been awarded APRO’s President’s Award, Rental Dealer of the Year Award, and Lifetime Achievement Award. But it was initially his involvement in the Illinois Rental Dealers Association that led Carrico to APRO.

An IRDA member since the late 1980s, Carrico has served for many years as the group’s President or Treasurer. He has played an especially key role in cultivating relationships between rental dealers and elected officials, spearheading many IRDA Legislative Days in the state capital of Springfield and ensuring IRDA member participation at the APRO Legislative Conference in Washington, D.C. In fact, just this year, Carrico was instrumental in organizing the first IRDA Legislative Day and participating in the first APRO Legislative Conference in the past four years.

Larry and his wife, Sharon, recently wrote a memoir – Own Your Life – of their four-plus decades together, building a strong family and a successful family business. When they’re not authoring, the couple loves spending time with their grown children Steven, Nicki, and Kelly – who currently serves as IRDA President – and particularly their five grandchildren.

2023 Steve Kruse Award:

Teresa Hill, Buddy’s Newco LLC, dba Buddy’s Home Furnishings

Teresa Hill is a career rent-to-own woman, spending two decades as Director of Operational Support for Aaron’s, and the last ten years as Vice President of Operational Support for Buddy’s Home Furnishings. Overseeing four departments, Hill is the company’s epicenter for all things training, franchise support, and customer service.

Hill is renowned for her seemingly bottomless well of giving back. At the office, she has spearheaded a fundraiser for breast cancer research and treatment, and created a companywide program to ensure all corporate associates receive recognition for their tenure. But Hill’s generosity of spirit extends much further than Buddy’s.

Once a “foster kid” herself, Hill serves as a guardian ad litem, helping children and families navigate the foster care system, acting in the children’s best interests in court, and going above and beyond by visiting weekly, delivering meals occasionally, and even buying birthday gifts. Hill also organized an NFL Flag Football Youth Team within her Tampa, Florida community – giving more than 75 local kids a safe environment to get active, build confidence, and have fun.

Earlier this year, Hill was awarded the inaugural Kirk Kaye Volunteer of the Year Award from her colleagues at the Florida Rental Dealers Association, and – true to her giving nature – she volunteered her time to negotiate in Orlando for RTO World 2024, saving APRO and TRIB Group tens of thousands of dollars.

2023 RTO Pioneer Award:

Jim Brown, ABC Discount Superstore-Lease Purchase and Sales

Jim Brown began his rent-to-own career in his hometown of Wichita, Kansas, under the tutelage of RTO legend Ernie Talley at Mr. T’s Rental – an incubator for many industry forefathers, including Bud Holladay and Chuck Sims. But while most of those guys spread their wings, Brown hunkered down and began building ABC Discount Superstore-Lease Purchase and Sales with his partner George Parsons.

In 1980, Brown was one of the original 40 rental dealers who voted to form a national rent-to-own trade association – the Association of Progressive Rental Organizations, or APRO. He has been an actively involved APRO member, consistently participating in APRO’s Legislative Conference and annual convention. For many years, Brown also served as government affairs representative for the Kansas Rental Dealers Association.

But after 58 years in the business, Brown is finally retiring. As the last of APRO’s founding fathers in the RTO industry, Brown has earned his colleagues’ lasting gratitude and heartfelt esteem.

2023 Legacy Award:

Ed Winn III, APRO General Counsel

Edward Winn III is so much more to America’s rent-to-own industry than APRO’s General Counsel – though that in itself is more than enough. Forty-three years ago, he was an independent attorney giving a talk to a ragtag group of rental dealers about government regulation; the same day, he became the legal representation for the new national trade association the dealers were creating for RTO companies.

So Winn helped found APRO, drafted the association’s bylaws, and served as its executive director for its first five years. And for the next four decades, he has monitored all rent-to-own-related news, regulations, and legislation; shared compelling and critical information at industry events; written and edited thousands of articles for RTOHQ: The Magazine; and talked to a rental dealer almost every day of his life.

With Elizabeth, his wife of 35 years, and their grown twin sons to keep him grounded in the world beyond RTO, Winn has given generously of his time, energy, brilliance, candor, and wit – not simply to help make the rent-to-own industry look good, but to help the industry be better.

Winn himself once said, “Success is the measure of what you do and how you do it.” By this measure, Winn is not only a spectacular success himself, but has played an invaluable role in building a grandly successful American industry.