Lease-to-own Chain Aaron’s Says It’s Moving Into Smartphones With ‘Conservative Plan’

Lease-to-own chain Aaron’s, having launched smartphones as a “device-only strategy” in November (see 1511020008), thinks the category “started well,” said President-Strategic Operations Steven Michaels on a Thursday earnings call. Aaron’s still plans to launch with a “national carrier” around mid-year, “and we expect that's when we'll promote more heavily and be more aggressive in the category,” said Michaels, newly named chief financial officer, succeeding Gilbert Danielson, who’s retiring at year-end after 26 years with the company. Aaron’s is “committed” to the smartphone category because “our customers have devices and want to upgrade,” he said. “So, we think it's going to be a good category for us, but we're moving forward with a conservative plan around inventory, device lineup and risk mitigation solutions to make sure that we're successful.”