Shed Geek Podcast

The Future of Rent-to-Own: Ethics, Innovation, and Customer Experience

• Shed Geek Podcast • Season 5 • Episode 21

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What happens when an industry's competitive landscape shifts from serving customers to wooing dealers? In this eye-opening conversation, Josh and Justin from Shed Geek Rentals join Shannon to pull back the curtain on today's rent-to-own industry and the sometimes troubling direction it's headed.

The team dives deep into how the rent-to-own sector has transformed from a customer payment option into a high-stakes game of dealer incentives, with companies offering increasingly generous premiums to secure partnerships. "Competition in general is good," Josh notes, but questions arise about whether current practices truly put the customer first or merely maximize short-term profits.

Most fascinating is their frank discussion of a potential industry disruption – what if rent-to-own companies adopted a direct-to-consumer approach like traditional banks? By building customer relationships first and then facilitating shed purchases, could the industry refocus on what matters most? This thought-provoking concept challenges the status quo and imagines a world where the renter, not just the dealer, becomes the center of the business model.

The conversation doesn't shy away from difficult truths. From dealers who discourage rent-to-own because they don't understand its value to companies that fail to adequately educate customers on contract terms, the team examines where improvement is needed. "The renters are our customers and I don't think we're doing what's best for them," Justin candidly admits, highlighting the moral dimension of these business decisions.

Whether you're in the shed industry, involved in rent-to-own, or simply interested in how business models evolve, this conversation offers valuable insights into the tensions between profit, partnership, and customer service. Join us for a transparent look at an industry at a crossroads and the innovative thinking that might just transform its future.

For more information or to know more about the Shed Geek Podcast visit us at our website.

Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, or YouTube at the handle @shedgeekpodcast.

To be a guest on the Shed Geek Podcast visit our website and fill out the "Contact Us" form.

To suggest show topics or ask questions you want answered email us at info@shedgeek.com.

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Studio Sponsor: Union Grove Lumber

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Shed Geek:

Okay, welcome back to another episode of the Shed Geek podcast. And I got my favorite guys here today and it's been a little bit since we've needed to do this podcast Because we just haven't and I will take the blame for it, but also, I will say it's because we don't want to use the podcast just to constantly talk about the services that we offer. Right, who's going to tune in and listen to that all the time? But had you been here for the last five minutes, it's very entertaining and very fun. But introduce yourself, guys. I to start, even before you introduce yourself, by saying I just don't think the industry knows you guys like I do, and I really appreciate you. But like, really like you, Like I've had the few people that's come up to me and said, hey, man, you've got really good partners there. I really like those guys. I'm like I know.

Shed Geek:

I just think that people need to know them more, but you guys are kind of, uh, not bashful, but you're just you're not loud

Josh Hosey:

Working in the background, just getting it

Shed Geek:

busy and but. But who are you? How about that? Who are you?

Justin Lepage:

take it away, Josh

Josh Hosey:

all right, I'll start it out. Um, my name is Joshua Hosey. Thanks for having me on the pod. Of course it's fantastic. Anyways, yeah, so I have worked in the industry for ever since I graduated college. I went to Clarence University in Pennsylvania. I went there for accounting, got my four-year degree in that. When I was in my senior year, I got a call from, from a guy. He was in some part-time work, and it was some bookkeeping. So, I thought, well, that could go hand in hand with accounting, might look good on the resume. So, it was a rent-to-own company. I knew nothing about the industry at all, but anyways, when I told him I was in school for accounting, he was like, okay, when can you start? Let's go. So, I met him. That started there as a part-time gig and then I graduated, and he offered me a good, good offer to stay on. And so, yeah, I've been in the industry ever since I graduated. It's all I've done, which is 10 plus years.

Shed Geek:

Yeah, we're about. I think we're going on it's 11.

Josh Hosey:

Yeah, yeah, it's 11 years now. So going on 11 years, we're going on, it's 11.

Josh Hosey:

Yeah, yeah, it's 11 years now, so going on 11 years, and I just handled, like, the customer side and the books for so much of it. That is weird. I was in the industry for probably five or six years, maybe even seven, but yet I wasn't in the industry, like I didn't know the players. I literally just dealt with customers and numbers all the time. I wasn't a face to dealers and talk to them much. So, anyways, it's just been, you know, recently starting to get more immersed in the industry. It's been very interesting to learn more about it. But anyway, yeah, that's where it started and so, yeah, I've been involved in rent to own my whole career. At this point, that's awesome.

Shed Geek:

And then ended up somehow connecting with this guy. I don't know, did you guys? It seems like the story was like you guys was in the back of a police car and I don't remember the whole story, but you guys can probably tell it better than me.

Justin Lepage:

It was close, Close to that. We just married the same in the same family.

Shed Geek:

Well, I mean, we're close, Pretty close.

Justin Lepage:

Yeah, no, we are brother-in-laws, we married sisters close, pretty close. Yeah, no, we, uh, we are brother-in-laws, we married, uh, sisters. So, um, that's kind of how I became associated with the industry, obviously just talking business between two guys and you talked about his job. That would be fascinated and I knew nothing about rent to own and it was a very intriguing concept, um, so just over the years we just kept talking about it and then eventually, after a series of events, I joined the team, um, initially just a part, on a part-time basis, and then kind of developed in full time, and that's where I am now.

Josh Hosey:

Here we are me interject? I remember the day that this all really culminated and happened, and you know we always talked a little bit. He was just curious about the company I worked for and how it all worked. But yeah, he worked in the corporate world, and I won't mention any names. But he had a manager there. He'd be on Zoom meetings and sometimes he would get off the meeting. And he'd had a manager there. He'd be on zoom meetings and sometimes he wasn't. He would get off the meeting and he'd be a little frustrated.

Josh Hosey:

And so, I remember I was, we were hanging out here in Newport, Kentucky, at their apartment. I was working on my stuff. He was working from home, cause it was during the COVID craze, and so he was working from home and he got off a meeting and he was just fuming, pacing around the room and he's like you said that you guys kind of needed help on like collections, right, and I'm like, yeah, it's like the, the main owner, he'd love to get that off his plate. He's like I'm calling him right now I'll see if he's a part-time help and that was when it started, and he just started helping out with actually the collection side of it and took that off the owner's plate. And then, yeah, after some months it developed into a full-time role, and he went it's been years now like you've been in it for almost four years up.

Shed Geek:

A little over four years maybe, yeah yeah, corporate world goodbye and said hello to the shed industry and our first connection was actually with Justin, which is unusual because, like you guys have been around so long, but like Justin, come in guns blazing, right, he comes in the company.

Josh Hosey:

He's like hey, he called the pod, right, yeah it's like next thing you know, we connect I.

Shed Geek:

You might have seen that I was going to be in the area. I don't remember what it was, but we connected.

Justin Lepage:

Maybe I bet it's been three years ago I think that's when I was on my old high horse about the hauling the hauling side of the industry which I don't know.

Shed Geek:

We won't get into it, but it's still not been resolved much, I think, me and Sam were coming through, I want to say, and like, we met and we had like breakfast or lunch or something, and then most people would know you because, like, not only are we in the same place where we did the previous podcast, but from the previous podcast where you were talking about rent on and and-own and you know, so, like we connected and already done, we'd done this, but that relationship, you know, moved into other areas. I mean, it's been cool. There's been a lot of opportunity for me at the Shed Geek podcast. I don't like hide that. It's been really cool and I'm thankful, I'm blessed, all of those things, because, trust me, 10 years ago there's zero opportunity right for me in life and it was just like.

Shed Geek:

So, uh, I had, uh, well, my friend, uh, you know, Joel, over, you know, at j money says, you know, a pastor has once preached a message that said there's no greater burden than a good opportunity.

Shed Geek:

And I've been like riding with this, like, uh, yeah, I've been riding with that like for I don't know a month thinking about that, because I'm like you know, I'm gonna get a little deep here, forgive me, but like John Bevere's got a book called like, like "Good or God, and it's, you know. It says not every good opportunity is a god opportunity. You know, even talks about like in genesis where, like you know, eve saw that the fruit was what she ate. She saw that was good, so ate. But she had a commandment or a direction that said God said don't do that. She saw it was good. You got to be careful when you get into that business world to be like do I take every opportunity? And when you've been starving for opportunity, but this turned out really fruitful in my opinion. Just this connection, this relationship, at least on my end. I hope you guys feel that way.

Josh Hosey:

It's been fantastic. Fair answer.

Justin Lepage:

That's fair.

Shed Geek:

No, it's, it's. It's been good. I really like working with you guys and like we sat and brainstorm about like what rent to end can look like and of course you know I've dealt with all the personal jabs that I don't tell the industry about. You shouldn't be doing Renton. You're doing the podcast and it's like hey man, we even invite our competitors on. We even let them advertise on the network. Why? Because we don't fear competition and we also believe that there's a greater good that we're trying to accomplish in the industry and you can do that through communication, conversations, even disagreements right like you know, like my, me and my wife's relationship's been strengthened more by our disagreements than by our agreements.

Shed Geek:

So, like it's, you know perseverance, and once she acknowledges she's wrong, you slick it through it.

Justin Lepage:

Okay, we're good, good to work through now. Shots fired right She'll edit that out.

Shed Geek:

But no, in all reality, like we're just on a mission right To be successful as men, to be successful in the industry that we're in. We think we can do that and we've put our heads together to try and help create good ideas. But Shed Geek Rentals is on the rise. Right like we're doing good that's exciting, yeah yeah, it's been good.

Josh Hosey:

Yeah, that's why we're not like you said earlier, that's why we're not on the pod like every week, because it's not just self-promotion yeah but uh, yeah, we just like to try to serve the industry and do the best we can. So, but you know it's been great.

Justin Lepage:

but if you're looking for a rent-to-own company, come on over. Come on over, we'd love to have you.

Shed Geek:

Nothing wrong with the conversation. Always be selling, absolutely Always be closing ABC, yeah.

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Shed Geek:

No, I agree. Well, it's been fun and, truthfully, I think I've talked about this on the podcast before you know, like one of the things that we ran up against immediately was we were like wow, we realized that, like you know, the rent on game was like the capital game, like, in some respects, right, like you're, you're raising capital, you're always trying to stay ahead, you know being able to. No one plans for success. You ever notice that, like when you're growing up, what does everybody tell you? Better have a backup plan, better plan for when you fail, for the fail.

Josh Hosey:

Don't say what's going to happen if you succeed.

Shed Geek:

What's going to happen if you succeed? Better plan for success. It's almost kind of like well, if it happens, we'll figure it out. It's like, yeah, but I, I mean like you, you know we're, we're doing good and like our biggest woe right now is like, yeah, let's go find more, it's a capital, it's a capital game it's trying to kind of stay out of it, because I mean, yeah, you're putting a lot of money out, getting it back over four or five years.

Josh Hosey:

It's hard to actually scale and grow quickly, you know, unless you have access to a lot of capital. That's a big part of the game, a major part of the game.

Shed Geek:

Systems and processes beyond that. We've created a lot of that, even over the last couple of years. I'll start with Josh. You've been 11 years. How does it differ now than when you started? Like what, what does a customer, um, the customer experience, look like? That's. That's different now than what it did before the customer experience, the customer experience like I. You talked a little bit about like how you were kind of in the grind for five or six years before you really got in the industry.

Shed Geek:

But like, how is it different now for like a customer?

Josh Hosey:

Um, I think they have a lot more options to choose from now. I think when we first started um, you know well, I guess this isn't the customers, the dealer side, but we didn't even have to try to grow. The dealers were just so pleased that we were coming on because they would say, oh, the customer, just the. I have customers come in and they want to be able to buy a shed on payments and I can offer that. So, yeah, if you'll offer rent to own, this is wonderful.

Josh Hosey:

So, you know the owner of my company. He always talked about like I don't even have to try to find new, new dealers, they just come find me. So I mean the customer experience. They have rent to own wherever they want to look and, honestly, due to competition and saturation of RTO companies, et cetera, I think their down payments are actually getting cheaper. When I first started, we collected a whole lot more down right out of the gate and now it's just becoming more like well, the guy down the road, he's offering $15,000 one month down. What do you think about that?

Shed Geek:

Came in to buy a shed. He brought me lunch, so we got him a shed.

Josh Hosey:

That's exactly right. Buy a shed. He brought me lunch, so we got him a shed, that's exactly right. So, I mean, in that front, I think the customer experience is it's got a little bit easier because they can bring less uh to the table, a little less skin in the game to have a shed delivered in their backyard what does that?

Shed Geek:

what does that do long term? Just in like the way that just continues to decrease the the competition increases. What does that do? As to decrease the competition increases? What does that do as a whole for the industry? We can't like you guys have been in business 13, 14 years you know like that so it's not as though you're new.

Shed Geek:

I mean, I got in an industry 12 years ago. I probably worked rent on it for about five years. So, I mean, like you know, we're not just new guys necessarily sitting here at the table, but so, even though, like SGR is a sort of a new company concept or whatever the bones to it I've been around for so long. Uh, my question is really like that increased competition, what, what is it? What does it do overall for the industry, is it?

Speaker 4:

good Is it?

Shed Geek:

bad, I don't know. Give me some thoughts.

Justin Lepage:

Competition in general is good. That's great to see. It's just, I would argue maybe it's not always the current trend of the industry, maybe isn't putting the customer first, if you could say that.

Shed Geek:

It's been said before For a number of different reasons.

Justin Lepage:

Josh touched on one. Even with it being easier to get into a contract with lower down payments, more favorable terms, I've had people look on to the kind of nature of rent-to-own as kind of loan sharky very anti-customer best interest very high. You know, I know it's not called interest, but like that's from outside, looking in, that's what they see.

Josh Hosey:

Look at us as like thieves.

Shed Geek:

And so.

Justin Lepage:

but many in the industry you know justify the nature of it by saying things like you know, it's cheaper than doing self-storage, and then a slew of different things they'll justify, but yet they continue to let customers into contracts that maybe shouldn't be entering into those contracts.

Justin Lepage:

They're not looking out for a particular party's best interest I know that's probably business is business and sometimes you do what you've got to do. But it kind of doesn't resonate with me where I'm at as far as looking out for certain customers' best interest when a rent-to-own contract would not be that for them, and I don't think that an example is set from rent-to-own companies down to dealers to vet for that, and I understand it. But it's not necessarily the dealer's responsibility to vet for that. I wish that particularly was better thought through throughout the industry.

Shed Geek:

I think you know I told somebody recently, like anytime, that you speak and hold an opinion on anything, especially if you put it out, if you don't think it, but you actually speak it out into the public. Here we are doing it on a podcast that goes out to a thousand people every week. Right, you do that. You're super vulnerable. You're super vulnerable because somebody can sit back and be like I disagree with that adamantly or whatever, and it's like, but then I won't say anything about it, I'll just you know or I won't challenge you on it or whatever, and it's like, man, we need that challenging conversation because somebody recently addressed this really on the podcast, was saying like you know, it started as a payment option to help the customer. But in some regard, I think you can say I don't know if we're on a mission to change anything or stop anything. We're on a mission to talk about things you know and then change.

Shed Geek:

Sometimes maybe happens when you bring conversation to the table but, um, you know, it's it turned into it seemingly, at least from our perspective, or whatever. Um, it's not just a payment option to help a customer anymore. It's now. You know it was really lucrative, especially when there was less people in it, you know, and it's like, well, how can we make the argument it's lucrative, but then it's also not uh, uh, um, I don't know How'd you say it, josh, like you know, like um predatory, or whoever said it.

Shed Geek:

You know what I mean.

Shed Geek:

Well, it makes good money. So, then it's, therefore it's predatory and it's like well, I think that I think that it's assessing the risk. You know, it's like whenever somebody says rent, owns expensive, like, my natural response is like, at this point, to be like okay, compared to what? Like where? What are we comparing it to? And they're like no just on its own.

Shed Geek:

I'm like well, let's, let's walk down that rabbit trail, a little bit like if you just bought a brand- new lawnmower or Harley Davidson motorcycle and it's sitting in the rain. I would make the argument that like protecting it would be, as opposed to letting it set in the rain and rust.

Shed Geek:

Yeah, so it's, it's, it's. It costs a lot in comparison to what. Letting that, that and people will be like, well, they should be better at their money. Shouldn't go buy those things if they can't protect them. And you're like Whoa, whoa, whoa. When did we get in the conversation money? That's not where we're at. I'm not trying to spend people's money for them. I agree with you. Should anybody be responsible with their money and the decisions that they're making and consider you, buy, guess what? Buy an RV. Maybe you need to think about protecting it with an RV cover. But that's not like I'm not a financial advisor either.

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Josh Hosey:

Let's power up innovation and elevate customer experiences together. Well, and yeah, I mean, and Justin already mentioned about self-storage units, but that's always used, but like people pay on self-storage units for years and years and years and never take ownership, yeah, no, equity, rent to rent, not a dime yeah while our percentage may be slightly high.

Josh Hosey:

Um, you know, at least you take ownership in three to five years, two to five years. But, and the other thing that I, I think you know we'll have customers call in that, yeah, just demand they're going to turn us into the better business bureau and we're thieves and crooks. Um, and some of that comes down to just like dealer education, potentially on not pointing it out. Um, if they are aware of the cost and, you know, even like to use as a selling point, like if you, if you could pay this off six months, eight months, you're not going to pay that much because it's a flat rental fee the whole time, so you're only paying, basically like six or eight months of rent. Like, if you look at a mortgage or you settle into a credit, sale, a traditional loan, you look at your first repayments. You've got a lot more going out in interest than you do going to principal because your balance is high, so your first repayments aren't doing much. So, the good news with this is it's doing the same thing right at the outset.

Josh Hosey:

So, if you think, hey, I think I probably could pay this off in six to eight months, hey, that's not too bad. You pay six or eight months of rent and then you can pay it off, pay what's left of the principal, basically paid at the EPO discount, and then you really didn't spend that much and it even gave you time to see do I like the shed, does it work well for what I need, and really not that much out. But yeah, they just look at the, you know, since it's not interest, they just look at a 60-40 split or 53-47 or whatever and they're just like, wow, this is highway robbery.

Shed Geek:

Yeah, it comes down to an educational, like in most cases, that's with anything that you talk about. I mean, that's why I really like the tagline whenever we started the podcast, like it's education through entertainment. The whole goal is to be not just serious conversation all the time here, but funny, fun, something enjoyable, something that you like, and also try to have guests on that talk intelligently about different, whether it's product, whether it's services in the industry, and even the occasional like person that has nothing to do with sheds, that kind of talks about their story and culture and how that relates to business and you know so, like all of those things.

Justin Lepage:

But education with dealers is but why would a dealer educate a customer on the intricacy of a contract, risking them not doing a sale because of the intricacies of terms, when they are, when it's more profitable to sell a rent-to-own contract?

Shed Geek:

I'll even go farther to say, like, by law, we all have to disclose a certain amount of information. Keeping your rent on contracts just legal, you know. So, like, you have to disclose that to the customer. But anybody who's bought anything in the last year, I would venture to say there's only a handful of people who, like, actually set and read the fine print. And I don't know about you guys. But if, like, you're selling a tv and you're working for best buy maybe, and all of a sudden it's like oh, you know, you want to put this down on our credit card or whatever, I I feel like the portion is so low of people who are like I need someone who can explain this contract to me thoroughly. It's like sign, move on, and that kind of works for the dealer too, because I don't have to explain all this, but it's all disclosed right here. So now you have your technical, legal contract, yeah, that's.

Shed Geek:

Yeah, you know some of them, some of them are like hey, I want to take a little different approach. I want to make sure you understand this, make sure you see this. I've run into this, I think, for years.

Shed Geek:

I've run into, you'd have more satisfied customers. Yeah, I've run into dealers. There are dealers, manufacturers, whoever you're signing up for rent, to own or something to ask this question all the time. Can you get that down to one page? I just need all that down to one page. Just make it really simple. And you're just like I'm not getting it to one page because I'm really trying to make it difficult for your life. I just want to make that clear. I didn't sit back and scheme and be like you know what this thing could use. It could use about six pages of government oversight.

Josh Hosey:

What else can we throw in here?

Shed Geek:

Yeah, yeah, what's your favorite color? You know what I mean? It's like well, why do you put that stuff in about? You know, about what am I looking for? Like whenever you have to arbitration, yeah, and you're like I have to put that in there because you've got to disclose that. And they're like just take that out. And you're like, oh, there's only that part about it being illegal. That's disrupting this conversation and I'm being cynical, but that's a reality. It's like hey, get that down to one page. I can make that easier for the. It's like no one's making it more difficult for you. I promise you Nobody. These are things that have to be disclosed, but what they know and what we know is, at the point of sale, people are like gosh, I've got to initial every page. Why do I have to do this? Because the customer's like I don't care right now, I'm impulse buying.

Shed Geek:

that's what they're doing I came to the point where it's an agreement. It's the amount that you told me and I'm good with it. It's not until like month 29 where they're like is this thing ever going to get paid off? Like, how much have I been paying on this?

Josh Hosey:

I'm going to call someone. They, yeah, they call in 12 months later like I think I've paid more than what the cash price on the shuttle yeah, did you think?

Shed Geek:

how do they do that? How does it go?

Josh Hosey:

I don't know if I can remember the exact quote I mean and it's like you really thought we were going to take the time to handle the contract lend you money for a year just and have a free you know, no rental charge whatsoever. I mean we wouldn't be in business very long if we try to do that again.

Shed Geek:

Education it.

Josh Hosey:

There was no, yeah, there wasn't education like I didn't know that's not what they told me at the beginning.

Shed Geek:

I had somebody call me the other day contract I sold five years ago and they were like they're like.

Shed Geek:

It didn't show up on my credit and I was like, no, it's not gonna show up on your credit, you know. And it's like you didn't tell me that. I'm like, oh, we did, we disclosed all that. Like you know, it's rent to own, it's not. But like it doesn't matter, cause when a when a customer shopping on impulse and then you throw in the mix of, like the dealer once that sale, it's very tempting to not go through this contract in detail because, as Justin said, you may, but they're signing, you're disclosing as much as you can. I don't have an answer for that, at least right now. Maybe I need to brainstorm on that, I don't know.

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Josh Hosey:

Well, let me even jump on the other side of the education. There's the one of not disclosing. Had a buddy that was getting ready to actually brother-in-law, so it's all in the family so not a buddy, Anyways he's a buddy, we're good

Justin Lepage:

friends.

Josh Hosey:

But he's also a brother-in-law, but anyways, he's getting ready to start his own shed lot and so he was just trying to learn a little bit. And so, he drove to a lot that was um in the area, and he had a friend with him and he's like hey, he said I just want to see how he sells rent to own, to see how that process works. So, they walk in looking at a shed and his friend's like, so I was just curious, you know, do you have any payment plans, payment options? And the dealer's like well, we have rent to own, but it's extremely expensive. It's so expensive I would not recommend it.

Josh Hosey:

Like you should try to find another way. You could do a credit card, do something. It it's really expensive. I wouldn't do it. It's like okay, so then they just kept looking at more sheds and then they're like let's, let's revisit it, you know. So, then a little bit later, like I really do want a payment plan though. So, you know, could I do rent down? Well, yeah, you could, I do have it, but I really would not do it. It just charges you so much I wouldn't do it. And it was like wow, like that was also a lack of education. He was almost trying to talk this guy out of a sale because he didn't even understand that. It does bring value and, yeah, it's something that does help a customer to gain ownership. If they can't handle their own finances and pay cash, it is an option for them to be able to take ownership of it.

Shed Geek:

I understand this mentality. It's a flawed mentality but I understand it because there was a time where I've done it. I could laugh and joke about this now with Dennis Fisher. Any of you guys out there in the audience knows Dennis Fisher. He was an RTO rep for me for a time whenever I was selling sheds and me and him would spend a lot of time on the phone and I love the guy, he's awesome. We can laugh about it now. But I was. I was a really difficult like dealer to deal with because it was just like challenge the RTO on all thoughts or. But you know, I mean I'm probably a bit of that abrasive personality to challenge anybody on anything at some point to be like you know, I don't know, let me. If I agree with your person, like your position, I'll change mine, but if not, like I'll hold mine. I tell people you know I like my idea better because I thought of it. You know what I mean.

Shed Geek:

Like you got to convince me of yours.

Shed Geek:

You know what I mean I'm going to result to mine, naturally because I'm like.

Josh Hosey:

I thought of it, I sold my idea to myself already, yeah.

Shed Geek:

You know, once I see that yours is better, I'm like, ooh, I'm going with his.

Speaker 4:

You know what I mean.

Shed Geek:

Like that that deal out of the water. So, it's just, you got to be convinced. But I I used to tell him that all the time I was like, oh, it's expensive, whatever. And I would have customers come in and I'd be like, I don't know, it's kind of expensive. If you do this and I realized that, like, you're setting the customer up for failure immediately because if rent on is the best option for them, maybe they've got stress or strain credit, maybe they're going through a divorce, maybe they got whatever the reason, maybe they've got credit, don't want to use it because you're gonna buy a house, whatever it is. You know, whatever the reason you're, you're definitely talking them out of it.

Shed Geek:

If they were thinking about doing it because they're like, oh, this guy's telling me I'm making a bad financial decision and it it's like why even offer it? Why even offer it? Why not just take it completely off the table if it's that bad of an idea? Because you almost got to be talked in to the customer doing it, where you can feel as though you freed your conscious at the end of it, to be like I tried, I tried and tried and tried not to get you to use this service.

Josh Hosey:

that we offer and you made the bad choice and you made the bad choice.

Shed Geek:

So now, what you know, what my conscious is clear, so you can go and deal with it.

Justin Lepage:

And it's like man, if you're really in that place, don't offer it well, aren't we like too far the other way now, where we just push it on anybody when it's a very bad decision for them.

Shed Geek:

We don't even try to vet that possibly, and I think some of that comes from a lack of like, just conversation, education, you know, uh, hey I can structures well, I mean, what's what's, what's?

Shed Geek:

you know what's the what's the answer now? To like it's not 2020, 2021, covid numbers, it's like five years later, or whatever. To where it's like, hey, last year everybody struggled. I mean, we know companies that didn't struggle. You know we, we consult a company that went from that went from seven million to nine million, nine six last year.

Shed Geek:

How did they grow in the face of everybody struggling? Like some of it comes down to like your business model, your business plan, your aggressiveness, your marketing, all of these different things. Like not everybody's struggling, like some of it comes down to like your business model, your business plan, your aggressiveness, your marketing, all of these different things. Like not everybody's struggling. But a lot of people did. And what's the answer to that? Throw inventory out there. Typically, let's go, we got 40 lots. Let's go open up 10 more, let's put about 100 grand in each one of them, and and and. We're bound to sell. But, like I want to make sure that I'm not bashing anyone who's listening, I feel like I'm bashing them, but it's like you throw a book at them and you say do your best. Here you go what's rent on?

Shed Geek:

that's payment option. You figured out, here you go educate them yeah, like, are you receiving more than that, or is it? Or is it like throw to the wolves, figure it out. If you're a good dealer, we we'll keep you. If you're not see you, we're going to move that inventory somewhere else. Like, can that change? Can we do something different there?

Justin Lepage:

Do you think that's the dealer's responsibility to educate customers, or is that?

Josh Hosey:

rent-to-income companies.

Shed Geek:

It's a great question, one that, in complete transparency, I don't have an answer for you today. Fair enough, because I wish I did know the answer to that, and someone probably has the answer and they're probably screaming at me right now and saying oh it's obvious, you idiot.

Shed Geek:

But you know, like I think, that you do have a responsibility as a rent-owned company to train, but we're so fragmented Like I remember signing people up for rent-owned and they they're like thank goodness you're here to talk to my dealers. So we're so many hats that, like I only know what you tell me or what I assume or hear from other people, or what I've experienced before, or they'll call someone I didn't call a rent on company that they're with and be like you know what's your opinion on this and it's like I think there's a lot of good dealers who do have the best customers, best interest in mind, I do.

Justin Lepage:

Absolutely. But on the flip side, I think it's very hard A lot of other dealers to get to that point of education and really have the customers best interest in mind when they are inquiring about rent to own. When selling a rent to own-own contract is more profitable due to other incentive structures from rent-to-own companies, like premiums and all of the above.

Josh Hosey:

We even floated, I don't know a year ago or so. A couple years ago, you talked a lot about why don't we compete on divisors.

Shed Geek:

That's what banks do on interest rates right.

Josh Hosey:

And you talked about it and it makes sense because in that sense the customer's winning, it should result in potentially more sales if the customer's winning. And so, yeah, I thought that was a good idea. I liked what you were saying and you know, we did float it out a little bit and it just really didn't gain traction. We were like, you know, would you be willing to, in lieu of grabbing a premium off of that sale, would you be in favor of us lowering the divisors or, you know, changing the divisors? I should say so. It lowers the customer's payment. That actually hit our margins heavier than the premium. But would it result in more sales and the customer winning? And, um, it just really didn't gain any traction. We couldn't really get that. It was like, well, 20 bucks a month isn't really going to make that much of a difference in a customer signing up or not. So, you know, it just didn't gain much traction.

Shed Geek:

So we really never did it yeah, no, we, we floated it to a few people and it's kind of like I don't know, will they buy at $180 instead of $200?

Shed Geek:

Then we start looking at the bottom line and we're like man, it's cheaper to throw the premium out there than it is to lose the overall yield, but we're willing to go there. We're willing to have that conversation with somebody a little bit. What it does is it holds you in contempt if you're the manufacturer to say are you really after the best thing for your customer, because a lower payment would be, but that means you're going to lose this nice little payday of a dealer premium. Which where'd that come from anyway? Right? Or like you have to start paying, like people that you're offering a service to yeah, originally it was just thank you for the service thank you.

Justin Lepage:

Look at other by like financial service niches, like the buy now, pay later industry or even other kind of direct consumer lease to own models and, like the furniture and you know, consumer tech space or other types of industries that they do lease-to-own option on, the retailer does pay a basically a fee to the financing company for the service for offering the financing option for their customers it's just.

Shed Geek:

It's just. Obviously, it's crazy. Now the finance company is like you know, it's it's like I got a contract over here. It's like here, here, we got some money. We'll give you extra money if you send it with us, right?

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Shed Geek:

uh, but and is that?

Shed Geek:

is that an example of like the competitiveness, of like the industry and just like where it's gone to be? Like there's so many companies that are offering this now that, like the manufacturers have the run of the mill to just kind of be like, well, if you won't pay me five percent, somebody will. Someone will, matter of fact, if you will pay me five, someone will probably pay me six and seven and eight and nine I.

Josh Hosey:

I've heard all the way up to nine, so you're willing to pay for the exclusiveness that like?

Shed Geek:

can we go on record and be like we'll never pay nine? Can we like do that on the podcast and be like what?

Justin Lepage:

There's not much left.

Shed Geek:

Yeah, it's like how much money do you like? You, you know, and they're like.

Josh Hosey:

It doesn't matter. Like when you go to business someone else 9% and then they pay within 90 days, the same as cash.

Shed Geek:

That's a loss, yeah, that's a loss for the RTO company heavy. It gets to the point where, like, the business model doesn't make sense because you're like, how much can I give away to keep you? So, you know, you've seen some creative stuff. Otherwise, you've seen people paying for, like dealer inventory. That's a good way to keep you. So, you know, you've seen some creative stuff. Otherwise, you've seen people paying for, like dealer inventory. That's a good way to, you know, create some stickiness.

Shed Geek:

What we did in lieu of we'll just throw this out there what we did in lieu of, like, lowering the divisors, is we tried to think of a creative way that was service-based. You know you write a million dollars in in in contracts. You know, five percent. You get a nice little fifty thousand dollar check at the end of the year or throughout the quarter or per contract. However, you know, however you get it. But we were like it's like. You know, average marketing budget in the United States is about four to five percent for most companies. So maybe we just take that dealer premium, apply it toward a good marketing plan.

Shed Geek:

Now, if you take your sales from oh I don't know 2.5 up to 3.5, you might not be getting that nice little 50 000 check, but you just increased your company and is the goal to increase your company or is it to increase your premium? It's like that premium is like fringe benefit. That's not meant to be an income, it's meant to be a fringe benefit and, if you like, focus on that more. It's like, yeah, but I get this nice little check and then we go on a hunting trip. It's like what's better, getting that check or going from 2.5 to 3.5? Now you're putting more people to work, you're putting your labor to work, you're getting your lumber cheaper because you're ordering in bulk. And guess what?

Shed Geek:

next year you're gonna go up to 4.5 if you want to grow your business like isn't that the way to do it? Yeah, and if and if rent-owned company comes in and says, well, we'll match their offer, it's like you have to out serve me now. You have to do as good a job in the marketing world right to be able to infiltrate that yeah, and we hope that it's just a.

Josh Hosey:

It's a wheel that just keeps benefiting everyone in that whole cycle, because it's like they're giving us rent to own contracts, we're putting that into their marketing, the marketing's helping their sales, they get more sales, we get more rent to own contracts and then there's more going to marketing and it's just a, a wheel that you know. You hope it just continues to work marginally and growth, yeah, it's worked marginally.

Shed Geek:

I won't say that it's been amazing and we've had some hiccups along the way. We've had to learn, like you know. Hey, are we gonna throw 50 grand in right away to a company? You know what I?

Shed Geek:

mean it doesn't really have yeah it's like well, we need to see some numbers and different things like that, and we kind of expected to see some follow suit. I mean, I've seen some rent on things pop up here and there and we welcome them. It's like it's uh, hopefully we can be the voice that's like we're never going to be like anything that we do. Like you don't get to do it, like we'll never be that company in any way. To be like no, no, we already thought of this. Go think of something else. It's like you know, of course, people are gonna do it too if it's working, but maybe it's setting the standard, if nothing else yeah, so yeah, I don't know.

Josh Hosey:

I think it's a good value add it's a good value.

Shed Geek:

A lot of people benefited, I think, from it, and some people are like, hey, just give me the money, yeah, and then eventually they're like we had a down year and you're like, oh, you ever thought of marketing? What are y'all doing? You know? It's like, oh, we don't have a website. We're like good place to start.

Shed Geek:

You know, Anyway, I don't know, I'm torn on premiums. You know, I feel like, like Justin said, you know, if he was in the furniture world, they would be like, you know, like we will pay you a percentage if you'll give us a chance to do a payment option and not in our world, in our percentage if you'll give us a chance to do a payment option and not in our world. In our world it's like man, I got 30 companies ready to knock down the door. I always laugh. We've even made jokes. You guys have probably even seen it on the shed sales professionals page, where we even joke where somebody comes on and they're like what rent down company does this?

Justin Lepage:

and then it's like you know what I mean, it's like, it's like call this guy call that guy and it's like we're always thankful if someone mentions us, but it's like it call this guy, call that guy, and it's like we're always thankful if someone mentions us, but it's like it's not necessary because we don't want to turn it into like a popularity contest.

Shed Geek:

Or it's like we, you know you serve your dealer so much that they're going to throw your name out there. I would tell you unequivocally, and maybe not everyone will tell you this call them all. Call them all and figure out who fits what you want to offer. Like I think it.

Josh Hosey:

I, I think, if we win a, a deal we want it to be on our merit and our offer.

Shed Geek:

Yeah, yeah absolutely I don't want it to be, because it's like well I'm not as popular you know what I mean.

Shed Geek:

It's like ah, that's and maybe there's another company out there that's better for you than us, and it's like go with. It's like, ah, that's and, and, and maybe there's another company out there that's better for you than us, and it's like go with them. It's like, if that makes sense, that's what you should do. It's a yeah, I don't know. I mean not to. I hate to say that and sound like we're like we don't want business.

Justin Lepage:

Right.

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Josh Hosey:

We got deep, we got into the trenches.

Shed Geek:

How do you stop it, Justin? How do you go a different direction and you say I don't have to give you a premium or pay for your 3D configurator or your POS, or how do I get to the point to where I say we offer a good, valuable service and?

Justin Lepage:

we're not going to compete in how much we can give away to keep you. What is the alternative to that? You're gonna try to get me started.

Justin Lepage:

Ah, share it share what you want, I'll say no I don't have all the answers, clearly I'm just spitballing most of tonight, but I just I just keep coming back to what is best for a consumer and how to rent your own companies. Do what is best for their customers, which is ultimately their renters, and it seems like renters are now just a byproduct of their business, which is trying to do the best for dealers, which obviously you should do. We try to do our best at that. We try to provide great service to our dealers and support them in every way we can, but ultimately, the renters are our customers and I don't think we're doing what's best for them and they're our customer longer than they are the customer or the dealers.

Shed Geek:

That's the initial. You know we share that customer, but we have them for 24, 36, 48, 60 months.

Josh Hosey:

But yeah, if we're thinking of marketing or something, we're B2B, we're business to. You know, we are rent to own company, to the manufacturer or dealer.

Shed Geek:

We're not to the renters. So how do you?

Justin Lepage:

change it. What would it look like to shift more of a direct-to-consumer model similar to traditional consumer finance, personal loans, all that where the financial companies acquire customers first?

Shed Geek:

Similar to a bank.

Justin Lepage:

Yeah, and they develop that relationship, have them enter into an agreement with the financial company or the rental company in this situation and then help facilitate the retail process, the sale process, and help them find the building, the shed they need, and let them go through that process with already having built and established a rent-to-own company to use, because, based off of a slew of different services and promotions that rent-down companies could provide directly to consumers, instead of offering those on the back end to dealers after a sale has already been made.

Shed Geek:

I'm going to go ahead and order you some body armor for any rent-down companies that are listening. But it's true, you know to role-play the scenario, Josh, you know I'm Mr Customer. I come into your shed lot, hello Mr Shed Guy. My name's Shannon. I'm here to buy one of Josh's sheds and I got about $9,000 to spend because I went to the bank and they said you know, yeah, we'll loan you on a personal loan nine grand. Is your first question going to be what bank did you go to? Does that matter?

Josh Hosey:

No, the third. I'm going to make the sale I went to.

Shed Geek:

Capital. I went to you know wherever. I don't use bank as long as I'm gonna get paid money's good I want to sell you want to sell but but you have no thoughts on like what bank I went to doesn't matter.

Josh Hosey:

Yeah, you mean, I don't have an exclusive deal with a bank so.

Shed Geek:

so, you're just gonna sell me a shed today and the bank's gonna either write me a check or write you a check directly, and boom, there we go. Everybody's satisfied. I would take the sale any day.

Josh Hosey:

Yeah, it sounds good.

Shed Geek:

Scenario number two I walk in and I say hey, Josh, I would like to buy one of these sheds and I've been pre-approved from a rent-owned company. Pick one of your choosing. Think of the first five that come to mind. And maybe that company doesn't do rent-to-own with that dealer, it's like. But the rent-to-own company found that customer, sent them in to you.

Josh Hosey:

You're going to make a sale.

Shed Geek:

Are you going to make the sale? Are you going to demand that they go with the rent-to-own company that they're with who did not send the customer in today, or that you have some sense of unequally yoked loyalty to that company that you won't make a sale? Because I don't support that? Yeah, I don't support that yeah, it's interesting it's a cash sale, it's essentially a cash sale and it's like, yeah, but I'm concerned about who's going to reap the benefits of it that just hardly happens in any other space, but it's interesting, it's interesting to think about.

Shed Geek:

I like we don't even really officially have anything going and we've talked about this.

Josh Hosey:

Yeah, this is all just and I mean, and it could hit us.

Shed Geek:

I mean, if somebody rolls something out, I mean they could start walking into some of our dealers and how much are they gonna like it when we go take? One of theirs, and it's like well then, it's free for the goose for you know, good for the good goose, good for the gander.

Speaker 4:

It's good, you know we can.

Josh Hosey:

We can go out and, like you know, find customers with good marketing leads and send them into uh I mean, and as far as the dealers, as far as the dealer is concerned, I mean, why couldn't it just be considered like a cash sale? They're, they're coming in with us. You know they're going to get paid and they could you're letting our tail companies bring you leads.

Justin Lepage:

Bring you they're. They're spending marketing dollars on you.

Josh Hosey:

Like all you got to do is take the money. Yeah, if somebody has their wallet out and wants to give me some money, probably, and it's like.

Shed Geek:

But it's like, what is it, is it? I guess the question is it unhealthy? Or what are the reasons why they would be like? I can't do it because I have a pledge to my current company? Maybe because my current company has me under contract? Maybe because my current company furnishes my you know, like in inventory? Maybe it's because of this, that or whatever the reason is, it's like, man, it still operates as a cash sale. And what if we were to call ourselves something else other than the rent down company that we are? It would be completely unalarmed and it would be like I don't really don't care where the money comes from, as long as it doesn't come from you or you or you, and it's like.

Shed Geek:

Would we encourage our dealers anyone that we work with, just to be clear, would we encourage any dealer if a rent-owned company brought someone in and said, hey, here's a check to not sell that on a cash sale? No, they should sell it. They should sell it. Yeah, of course you should sell it. Like. Do we want to argue on it of?

Shed Geek:

course do we have a relationship with you, of course, but are we going to be like don't either sell it with us or don't sell it, don't just sell the shed. What a strange position to take.

Josh Hosey:

Yeah, and I mean and we are a rent to own company, so I mean, of course we appreciate our dealer loyalty, of course, no, I mean, so yeah, what we're throwing out here, it could hurt us as well, but it's, it just would make sense it's just what's best for the customer makes the sale it would.

Justin Lepage:

Yeah, it is what it is, because then we can repeat on ourselves on our set on pure customer service and just doing what is right b2c service instead of B2B service, exactly for the end renter.

Shed Geek:

Yeah, yeah.

Justin Lepage:

And again there's our intricacies.

Shed Geek:

There's things we haven't thought about too. Let's point out that there's things we haven't considered.

Justin Lepage:

The contract and you know, on the back end, as far as collections management all that goes it's. You know it's not as black and white as we may be making it out to be. Which?

Josh Hosey:

is maybe why it's not happening.

Shed Geek:

In a two-sided marketplace it's kind of hard to so. Like B2B, we sell advertising to the industry of the podcast.

Justin Lepage:

Yeah.

Shed Geek:

Right, that's a little smaller barrel. Those are easier fish to capture because the industry listens. But unless we were and we're considering this, just to be clear starting a podcast that is direct to consumer, that involves the shed industry like capturing 300 million, 400 million people in America's attention is way harder than capturing. You know, the five to ten thousand people that I want to capture in b2b, you know. So, like a two-sided marketplace is hard to be clear.

Shed Geek:

I mean, and any company that is selling sheds knows that because they're having to market to the public and anytime you market to the public, it can get expensive, especially now when you consider not just the brick and mortar storefront but your digital storefront, which is very relevant but also very hard and cost money. And you got to think it through. And websites and ads and analytics and a lot of guys get into sheds and they're like I don't care, I don't care about a CRM, I don't care about Google ads, I don't care about a GA four tag, a meta pixel. Anything that you're talking about is boring and I'll either hire you to do it if I trust you, or I won't do it, or, if I don't understand it, I'll criticize it.

Shed Geek:

I've had that happen too. It's like, oh, it's stupid. And it's like, well, it's working in a lot of places, though you know, it's like you know, so it's like you know, I, this is what I love. It's like we're talking about difficult things, vulnerable things, and when you're vulnerable, there's going to be somebody that's going to like, throw something to the radio who's listening right now? And be like that's terrible, or you should never mention that, or it's it's like man, hard conversation needs to happen in order for growth to take place.

Shed Geek:

A year I can't take credit for any of this, just to be clear.

Shed Geek:

I want to because I'm like, oh, that would be nice, but like I can't like full disclosure, Justin, like you were the one that thought about it and we're just like maybe he's lost it took a while to bring you guys around, but then all of a sudden, it's like maybe there's like some genius in that I'm not sure you know, but it's like, as you talk about it, it's like, oh no, we can't talk about it because it's taboo, it might offend someone, and it's like I don't know, I mean like you can't. You can't control what offends somebody. I suppose it's like, but I mean, it's a great idea. It's not wrong to consider new ideas, especially when your focus is like exactly what people talk about as manufacturers, which is like how do I help the customer more? That's, that's where your, that's where your heart came from, that's where your intention came from. I was like how do I help the customer more? Anyway, we can get off of that conversation um anything else that you guys want to share.

Shed Geek:

I can't say enough about how much one like I enjoy working with you guys, how people should get to know you and how, like shed geek Reynolds Isn't just like Shannon Latham out here beating a drum. It's not. I appreciate all the people who've called me, who've responded, who've decided to work with us. You mean the world to us it's. You know we're, you know I don't. I don't feel worthy of being able to, to be in the blessed position that I've been in. It all goes to God If I ever begin to consider any credit for myself. I told Deanna this on the car on the way up. I was like I know it's over. It's over the minute that I begin to take any credit for any of it.

Shed Geek:

I've just been lucky enough, maybe even smart enough, to listen to other people's advice who say enough, maybe even smart enough to listen to other people's advice who say surround yourself with people who are smarter than you and you can be successful. And you guys are part of that crowd that I've surrounded myself with and you have, I know. Plus, you're super humble. The humility is amazing, flowing, um it it's I. I can live off of that. I can live off the benefits of those relationships and I have. And, uh, I think people should know you guys more. I feel like they should know you guys as the face of SGR more. I think a lot of people do already, but still, they get to know you. They're gonna like you guys like I do.

Josh Hosey:

That's my opinion so that's just my little commercial for you guys I appreciate it. Yeah, we've enjoyed getting to know you. It's been great since we uh started working together and weekly meetings and heart to hearts and all kinds of talks, arguments going after it like probably some tears beating the wall.

Shed Geek:

all of it combined has turned into like a cool little relationship that I'm super thankful for, see nothing but opportunity in the future.

Josh Hosey:

That's exciting. Yeah, there's a lot of opportunity, even though you know we've talked about being very saturated industry, but there's still opportunity out there. It's amazing how big the industry is.

Shed Geek:

Yeah, it's been good like everybody. Everybody's been really cool. Uh, anything you guys want to share just with the industry? Thoughts like we've hit it pretty hard here today. We got pretty deep. It was some wild trails not really.

Justin Lepage:

I mean, I would just encourage anybody just to reach out and just have a conversation with us, even if you're not looking for rent-to-own. Just love to get to know anybody we can. We'd be happy to help service you, obviously, if we can, but we're trying to grow our network. Like you said, we haven't made big personalities for ourselves. We haven't put our names out there a lot in the past several years, so we just like meeting new people, learning your story. So, yeah, just reach out if you're inclined to. I'd love to talk with each one of you.

Josh Hosey:

Yeah, and I would say I've really enjoyed, since we started working with you, a little bit more exposure. I mentioned earlier that I just worked the books and customers, the renters, for years and didn't really know much of the industry so I didn't really have any relationships. And it's been really neat, especially since hooking up with you. You've brought so many relationships to the table and I've talked to a lot more dealers now but I'm a little more dealer-facing with the arrangement and so I've loved some of the conversations and, yeah, it's been great. So, I really enjoy the relationships that I've gotten to kind of just to cultivate, because now I'm seeing them more.

Josh Hosey:

We're going to the Shed Expo and then you bring multitudes of people over to the booth because you're the shed geek, and then we get to talk though and then it spawns a relationship and so, yeah, I've loved the relationship. So, you know, we kind of ripped on where business. You know it's where b2b, but yeah, I enjoy that because it's the businesses are our customers and we get to see them over and over at shed expos and build long-standing relationships and so, yeah, I have that.

Shed Geek:

I like to tell people, like, if you tell you people that, like you're the shed geek outside of the industry, it's like that and a token, I get you a bus ride you know cause they're like who?

Shed Geek:

I don't care whatever I was like. So occasionally, whenever like you, you actually people like they, they use their time to listen in to the podcast. They feel like they, they use their time to listen in to the podcast. They feel like they get to know you and because of that, like they come over and talk to you or want to meet you or shake your hand or whatever or say, hey, I appreciate the advice or any of this stuff. It's, it's humbling. I don't think you guys understand how humbling it is because it's like man, 10 years ago, 10 years ago I had zero opportunity, like nothing, nothing going.

Shed Geek:

And it was like man, I just poured myself into networking and collaborating and, like I said today on a Facebook post, I was collaborating before. It was cool. I'll be doing it long after it's cool. You know what I mean. Like that's what we were doing anyway, that's who I am and like I genuinely find people and their stories interesting, so that's like that's where it starts for me, you know, it's like oh, we do this right now, whether this would all that's important to me, but it's always secondary to the relationship. I want to know you, who you are, what makes you tick, why, how you got here, how you think. You know what I mean. Like I want to. I'm just interested in people and we take a natural interest in people. There's something that can't be rehearsed or taught or sold, right? You know what I mean.

Shed Geek:

It's like no, this guy really genuinely interested in people, anybody who spent hours upon hours upon phone calls I could start dropping names, dan, I can tell you I I would be embarrassed if you guys looked at my phone and said, like this is your. Your average weekly screen time is like up to like nine hours and something per day. I'm not joking, that's not counting any of my zoom, any of that stuff. It's like you spend nine hours a day on your phone. And no, I'm not talking about doom scrolling Facebook. I'm talking to people in the industry constantly and it's like I don't have the wherewithal to like ever tell anybody, like no, or like I can't talk, and I've got to like do that work-life balance to where it's like I'm with my family, can I schedule a call or whatever. But it's like I gotta call that guy back. I mean I've got somebody I called tonight. We got here. It's 8: 15 on a Saturday and I'm like I gotta call that guy back. I mean I've got somebody.

Shed Geek:

I called tonight. We got here it's 8 15 on a Saturday and I'm like I gotta call you know, um, and there's somebody that don't mind talking late and I'm thankful that we're empty nesters. Now my wife lets me do this. Look, we'll wrap up here. Same question to you guys that I give to everybody else on every podcast do you have any questions for me? Since I've interviewed you here today, do you have questions for me about podcasting, faith, family sheds, anything in the world? Just in complete transparency, that I don't mind answering and if you don't find, if you do ask, I'll give you my best shot should have prepped us for this one I would have come up with a couple zingers

Josh Hosey:

I could have gotten, I know wow on the spot, not really if you got not.

Shed Geek:

I mean, you guys know me pretty good I know you already.

Josh Hosey:

Yeah, I think that's. That's what. Yeah, we know you pretty well what. What's your take on the Radisson in Newport, Kentucky? Oh?

Shed Geek:

that was good is it everything gets cracked up to me, drove by it a million, a million times, you know, on that bridge and I'm like, look at that cool circular looking hotel there. That just looks awesome. You can get a view of the city. That's neat and it's like oh, I hope this doesn't make it onto Look, you can leave reviews. So, I guess this is fair. I'm not looking to get any of the Radisson police after me, but gosh, I don't know. That elevator is just jank dude, Like we thought we were going to die.

Speaker 4:

Just spend the night in there. Yeah, we were like look at this awesome hotel.

Shed Geek:

And we're like I don't know. It's like the street's looking pretty comfortable right now.

Josh Hosey:

It's not that bad. To be fair, it's not that bad. Nice, a nice restaurant with a city view. So, what are the? What are their hours on Saturday nights?

Shed Geek:

well, let's just say the top floor restaurant's not open on saturdays, and that's really a good business move.

Josh Hosey:

In my opinion Saturday nights are usually, Saturday nights probably really boring, uh yeah.

Shed Geek:

So, we were like, oh man, we were, we were really looking forward to like, yeah, but hey, we, we saved it. We went to a nice little Italian joint that was good.

Josh Hosey:

I would recommend that to anyone.

Shed Geek:

We had some really really good food yeah, that spicy shrimp.

Josh Hosey:

I'd revisit that.

Shed Geek:

It was. Look, it's not as bad as I make it sound, but it just. You know, some things aren't what. What did you say? Some things aren't what you expect them to be.

Josh Hosey:

All things are as they appear.

Shed Geek:

Yeah.

Josh Hosey:

That's the Radisson.

Shed Geek:

That would be it. Yeah, I was like that looks really cool and now I'm just kind of like I don't know, probably should have stayed the whole day in.

Josh Hosey:

You'll think that every time you drive past there now, like man, I thought that place was going to be legit.

Shed Geek:

Yeah, yeah. Five years of driving by there and being like it'd be cool to really stay in there one time there.

Josh Hosey:

There's no working elevators in there.

Shed Geek:

Well, if you guys don't have anything other than the Radisson, we'll wrap it up. But I will end it by saying again appreciate you guys, everything you've done I'm hoping for this is a long-term deal for us.

Josh Hosey:

In my mind.

Shed Geek:

It has been collaboration for success yeah, I think it has. It's been a good collab hey, man, let's, let's go do more, let's get you know, maybe we'll get some. Get you guys on here once a year. If I can get you on here more than that, that'd be fine.

Josh Hosey:

But uh, Justin's always itching to get on. It's the second one, so he he'll be ready to come back. I love it he said I love it. He said I love it.

Justin Lepage:

I love it. I'm just a natural podcaster, I think.

Shed Geek:

I think you guys have way more charisma than you realize, and what I like is yeah, I don't know you do have humility, and then you guys also have boldness. You're just fun, you're fun to hang around with, you're fun to be in business with. I can't ask for more than that.

Josh Hosey:

Awesome. Thanks for having us on.

Shed Geek:

Appreciate you guys.