Acima, the virtual lease-to-own (LTO) FinTech arm of Rent-A-Center, Inc., on Monday (Aug. 2) rolled out a digital platform focused on improving the retail leasing experience.
The digital initiative includes a new Acima mobile application, an Acima Marketplace online shopping platform and the Acima browser extension. Acima’s LeasePay Card, which was unveiled in April 2021, is now accessible through the mobile app as well.
“Consumers want more shopping flexibility and online platforms that don’t shut them out because of their financial history,” said Jason Hogg, executive vice president of Acima, in the company announcement. “We’re creating a shopping experience much more inclusive of all consumer demographics.” He added that the market for potential demand could approach $100 billion, and that the Acima platform “represents the future of frictionless shopping for durable goods through the power of lease-to-own technology.”
The National Retail Federation recently revised the annual U.S. retail sales forecast to more than $4.4 trillion for 2021 — and technology is playing an increasingly important role in that growth.
The Acima Marketplace and browser extension, in conjunction with the Acima LeasePay Card, will “create new and incremental shopping experiences benefiting both customers and retailers,” according to the announcement.
The Acima mobile app will allow customers to apply for a new lease, find retail stores near them, access the Acima Marketplace, manage their accounts and check for promotions on the items they want.
Rent-A-Center, Inc. closed on its purchase of Acima Holdings in February. Rent-A-Center CEO Mitch Fadel said at the time that Rent-A-Center has sought to provide the smoothest lease-to-own experience for merchants and shoppers. He added that the company is “delivering on that goal with the right assets now in place.”
Rent-A-Center said that the joining of Acima’s capabilities with its own Preferred Dynamix system gives merchants and shoppers an expanding collection of FinTech offerings for LTO transactions. The combined firm will let shoppers access the advantages of Rent-A-Center’s flexible LTO offerings throughout online shopping, digital and mobile channels.
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