GE Capital’s Retail Finance Business and Conn’s, Inc. Announces Expanded Consumer Financing Program
KETTERING, OHIO and BEAUMONT, TEXAS – August 16, 2011 – GE Capital’s Retail Finance business, a consumer lending unit of General Electric Company (NYSE: GE - News) and Conn’s, Inc. (NASDAQ/NM: CONN - News), a specialty retailer of consumer electronics, home appliances, furniture, mattresses, computers, and lawn and garden products, today announced an expansion and extension of their consumer finance program, which began in 2009.
“Conn’s is one of the region’s most established and successful retailers,” said Paul Schell, general manager, Consumer Electronics for GE Capital’s Retail Finance business. “We’re honored to continue working with Conn’s to provide their customers with convenient financing options and promotions and help Conn’s achieve their business goals.”
Extended through 2014, the renewed consumer financing program will include the introduction of a Conn’s branded credit card, expanded product offerings and financing promotions, and special cardholder discounts and shopping opportunities. Currently, approximately 60 percent of Conn’s retail sales are financed. Customers can apply for the Conn’s Card online at www.conns.com, and the program is available at all 75 Conn’s retail stores and clearance locations in Texas, Louisiana and Oklahoma.
“Working with GE Capital enables us to provide qualified customers with financing programs that enhance the value they receive when they buy from Conn’s,” commented Mike Poppe, CFO, Conn’s. “We value the relationship we have with GE Capital, which also gives us increased capacity to support sales growth through the flexible financing programs we offer our customers.”
For more than 75 years, GE Capital’s Retail Finance business has provided billions of dollars in consumer financing through more than 200,000 small- and mid-sized businesses throughout the United States. The business is a leading provider of consumer credit in the Appliances and Consumer Electronics industries and supports its retail clients and dealers with online technology such as the Business Center, which includes service, training, marketing and sales tools.
About Conn’s, Inc.
Conn’s Inc. is a specialty retailer currently operating 75 retail and clearance center locations in Texas, Louisiana and Oklahoma including: 23 stores in the Houston area, 18 in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex, eight in San Antonio, three in Austin, five in Southeast Texas, one in Corpus Christi, four in South Texas, six in Louisiana and three in Oklahoma. The Company sells home appliances, including refrigerators, freezers, washers, dryers, dishwashers and ranges; and a variety of consumer electronics, including LCD, LED, 3-D, plasma and DLP televisions, camcorders, digital cameras, computers and computer accessories, Blu-ray and DVD players, video game equipment, portable audio, MP3 players, GPS devices, and home theater products. The Company also sells furniture for the living room, dining room, bedroom and related accessories, and mattresses, as well as lawn and garden equipment, and continues to introduce additional product categories in response to its customers' product needs. For more information, visit www.conns.com and twitter.com/connsinc.
About GE Capital’s Retail Finance business
GE Capital’s Retail Finance business is among the country’s oldest and most successful retail lenders, with more than 75 years of experience in consumer financing. The business, which originates loans as a unit of GE Money Bank, provides credit card programs to retailers and consumers in the United States through its Retail Cards and Sales Finance units. This includes customized private label and bankcard credit programs to major retailers in the U.S., as well as private label credit card programs, promotional and installment lending, bankcards and financial services for consumers through dealers; national, regional and independent retailers; contractors; manufacturers; healthcare practices; and service providers across more than 20 retail segments including: automotive, appliances and consumer electronics, elective health care, floor covering, home design and improvement, home furnishings, jewelry, music, powersports, outdoor power equipment and sporting goods. More information can be found at www.gemoney.com and @GEMoneyUS
GE Capital (NYSE: GE) is one of the world’s largest providers of credit. For over one million businesses, large and small, GE Capital provides financing to purchase, lease and distribute equipment, as well as capital for real estate and corporate acquisitions, refinancings and restructurings. For our 100+ million consumer customers, GE Capital offers credit cards, retail sales finance programs, home, car and personal loans and credit insurance. For more information, visit www.gecapital.com or follow company news via Twitter @GECapital.
GE is a diversified infrastructure, finance and media company taking on the world’s toughest challenges. From aircraft engines and power generation to financial services, health care solutions, and television programming, GE operates in more than 100 countries and employs about 300,000 people worldwide. For more information, visit the company's Web site at www.ge.com, www.gereports.com and @GE_Reports.
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