National white goods rental franchise Mr Rental has reported sales for the group across Australia and New Zealand grew by 19.3 percent, while enquiries grew by 14 percent.

Conversion rates increased too, from 51 percent to 59 percent, said general manager Alan Payne. “Our units out, which refers to appliances and goods being rented by families as opposed to remaining in storage, grew by 17 percent,” he said.

Payne said these figures demonstrated the economic climate experienced this year had created an environment where families needed to prioritise differently, and review their living expenses.

“Customers receive fast approval with easy payment terms and, importantly, no large cash outlay, which is something many families have trouble producing these days,” he said. “They have the flexibility to upgrade their appliances to the latest model at any time, and they also donÕt have to fork out money to repair items, as we look after all servicing and repairs.”

The network places a heavy emphasis on advertising and marketing its service offerings, and in fact, has recently been announced as winner of the Franchise Council of Australia (FCA) National Award for Excellence in Marketing for 2009. In addition seven new stores have opened around Australia and New Zealand and enquiries in buying a Mr Rental franchise have doubled over the last year, Payne said.