Exceeding tire sales expectations with lease-to-own financing

When a tire merchant with 30 locations first partnered with Koalafi, they saw flexible financing as a way to enhance the customer experience—ensuring more shoppers could make necessary purchases instead of leaving empty-handed. What they didn’t anticipate was the strong demand for lease-to-own financing or the significant impact it would have on their overall sales growth.

After seeing another tire retailer succeed with Koalafi, they decided to introduce lease-to-own financing in their own stores. They expected it to be a useful option for some customers, but the results exceeded expectations. More customers were able to make purchases, sales increased, and repeat business grew.

As lease-to-own financing continued to drive higher revenue and customer retention, the merchant fully integrated it into their financing strategy. Today, lease-to-own financing isn’t just an alternative payment option—it’s a critical tool for increasing sales and providing a better customer experience.

How Koalafi helped

Koalafi worked closely with the retailer to ensure a smooth rollout and long-term success:

• Educating leadership and sales teams – Provided insights on the lease-to-own financing customer segment and trained associates to confidently offer financing.

• Seamless integration – Implemented Koalafi financing in-store and online for a frictionless customer experience.

• Ongoing support and optimization – Two dedicated account managers provide weekly reporting, strategic recommendations, and best practices to keep improving results.

• Eliminated price as a barrier - Lease-to-own financing made essential tire purchases more accessible, boosting in-store conversions and helping more customers get what they needed.

The results

• 300% increase in lease-to-own volume from 2022 to 2024

• 25% of lease-to-own customers return for repeat purchases

• Nearly half of all applications originate online

• Lease-to-own financing is now a key sales driver

What started as a simple test has now become a competitive advantage. Today, this merchant relies on lease-to-own financing as a core part of their business—helping more customers get back on the road.

Want to see how lease-to-own financing could work for your business? Contact us to learn more.