Chairman & CEO

As a decorated Navy Veteran of World War II, and a successful entrepreneur for over 65 years, Ray has watched and experienced the economic swing through the years, noting how much the small business owner takes the brunt.

He decided it was time to take things in his own hands: Thus The Merchants Association was founded.

Ray believes  that if we band together we can take control of our destiny and become more competitive with the big box retailers.

Jim Rankin

President & Marketing Director

A USAF Vietnam Veteran, Jim has been in sales and sales management for over 35 years.

He has worked for small to larger corporations always exceeding goals and expectations in the area of growth.

He thoroughly understands the needs of small businesses and is committed to The Merchants Association's goals of helping these businesses to grow and prosper in this unstable U.S. Economy.

IT Manager

With the ever changing demands of technology, Russell has the experience and knowledge to keep The Merchants Association websites user friendly with ease of navigation.

This assures that the viewers, the buying public, will always be able to easily find all goods and services that are offered by the members.

Graphic & Web Designer

Social Media Artist! Avyi is the Web and Graphic Designer of The Merchants Association with the responsibility for creating the layout of the website, merchant ad pages, and in some cases: logo creation for our local merchants. She also serves as our social networking manager where she keeps us connected with the communities in our coverage area(s), both our merchants and the consumers. Prior to joining The Merchants Association, Avyi worked as a freelance Social Media Artist in NW Arkansas. With a background of web design, graphic design and video production, she is a great asset to our Team!