Shuttered businesses litter downtown Reno these days, but pawn shops are not among them.

Pawn shops in Reno are like teenage girls at a Justin Beiber concert: everywhere.

Inspired partially by my own curiosity and partially by the History Channel show “Pawn Stars” I decided to check out what really goes on at one of these shops myself.

I walked into Premier Jewelry & Loan on Virginia Street in Reno across the street from the Silver Legacy Hotel and Casino.

The place was not what I expected.  On “Pawn Stars” overweight t-shirt and jeans wearing workers crack jokes and swear while bumbling around a store cluttered with obscure and random objects. 

Premier Jewelry is spotless and organized.  Everyone is professional and polite.  A worker in a button down shirt and khaki pants was vacuuming the carpet when I walked in and he quickly stopped in order to help me.

Items in Premier include everything from DVD’s to fur coats. There is a variety of musical instruments, including a display of several guitars in the middle of the shop. Interesting items include a saddle, a table saw, a white water kayak, and an antique cash register.

Several display cases hold hand tools and power tools, guns, watches, old coins, and various art pieces.  Everything in the store is labeled with a price tag and all prices are negotiable.

A pair of Tiffany sunglasses with gold wire frames catches my eye, but the $259 price tag is way out of budget.

The majority of the store, though, is devoted to jewelry.

According to Mike (last name withheld), partial owner of Premier Jewelry, the show “Pawn Stars” that inspired my visit is staged. 

“They bring in things for the media.  Most pawn shops don’t see hot air balloons and WWI muskets come in.”

“I would have a hard time moving a hot air balloon,” he explains.  “I wouldn’t buy something like that unless I knew I had a buyer.”  Mike would know. He has been in the business for over 20 years.

Mike explains his store’s focus on jewelry, “It is easy to turn gold into cash.  It is a stable asset that holds its value.”

I wonder if this makes the pawn business recession-proof.  Mike tells me this is not the case.  “Because of the recession we must be more flexible.  We sell at lower prices and our sales are down. We must work harder and smarter.” 

To Mike, working smarter means being more select about the kinds of things the store buys. During the economic downturn more people come in to sell items but “there is only so much room on the sales floor,” says Mike.

The business has adapted to the changing economy in other ways. “Most pawn shops today sell on E-bay,” Mike informs me. 

Mike takes innovation to another level, “I use E-bay to determine the market and make a decision to buy or loan.  If I see there is a market for it online the item may never hit the floor.” He recently used this strategy to move a satellite dish.

So what about the unusual items?  Mike shows me a 1956 Rolex GMT master on his wrist worth an estimated $40,000.  “It has the original plastic bake light bezel,” he explains. “They stopped making bezels like this because the paint they used was radioactive.”  Hmmm.  I think I would rather have the kayak.

All in all, my visit to the pawn shop did not yield the “crazy” items I was expecting. Instead I received a business lesson that you can’t get on reality television – all without a hot air balloon or musket in sight.

Premier Jewelry & Loan

490 N. Virginia St.

Reno, NV 89501

775-786-8886

Open 7 Days a Week