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Beware: not all gold buyers are created equal
Recently, the strong value of gold has prompted a rash of 'gold-by-mail' and 'gold party' firms to appear out of the woodwork. Unfortunately, a goodly portion of these firms are operating on consumer ignorance as to the true value of their items. The much marketed Cash4Gold company openly states on their website that:
"Cash4Gold values material based on its scrap value (the value of the precious metal in an item once it is melted down in the refinery). While other buyers, including local jewelers or pawn shops, might pay more for a particular piece of jewelry..." (emphasis added)
Not only do they admit to paying less in many instances, they also clearly state that they give no value for diamonds or superior craftsmanship.
Channel 10 news from San Diego sent 4 identical gold items to: Goldkit, Cash4Gold, Getgoldcash and a local pawnshop. Goldkit offered the lowest at $2.80 for the ring whereas the pawnshop offered the highest at $18.50 (over 600% more for the math challenged). Link: http://www.10news.com/news/17913343/detail.html
As another risk, when parcels are shipped through the mail Cash4Gold insures to a maximum of $500 - hardly a large value when shipping gold and diamonds by mail. Any settlement for loss could take weeks or months.
Gold-buying parties involve their own level of risk. You are inviting strangers into your house to examine your jewellery. Pressure is made to sell on the spot because the host/hostess receive a portion of the profits. Have you price compared against other buyers to see how fair of an offer you are receiving? How can you be getting the 'best price' if the firm admits they are paying the host a portion of the value - shouldn't that money go to the seller?
Our advice for those who are looking to sell gold:
- Premier typically pays more per item than mail-order or gold party agents. 100% of the offer we make goes to you, instead of losing a portion to the party 'host'. We evaluate diamonds, craftsmanship and other factors to determine a more realistic price.
- Premier pays cash, immediately. No waiting to book a party or for a cheque to arrive in the mail.
- Premier is secure. There's no risk of loss by mail or inviting strangers into your house to evaluate your jewellery.
- There's no pressure - price check against as many firms as you like and pick the one who gives the best offer.
- Premier is licensed and regulated. Unlicensed and unregulated gold buyers facilitate the disposal of stolen jewellery by failing to take ID, hold items or report transactions to the police. Support legal business.
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Well it's been a while since I've updated our blog so there's a lot to say! Firstly: we now have featured inventory online hosted by Castanet.net. It's by no means a full list of our inventory but does feature some of the more interesting items we have. We're planning on keeping it updated fairly often so please make sure to bookmark the following: http://classifieds.castanet.net/showcat.php/cat/414 Secondly: We're coming into Christmas and we're proud to offer a selection of Rolex, Omega and Movado luxury watches. These have been refinished and are in new looking condition. Photos should be online in the link above shortly. Thirdly: Guitars! If you're done playing Guitar Hero for your game system why not move onto the real thing. We have an awesome selection of estate and vintage guitars including rare collectibles like: - a Gibson Explorer Reissue,
- a GMW Guitarworks Randy Rhodes Custom Polkadot,
- a Fender Strat US made 50th anniversary edition,
- a Guild acoustic . . .
Of course, we also have starter models available! Lastly: GOLD – we buy it! With gold hovering at 20 year highs now is the time to sell us the stuff you're not wearing, don't want, don't like, etc. We buy broken jewellery, gold scrap, dental gold, pocketwatches, etc. Of course, we buy diamonds too. Cash now – no waits, no consignment fees and no mailing it out of town. Safe, quick and convenient.
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So today I had a person come into the pawnshop asking me to test a stone to see if it was a diamond. This is something we do on a daily basis so the identification process is quite quick. During things he was relating to me how he'd found it on the street and how it could be 'his lucky day' if it was real. At this point I came to realize how far the moral code of society has fallen.
Staring at the stone I'm thinking to myself it weighs probably 1.5cts and would have been worth a good $5-15 thousand depending on various factors. Personally, if I'd have found $5,000 of someone's funds I'd be contacting the police to report it in case someone was missing it. When I raised this question the person just said it was 'probably insured'. So now it's OK to take from the insurance company?
It's this kind of attitude that's created the world we live in today. The kinds of people who buy camcorders from people in bars - no questions asked. The guy who gets a 'smokin deal' on a guitar from a 'friend of a friend'. The fellow who says he's got no problem buying stolen merchandise because it's 'not like he stole it'. And yet I'd be prepared to wager that if it was their house that had been robbed or their ring that had been lost they'd be complaining about it.
There is a certain irony that the widely disparaged pawnbroker is being the moral compass in these situations. It's not the first time we've raised these concerns with people walking in off the street - I hope some day we won't need to anymore. The good news is that the stone wasn't real and our ethically challenged friend didn't make any money on his find. After our chat perhaps he'll do the right thing if this ever happens again - but somehow I doubt it.
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Today I am faced with an awkward decision - how to handle a problem client from years ago.
Here's the back story:
In 2003 we sold the client in question a fairly expensive brush cutter. This was literally a week after the large forest fires in the area and this kind of device was in demand from both landscaping companies and paranoid homeowners. The person in question works in a landscaping related field and thought it would be a useful tool to have.
Fast forward 30+ days later, after the end of our 30 day cashback no-questions warranty and the client wants to refund the brush cutter. As we're debating about how to handle this the client senses that things may not go fully their way so they become abusive, insulting and derogatory about our business practices. To make a long story short we take the high road and refund them via cheque along with the following letter: "Please find enclosed a full cash refund for the brush cutter purchased from our establishment. We apologize for the delay in processing, however your claim was out of warranty and required authorization from the owner of the store. After consideration of the circumstances we have elected to return your funds in full rather than issue store credit, which is our standard response to instances such as this. During the refund request from yourself certain allegations were made regarding our personal credibility and integrity as a firm. We are not prepared to be libeled or insulted, especially when someone is asking us to extend to them service that goes beyond our standard warranty. As a result of this we have elected to request that you discontinue your patronage of our firm and kindly take your business elsewhere." Now, on to the reason for the blog . . . last week I found them shopping in our store again. This has been nearly 5 years since I banned them from shopping with us. Now we've moved locations and I'm unsure if they realize it's the same operation so that could be a factor. But the real question is what do I do about it:
1. Advise them of the ban and request that they depart the store. This costs me any future business with them (which is something I'd already accepted years ago). Of course, since they've proven to be a problem client then perhaps that's not a bad loss.
2. Do I shut up and sell them the items they are asking me about and take my profit in hopes that they won't continue with their difficult history. People can change.
3. Do I advise them that I know who they are and that we'll let bygones be bygones BUT that any purchase they make from us is AS-IS final sale. Of course, since they wouldn't honor the terms of the last sales agreement who is to say that we care to risk it again.
We've always prided ourselves on beating the competition in every factor: price, warranty, professionalism, product range etc. I really hate to send clients away as I think it's poor service. But, you need to limit your risk as well.
So that's my fun question for the day.
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I am reminded again today how misunderstood we are as an industry. Within the last week we've helped a fairly prominent individual in the community span a financial shortcoming. This isn't the first time we've helped this person and hopefully (for us as a business) not the last. It does however bring to mind how far from reality some of the public notions on pawnshops can be. The person in question is employed in a high-profile job – the kind of person you would never imagine as being a client of pawnbroker. Unfortunately – that is the problem.
The lawmakers and newsmakers see us catering to a 'lower class of humanity' instead of realizing that everyone needs a hand now and again. Some of the things we've done: Helped someone buy their first home by pawning their vintage guitar collection. Helped someone move home to Ontario by buying a 1.87CT diamond appraised at $29,000. Bankrolled a business so they could pay their staff until their delinquent clients paid them. Helped liquidate an estate so someone could pay funeral costs. Helped a single mother with child expenses after a messy divorce.
Who is to say which of these has more worth? Who else would these people have turned to? What would they have done if we weren't around? There's the flipside of the scenario as well - how many people just starting out in life get further ahead by buying from us. We've had someone propose on one knee in our store after buying an engagement ring (talk about putting her on the spot!). I can't count how many dozens of guitars we've sold to budding musicians (Remember: Jimi Hendrix got his first guitar at a pawnshop!). We've helped people recover from insurance claims, replaced lost diamonds and setup people with their first computers. It may sound kind of strange but some days I'm damn proud to do what I do. Because as unglamorous as this industry is, we can be the cement that holds someone's world together.
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Unfortunately it seems that the day after we launch our new website we've already got some local damage-control to undertake.
While our store is often abbreviated "Premier Pawn", the full name of our operation is "Premier Jewellery and Loans". We've been using this name for years. It's the name that we've branded to stand for ethical and professional excellence within the industry. It's the name that we've been interviewed on TV with, printed in the newspapers with and featured on the radio with. It's the name that is registered with the Better Business Bureau and the Chamber of Commerice. We're proud of it.
Just yesterday I was informed that a local pawn operater (Cassiar Pawn) has renamed his store to "Okanagan Jewellery and Loans". As people proud of our image and what we've done for the public perception of the industry this is a grievous affront. Cassiar is the same operation that was shut down for 6 weeks due to bylaw infractions and handed a $5000 fine for a second set of offenses. To quote from the Castanet news story:
Police found all sorts of infractions when they checked into the operations of the Cassiar Pawn Shop in downtown Kelowna. The most serious involved an undercover officer pawning several electronic items without having to show identification.
Police also discovered the pawn shop owner, Edward Aboroa-Martinez, was accepting items where the serial number had been removed or tampered with.
He was also not reporting some transactions, contrary to city bylaws.
In total, Aboroa-Martinez pleaded guilty to nine different bylaw violations.
He was fined $5,000. This is the second time he has run afoul of the authorities. The city suspended his business license for six weeks late last year for similar infractions.
The pawn shop has been closed recently because Aboroa-Martinez is currently in prison on an unrelated matter.
http://www.castanet.net/edition/news-story-32013-1-.htm#32013
It's unfortunate that these kinds of operations continue to persist - they really do undermine the efforts of law-abiding business owners to improve the industry. We should state for the records that WE HAVE NO AFFILIATION WITH OKANAGAN JEWELLERY AND LOANS. Frankly, if we had our way these kinds of stores would be shut down for good.
Sadly I suspect we'll have to continue to deal with the confusion generated by Cassiar taking a name so close to ours. While I can't say it was a deliberate attempt to steal our clients and ride on our reputation I'll leave it to the reader to draw their own conclusions.
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Welcome to the 'blog' for Premier Jewellery and Loans Ltd. As you can tell by the name we're a pawnshop located in Kelowna, B.C. in the great frozen north (Canada). This blog will host various posts and stories from the staff and management of our store. Apparently our industry generates alot of interesting and bizarre situations that will make great material for the book we intend to release whenever we actually get around to writing it. <grin>
We'll also spend some time showcasing the more interesting items that have graced our inventories. We've had stock ranging from accordians to 2 carat prestige diamonds so it makes for a very diverse assortment of goods. It's also part of what makes the job so interesting because we never know what will come through the doors next. I remember watching some of my staff turn green when a customer dropped gold-capped teeth into their hands asking to sell them. I guess that is pretty odd, but really what else are you supposed to do with your old teeth? Especially when they have $50 worth of gold strapped to them.
As an industry we fill a necessary niche - we are the ultimate recyclers in a way. Because we buy and sell items we've helped people liquidate store inventories, downsize as they move from homes to apartments or clear out as they prepare to move across the country. This in turn has helped our buying clientelle get their LCD Tv's, computers, Xbox/PS3 gaming systems etc. We've got a fairly sound policy in our store: If I wouldn't take it home myself I wouldn't buy it for the store. This means that we typically only have really nice inventory because any of my staff who buy junk get to display it at their house . . . <evil grin>
Well, I should probably get back to work but I thought I'd say thanks for stopping in. Hopefully you'll find something you like here and come visit us again.
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