Flynn Case, the owner of All That Glitters Jewelry & Loans. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)
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When people without a credit card need cash to fix a car or medicine, diapers or groceries, some head to Flynn Case’s store.
Case owns the pawn shop All That Glitters Jewelry & Loans at 1191 Lancaster Dr. N.E. For over three decades as a pawnbroker, Case has bought and sold televisions, PlayStations, guitars and other valuables.
While many retailers have closed as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak, pawnbrokers like Case are open and there are about a dozen in Marion and Polk counties. He said that while most people have a job or an ATM card, a large segment has a hard time getting credit.
“You’ve got 10% of the population that’s not credit-worthy,” he said. “We are their financial institution.”
Now a state order that mandates businesses have social distancing measures in place has upended how Case does business. He decided to stay open.
“It would save me money to be closed,” he said. “But I’ve got over 30 years of taking care of my client base, right? And without my clients, we’re out of business.”
Customers now enter through the back where an employee clad in blue medical gloves only lets a few in at a time. One jewelry case now sits empty, the items securely stored away for now because Case has suspended sales. On top of the jewel case is a bottle of hand sanitizer.
He said that he decided to stop the sales of the televisions, guitars, swords and other items that line the walls, sold by their owners or surrendered by people who didn’t reclaim them. Case did so to limit the number of people inside.
But he said his business is still lending and will buy items from customers. As he spoke, a man pushed a plastic air purifier up to the front counter.
“We’ve chosen to at this point to shut down (sales) and just make sure our customers can get that short-term money to go get their prescription and go get their food at the grocery store or diapers or whatever,” he said.
While other states have enacted broader closures of businesses, Oregon has only closed specific businesses that require close contact, such as hairstylists or massage therapists. Other businesses are allowed to stay open if they can limit personal contact.
In Oregon, pawnbrokers are regulated by the state Division of Financial Regulation, part of the Department of Consumer and Business Services. Beth Anundi, the president of the Oregon Pawnbrokers Association, said that the pawnbrokers provide a financial service for people who don’t have bank accounts and are even more essential during the outbreak.
She said that many pawnbrokers have pared down their businesses to just loans and buying items from customers. They’ve also limited the number of people allowed inside stores and cut back on staff, she said.
When Gov. Kate Brown was considering mandating the closure of businesses to stop the spread of the virus, she said her association was in contact with the governor’s office to make sure pawnbrokers could stay open.
Anundi, who is the co-owner of Capital Pawn & Couture in Salem, said her customers have been grateful.
Case said that he has customers who come in six or eight times a year to pawn the same item to make ends meet. He said he has customers who only get paid once a month and come in for a loan to make it until payday. While he’s gotten some unusual items like a prototype of a heart stimulator monitor or 200-year old pistols, most people bring in items such as Xboxes, drill sets and lots of jewelry.
He said that 80% of his business is loans and the average loan is $200. He charges 3% a month on each loan. He makes his business work through volume, typically holding 10,000 items as collateral.
Normally, he has 10 staff but workers with health concerns can stay home, said Case. While the outbreak has created cash flow issues for the store, he remains optimistic.
Case said that his company applied for the Paycheck Protection Program, part of the federal relief package that gives employers forgivable loans to keep employees on the payroll. The package also expanded unemployment benefits and people are also receiving tax refunds. With more people with money in their pockets, he expects customers will return to redeem their valuables.
“I’m hoping that when all that comes in, we’ll see an upswing in business,” he said.
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