Since the start of 2024 we have seen record lending and gold buying. As the cost of living bites deeper, its time to think outside of the box. Its not surprising as borrowing costs soared during the end of last year, more and more people are looking towards pawnbroking services as a solution to their short term cash needs.
Why not? There are no credit checks as your asset acts as the ‘credit check’ and is the security against your loan. It’s not dissimilar to a mortgage on a house where the loan is secured against the value of the property you own but if you fail to repay a pawnbroking loan, the worst that will happen is that you will lose the item. Even then that only happens very rarely as over 90% of our customers collect their goods and nearly all remain as repeat customers.
The facts speak for themselves. One in five people struggle to meet the borrowing requirements of the mainstream lenders. If your credit score is not strong and with the long-awaited demise of doorstep and payday lenders, pawnbroking is an obvious legal alternative to turn to. Fully regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, more and more business owners are turning to our services too.
The higher cost of wage bills and the inflationary pressure on cost of raw materials have had an impact on many businesses and the opportunity for a short term bridging loan on your Rolex watch or unworn jewellery collection becomes a very sensible solution. We will lend instant money against your gold, jewellery or luxury watch. This asset is stored safely in our vaults and acts as the security against the loan. Although our average loan is usually less than £300, we often lend £1000-£10,000 plus on luxury watches or gold jewellery to help some of our clients meet their immediate cash flow needs. The service is totally confidential and we help people to meet their everyday cash flow needs when they need it most.
My family have been in the pawnbroking and jewellery industry since 1840. I have records dating back to 1935 when the typical pledge was in pounds shillings and pence and the items pawned were articles of clothing such as ‘pit pants’, hob nail boots and even ladies ‘hosiery’!
It was very rare to see a loan over £10 in old money. That would be worth about £500 today and that’s because people didn’t own the same value of assets in those days, in fact gold was a rarity.
I have often met customers in our Seacroft, Pontefract and Batley stores who remember my father and grandfather helping their families during tough times like the miners strike and they are still appreciative of the help they received that was essential for getting them through those tough times.
However, if you don’t want your jewellery back you may wish to sell your gold especially with the price remaining so strong. As a result we have been buying record amounts of the yellow metal as people cash-in. March and April are when personal debts typically hit their peak with the end of the tax year, credit card bills still looming from Christmas and the booking of summer holidays with deposits needing to be paid. If that wasn’t enough, we then have our energy bills to pay for!
In fact recent research showed that 27% of the public would use a pawnbroker if they better understood how the process works.
So, if you are looking for a little extra help with the high cost of living, paying your soaring energy bills, or just need some cash for a special one-off event then visit Christopher Brown Jewellers in Seacroft, Shipley, York, Pontefract, Goole, Stockport and Prescot or Brown & Gold pawnbrokers in Batley and Toxteth. You will be pleasantly surprised at just how simple it is to get the financial help you need when you need it most.
Chris Brown
