Rick’s home at the Pawn Shop in Las Vegas

Ever since I found out we were going to Las Vegas, I set out to get to the famous Pawn Shop in Las Vegas. And I did!

For those who watch the show on the History channel, what you will read will not be unknown. For those who don’t know, however, I have to tell you a little about the show.

Pawn Stars is a show on the History Channel that is already famous all over the world. The show features scenes from a pawn shop in Las Vegas, a pawn shop that is officially called the World Famous Gold & Silver Pawn Shop and is owned by Rick Harrison with his son Corey nicknamed "Big Hoss". In the seasons until 2018, a special character was "The Old Man" - Richard Harrison, Rick's father who died that year. Alongside them, a flavorful character is Austin "Chumlee" Russell - Corey's childhood friend and pawnbroker. Different characters appear in each episode, both employees and specialists who come to evaluate different objects brought by people to be sold or pawned. The whole show is actually the story of a family business where you buy all sorts of strange or valuable objects. Started in 2009 and broadcast worldwide, the show brought fame and money to the three so that today, their pawn is a tourist attraction in Las Vegas. It is marked on all the maps whether they are on paper or online.

That was for those who didn’t know what I’m talking about. Now for those of you who are fans…

Las Vegas is a city where money is lost! A lot of money! The casinos are actually a huge deal, so much so that the moment I got off the plane, there were at least 10 slots of mechanical devices for gambling in the airport there. You can find them everywhere and the money flows through them at a crazy pace. To give you an idea, I lost $20 on these pranks while I was smoking a cigarette! On the last smoke I had the last push on the button… It is played 24/7 and the money lost is not around $20 but around hundreds or thousands of dollars.

Here are the clients of countless pawnshops in Las Vegas. Because there are so many !!! I was really wondering how he was the one who managed to make such a very successful show, among all the pawns that are on every street. All the same. Gold, silver, diamonds, special things. How lucky were they. Charisma also probably matters…

Rick’s store is somewhat on the Strip. You pass Hotel Strat (the one with that huge “spike”) at the end of the huge boulevard and walk maybe 1 km or 1.5 km. The place is different from the center. The buildings are with a maximum of two / three floors and everything seems much more spaced out. You see it from afar because it has their figures drawn on the walls and the corner we always see on TV that you will recognize. It only has one floor and the entrance is free.

In the corner there was a young guy as a bodyguard named Antwaun. Chumlee’s friend.

The store is not large in size. Long and with a small part on the left as you enter where the cashier is, a place you are not allowed to photograph. Otherwise, you can take pictures and videos. At the end of it all, a life-size cardboard of Rick because they have become famous and do not pawn unless they are filming. Otherwise you won’t catch them there. I took a picture with him so as not to say I wasn’t there. What I find funny is that I saw ads with him in which, if you pay, you receive a personalized video message from him. In the style of “Happy birthday X from Y. We are waiting for you at the pawn shop.” About $ 50 per message. I later found out that there is a whole site dedicated to this type of message and that there are many who do this. If you are interested, it is called Celebrity Video Message. Gift idea. You’re welcome!

I’ve seen countless episodes of Pawn Star and each one shows you how much they buy for. No matter what it is. A car, a coin, a painting, a book or a dinosaur egg. Extremely extremely rare, but they show how much they sell for. They make the estimate but everything remains shrouded in mystery. I was curious to see what the prices were.

They are all categorized. Showcases of sample rings or valuable stands, a section with weapons and knives or walls with paintings. The prices are high and I don’t know who can afford to buy only what they sell for the collection. Certainly, the fact that I don’t know, doesn’t mean they don’t sell. Otherwise, their business would go bankrupt.

I stayed in the store for about 15-20 minutes and my jaw dropped to what was exposed. There’s not much reason to stay for long. Maybe only if you look for and find something to buy and then negotiate. Or sell something. However, the store was not crowded. Try on some jewelry and for the rest of the time, look around like I did.

A visit to Rick’s pawn is not like a visit to a beautiful tourist attraction or the Grand Canyon. You will not be amazed by the beauty but you will not be sorry that you were there either. I felt great and it was a pleasure. I knew I wasn’t going to buy anything, I knew it wasn’t big, but I also knew that if I didn’t go I would always regret it.