Lynn pawn shop offers option this Christmas

LYNN – Black Friday may only happen once in retail stores – the day after Thanksgiving – but for those looking for a deal, and who aren?t afraid to haggle, it is like Black Friday everyday in pawn shops.Market Square Exchange owner Matt Boccuzzi’s shop at 32 Market Square is jam packed with everything from Bose radios to jewelry to the popular Guitar Hero. He said business typically booms around the holiday season, and with this year’s economic meltdown in full swing, shoppers are undoubtedly on the hunt for the perfect deal.One of those customers on Thursday was Tom “Van” Smith, who has been perusing Boccuzzi’s store regularly for nearly 14 years.Over the years, Smith has scored an Acer laptop for $350 and heaps of jewelry, trinkets and clothing. Although he loves to shop for a great deal, Smith said the real reason he shops so often is for the friendship he’s developed with Boccuzzi, 36, and his family over the years.?It’s like when guys go to the barbershop and talk to their friends,” he said. “Coming here is like therapeutic treatment for me. I like to shop and visit.”Smith, who recently curtailed his shopping, has also gotten loans through Boccuzzi when times are tough.Loans vary widely due to the customer’s merchandise, but as an example, Boccuzzi said a 10-karat gold chain, weighing 25 grams, amounts to a $150-200 loan that must be paid in full within three months.Sales have continued to dip due to shrinking household incomes, and even items such as Red Sox jerseys priced at $40, normally $89 and up at mall stores, have sat idle for months.Guitars, some priced as low as $90, hang on a wall at the shop. Despite the low price, Boccuzzi said he’s been having difficulty selling the guitars, as well as tools, since a lot of men that tend to shop at the store are now unemployed.?I used to sell a guitar a month, and now I go months without selling one because people can either put $90 on a stand or put $90 in their gas tank, in their fridge or buy new clothes,” he said. “Everything in the store is a luxury item and a want, not a need.”Although sales have plummeted, Boccuzzi said the number of people visiting the store to sell items or get a loan have risen dramatically.?And it’s not just people who need money fast to pay a bill, it’s the affluent looking to get rid of old jewelry because the price of gold has gone up,” he said. “We were slammed for awhile because of people who watch the price of gold.”Another revenue buster is the reduced pawn rate of 3 percent, which went into effect earlier this year. The rate had been set at 10 percent since 2005, but in 2007, the Banking Commission determined the rate to be illegal and pushed the city to reduce it.?It’s affected me horribly,” he said. “There’s definitely more loan activity without a doubt, but (revenue has) gone down 70 percent.”Boccuzzi said some of the items people try to pawn are amusing, and some are downright weird.?You never know what you’re going to find because you never know what’s going to walk in the door,” he said. “People come in with stuff they think is worth a million dollars, like this one woman who tried to sell a broach, which we don’t take, and claimed it was Rose Kennedy’s. She insisted it was, but didn’t have proof.”Others like to haggle over prices to get the best deal possible.?I haggle all the time, why not,” Smith quipped. “You can get a good deal.”