PanamaTimes

Tuesday, Jul 15, 2025

Amid inflation, people desperate for cash are turning to pawn shops

Amid inflation, people desperate for cash are turning to pawn shops

Rick Harrison of 'Pawn Stars' shared his observations amid today's higher prices of food, gas and more

Rick Harrison, pawn shop owner and star of the TV show "Pawn Stars," joined "Fox and Friends" on Monday morning to share what's going on today amid inflation as Americans are struggling to get through to payday.

Some are pawning items they never planned to sell in order to get by.

"Most people don't realize that 20% of the adult population do not have a bank account," said Harrison. "They don't have normal banking."

He added, "So if they need a little extra money, this is what they have to do."

Harrison also said that Las Vegas is a very spread-out town — and people need to have cars there.

"Gas prices are killing people," he said.

A pawn shop sign is shown here. Rick Harrison of "Pawn Stars" believes it's the lower-income Americans — and those part of the gig economy — who are hardest hit by today's sky-high inflation.


"The price of food — inflation's gone nuts," he said.

"And I really believe," he said, that lower-income people are affected "much worse" right now by what's going on in the economy than "upper-income people."

"We try to do what we can do."


"We just have a government that is dead-set on creating more inflation and less jobs," said Harrison.

The "Pawn Stars" store in Las Vegas, Gold and Silver Pawn Shop, has been regaining foot traffic it lost during the pandemic.


Regarding the notion that many people today are pawning items they never thought they'd to pawn just to make ends meet, Harrison said, "Yes, there are a lot of people — especially young people — who have worked the gig economy," who are doing so, he said.

"Rents in Vegas alone," he said, are much higher than before.

He also referenced the difficulties for "single moms" and others — "all of this inflation is just devastating" to them, he said.

Harrison said, of those who come into his shop, "We try to do what we can do."

He said that in regard to rural places, "it's a half-hour drive to the grocery store" for many people — and then back. The high price of gas is really impacting everyday people, he suggested.

To learn more about this story, watch the video at the top of this article.

Newsletter

Related Articles

PanamaTimes
0:00
0:00
Close
Biden’s Doctor Pleads the Fifth to Avoid Self-Incrimination on President’s Medical Fitness
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
OpenAI Secures Multimillion-Dollar AI Contracts with Pentagon, India, and Grab
Brazilian Congress Rejects Lula's Proposed Tax Increase on Financial Transactions
Landslide in Bello, Colombia, Results in Multiple Casualties
Papa Johns pizza surge near the Pentagon tipped off social media before Trump's decisive Iran strike
Juncker Criticizes EU Inaction on Trump Tariffs
Minnesota Lawmaker Melissa Hortman and Husband Killed in Targeted Attack; Senator John Hoffman and Wife Injured
Wreck of $17 Billion San José Galleon Identified Off Colombia After 300 Years
Sole Survivor of Air India Crash Recounts Escape
Coinbase CEO Warns Bitcoin Could Supplant US Dollar Amid Mounting National Debt
UK and EU Reach Agreement on Gibraltar's Schengen Integration
Israeli Finance Minister Imposes Banking Penalties on Palestinians
U.S. Inflation Rises to 2.4% in May Amid Trade Tensions
Trump's Policies Prompt Decline in Chinese Student Enrollment in U.S.
Global Oceans Near Record Temperatures as CO₂ Levels Climb
Trump Announces U.S.-China Trade Deal Covering Rare Earths
Smuggled U.S. Fuel Funds Mexican Cartels Amid Crackdown
Protests Erupt in Los Angeles with Symbolic Flag Burning
Trump Administration Issues New Travel Ban Targeting 12 Countries
Man Group Mandates Full-Time Office Return for Quantitative Analysts
JPMorgan Warns Analysts Against Accepting Future-Dated Job Offers
Builder.ai Faces Legal Scrutiny Amid Financial Misreporting Allegations
Japan Grapples with Rice Shortage Amid Soaring Prices
Goldman Sachs Reduces Risk Exposure Amid Market Volatility
HSBC Chairman Mark Tucker to Return to AIA as Non-Executive Chair
Israel Confirms Arming Gaza Clan to Counter Hamas Influence
Judge Blocks Trump's Ban on International Students at Harvard
Trump Proposes Travel Ban on 'Uncontrolled' Countries
Panama Port Owner Balances US-China Pressures
Trump Administration Accused of Obstructing Deportation Cases
Trump’s China Strategy Remains a Geopolitical Puzzle
Eurozone Inflation Falls Below ECB Target to 1.9%
Call for a New Chapter in Globalisation Emerges
Blackstone and Rivals Diverge on Private Equity Strategy
Mayor’s Security Officer Implicated | Shocking New Details Emerge in NYC Kidnapping Case
Bangkok Ranked World's Top City for Remote Work in 2025
Denmark Increases Retirement Age to 70, Setting a European Precedent
Netanyahu Accuses Western Leaders of 'Emboldening Hamas'
Escalating Trade Tensions and Market Reactions
OnlyFans Reportedly in Talks for $8 Billion Sale
JBS Gains Shareholder Approval for U.S. Stock Listing
Booz Allen Hamilton to Cut 2,500 Jobs Amid Federal Spending Reductions
Trump Signs Executive Orders to Accelerate Nuclear Energy Development
Harvard Temporarily Blocks Trump Administration's International Student Ban
Nippon Steel Forms Partnership with U.S. Steel, Headquarters to Remain in Pittsburgh
Trump Expands Tariff Threats to Apple and Samsung Devices
×