Pawn Expo Programming & Sessions

Our #1 goal for every attendee at Pawn Expo this year: VALUE

We will provide actionable ideas and content that will help YOU run smarter, more efficient and productive businesses which will EARN and/or SAVE you money.

Valuable ideas. Valuable networking. Valuable takeaways.

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KEYNOTE SESSIONS 

You Can Compete – Bob Phibbs, The Retail Doctor
The flawed assumption nearly every traditional retailer makes is that they’ll edge out their online competitors by beating them on price. But with rising costs in both leases as well as labor, this just isn’t sustainable. Customers have different personalities and styles of communicating. After the pandemic, they’ll be looking to give their trust to local stores even though most have shopped more online than ever. However, there is one thing that brick-and-mortar retailers can do that by design online retailers won’t ever do. Bob outlines the startlingly simple but mostly overlooked insight that will help you to not just grow your profitability but reinvent your business as a whole.

Never Make It: Why Success Is Hurting Your Pawn Business, Tyler Wilson, Pocket Pawn 
Take yourself back to Day 1 at your pawnshop for a moment. You’ve got $0 in sales, a $0 loan balance, and not near enough employees. What you did have, however, was motivation. You had an incredible passion for what you were doing and an intense drive to get it done and become successful. Now, fast forward to your pawnshop in 2021. Many of us would look at ourselves today and say that the same passion and drive we once had, is now gone. In this session you’ll learn practical ways to reignite the fire you once had in your pawn business and keep it burning for the rest of your career.

GRC Legislative Update – Legislative and Regulatory Developments in 2021 on the top issues we are seeing and those we can expect in Congress and state legislatures. What might we expect from the new leadership at many of the federal agencies, such as the CFPB, that have an effect on the statutes and regulations applicable to pawnbrokers. Moderator: GRC Chair Boyd Naylor with long-time NPA consultants following these issues for NPA members

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SEMINARS

Pivot & Reinvent Your Business in 2021 and Beyond
Jeff Wilhelm, Director of Store Operations, National Jewelry & Pawn 

What is your business forecasting, and will you be ready to pivot to meet today’s business and beyond? Hear what is likely to come to our industry and how you will need to pivot to drive your economic engine.  Preparing is better than panicking. Learn 3 step to take today: acquire, upscale and persuade.

Don’t Kill your Golden Goose- Protect & Perpetuate your Business
Larry Oxenham, American Society of Asset Protection
Is your financial house in order? Discover the tools pawnbrokers can use to become invincible to lawsuits, save thousands in taxes, and achieve financial peace of mind. By the end of the presentation you will know how to: 
1) Protect 100% of your assets from lawsuits. You will learn how to make yourself so unattractive to a plaintiff attorney that they will never pursue a lawsuit against you.
2) Save thousands of dollars each year in taxes. You will learn five tax reduction strategies most people fail to utilize, which could save you more than $10,000 each year in taxes. 
3) Avoid probate and eliminate all estate taxes. You will be taken through a checklist of items that are important to every estate and business succession plan. You will learn what you should be doing now to prepare for successful business and estate succession.  
“It takes a lifetime to accumulate your assets. Take the time to protect them.” 

Measuring Your Success Against NPA Benchmarking Survey Data
How Does Your Shop Compare – Highlights of the 2020 NPA Operating Performance Report
In 2020, the NPA sent out detailed questionnaires to members asking about their businesses. Based on these confidential surveys, the 2020 NPA Operating Performance Report includes key data segmented by: Profitability; Total Revenues; and Pawn Yield. In this session, we will present highlights of the survey with guidelines for identifying business performance improvement opportunities. You’ll take away key metrics that you can use to evaluate your own business.

INTERACTIVE PANEL DISCUSSION

Is this Authentic? 
Moderated by Michael Mack of Max Pawn 
Sponsored by:

This seminar will cover the basics of authenticity of designer luxury goods, sneakers, fine watches and more.  This will be an engaging conversation from experts with valued input from the participants. 

Keys to the Ultimate Customer Experience
Moderated by Mark Campanale, NPA Digital Communications Manager 
No matter what the medium our customers choose to make contact with us – phone, web, e-mail, in-person – they are all looking for the same thing: to make the purchasing process simple.    We need to be problem solvers and to completely surpass our customer’s expectations, which will in turn lead to a positive, lasting impression.  To put it in the most basic terms, we need to walk in our customer’s shoes.  Yet before we can solve problems, we need to truly understand the nature and the story behind the problem we are solving.  In this interactive panel discussion, we will explore the key components to turning customers into raving fans across all touch points.

Firearms Panel Discussion
Moderated by Johnny Whiteside 
More businesses in the pawn industry are realizing that firearms can boost profits. But due to the unique practices inherent to this specialized retail segment, there are many things to consider when selling firearms. Staying compliant with pawned redemptions in addition to the standard practices of buying and selling firearms requires following additional rules and regulations. You also have to consider your FFL with respect to liability for injuries resulting from a firearm or ammunition sold. Hear from a panel of experts about these topics and more related to firearms sales.

ROUND TABLE DISCUSSIONS

Interactive exchange of ideas amongst reputable pawnbrokers led by moderators skilled in varied areas of expertise

  • Increase Your Loan Balance!
  • You Can’t Sell With an Empty Cart! Managing Pawn Shop Supply

SPEAKER BIOS

Bob Phibbs, The Retail Doctor
Since 1994, The Retail Doctor has been transforming the shopping experience for larger retailers and smaller independent retailers into thriving retail operations by giving them ideas to increase retail sales and the tools to succeed in a challenging brick-and-mortar retail market that capitalizes on great merchandising and selling. Bob Phibbs is a 30+ year retail master with a proven track record to help you lift sales, turn your retail staff into real salespeople, and get more out of your store traffic with innovative retail marketing tactics.

Tyler Wilson, Pocket Pawn
“Never Make It: Why Success Is Hurting Your Pawn Business” 
Tyler Wilson is a first generation pawnbroker from Alabama with over 10 years’ experience in the pawn industry. He has owned and operated Pocket Pawn in Ozark, Alabama since 2016 – and prides himself on being able to create a successful pawn business in even the smallest of markets. Throughout his pawn career he has become an expert in marketing pawnshops, speaking at multiple state and regional pawn conferences and sharing how he’s able to find success through very non-traditional marketing methods.


Larry Oxenham
, American Society of Asset Protection Larry Oxenham is one of America’s top asset protection experts, having helped thousands of doctors achieve financial peace of mind by teaching them how to properly structure their assets for lawsuit protection and tax reduction. He has authored and co-authored several articles and books on the subject including The Asset Protection Bible and How to Achieve Financial Peace of Mind through Asset Protection. His career has been credited with helping thousands of people save millions of dollars. Larry Oxenham is a nationally recognized speaker who has trained thousands of professionals at hundreds of conventions, conferences and seminars across the country.

Jeff Wilhelm, Director of Store Operations, National Jewelry & Pawn Jeff started his 32-career working in the pawn industry with Cash America International. After 4 years in the retail pawn industry, Jeff assumed a corporate role with Value Pawn & Jewelry, where he trained over 175 new GM’s using the principles of Covey Leadership. During his time with VP&J as Director of Leadership and Development, the company grew to 75 stores over a four-year period. Jeff went into partnership with Bay Area Pawnshops in Clearwater FL and later sold his interest in the stores. He joined ICG Pawnshop Consulting and worked as the Director of store operations and led the organization’s operational initiatives. Jeff moved on to spend 3 years working with Cashwiz as their Director of Leadership and Store Support, which Jeff still consults for today. In 2018 Jeff joined National Pawn and Jewelry, which was a consulting client as Director of Training and Profitability. Today Jeff is the Director of Store Operations for NPAJ.

Michael Mack, Max Pawn
A fourth-generation pawn broker and native Nevadan, Max Pawn owner Michael Mack graduated from the University of Southern California with degrees in finance and marketing before joining the family industry. Mack and his partner founded Super Pawn, growing the brand to a 50-store chain before it was eventually sold. Itching to return to the industry, Mack founded Max Pawn in 2009, bucking the traditional pawn model with an emphasis on customer service and community relationships. Since opening, Max Pawn has been a six-time Best of Las Vegas winner and National Pawn Association Community Relations Award and Outstanding Pawn Industry Image Award recipient. Mack also served as a Las Vegas City Councilman from 1999 until 2004, a time of tremendous growth for the valley. In addition to customer service, Mack is focused on providing a balanced work environment for his team. Mack is a member of the National Pawn Association, Gemological Institute of America, and International Watch and Jewelry Guild.

Mark Campanale, NPA Digital Communications Manager  Prior to joining the NPA as Digital Communications Manager in 2020, Mark spent 28 years championing the customer experience in both the financial and entertainment industries. As Chief Experience Officer in the financial industry, Mark re-imagined the customer experience in the hands of the front-line and sales staff.  As a change agent, he built programs that focused on enhanced customer interaction, and positioned staff as trusted advisers.  Mark has been the keynote speaker on The Ultimate Customer Experience, The Power of Social Media, and Personal Branding at several events. Most recently, Mark brought his talent to Disney as an instructor at Disney University, overseeing such programs as Introduction and Advanced Guest Experience and Operations Core Guest Services.

 

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