Patong develops a taste for pawn

PATONG: After a slow start, the Patong Municipality pawnshop on Ratpatanusorn Rd is picking up business. Pawnshop Manager Chalerm Koompani told the Gazette yesterday, “At the beginning only a few people came to the pawnshop because most people still didn’t know that Patong had one. “Now the store averages 40-45 customers a day. Most are Thai, even though the store is in a tourist area. We’ve had only about five or six foreign customers,” said K. Chalerm. He explained that he believes the store, which opened on May 1, will inevitably become busier because it charges a lower rate of interest than the local gold shops charge on loans. The most popular goods being hocked at the shop are electrical goods, Thai gold, Swiss gold, watches and cameras. “We’ve had a few people who haven’t come back to reclaim their goods after they got the money, but most people redeem their belongings when they have enough money,” K. Chalerm said. All foreigners need do to hock or redeem goods is to present their passports. The pawnshop is open from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm Monday to Friday. Tel: 076-342487.