Loyalty Pawn's Three Balls Chronicle Volume 1 Issue 3

THREE BALLS CHRONICLE

VOLUME 1 / ISSUE 3

May 2018

IN THIS ISSUE

Letter from the President

Pawn Shop Culture Article

Letter from the General Manager

Upcoming Sales

Fresno Conference

Upcoming Birthdays and Anniversaries

Top Performers in April

Loyalty Pawn’s Core Goals, Values and Visions

HR Corner

Guess What I Am?

Crossword Puzzle Answers

Team Loyalty!

Thank you again on another successful month here at Loyalty Pawn! We had a great month and plan on having another great month in May. As we start the month of May we had our first CAPA Conference as Loyalty Pawn and it was a full weekend of learning new practices in the pawn industry and much more. Keep reading to find out more of what went down at the conference as well as an article about the history of pawn shops, upcoming sales, birthdays, anniversaries and our latest new hires. Thank you guys again for the great effort that all of you guys have put in making Loyalty Pawn a vision of our core goals and values of the company!

A Few Words from the President

Hello Team Loyalty!

Wow what a great month. I would like to welcome all the new members of Team Loyalty. In addition to the important sales lending associate roles we hired; El Camino-Sydney and Parker, Florin Mall, Jose S, Roseville, Justin S, and West Sacramento, Jose M. We are also very excited that we have our online specialist on board Ryan and is already getting Loyalty Pawn selling on eBay (seller name: loyaltypawn) out of the West Sacramento location. We are sad to see Timara and Justin leaving Team Loyalty and wish the best of luck in their future endeavors.

We had a great CAPA (California Pawnbroker Association) Spring Conference in the first part of May and are looking forward to implementing many of the great takeaways that we got from the round table discussion, pawn tour stops and the peer to peer social interactions. Thank you to Wayne, Johnathon, Travis, Jose, Jason W, and Brittany for taking the time to come and learn, also a huge thank you to your families for giving up their time with you.

John M. and Javier, also deserve a shout out they traveled to Arizona to take part in a high-level training with the Smart Financial company. We will be getting many great takeaways from their trip. Smart Financial is an 80+ store chain in several different states and Canada. They are THE most progressive pawnshop in the entire industry world-wide and we are grateful for the invitation to attend their company management training session. Thank you to John M and Javier's families that let us take them from their family time also.

We are making progress on Roseville's Loyalty Luxury department with located showcases and the exterior should be completed in about a week or two. The Broadway location is getting painted (it may be painted by the time this comes out), exterior signs are being made and hopefully installation will start by the end of this May.

On a personal note I am very excited for my daughter Lauren, who does assist our corporate office a couple of days a week as well as helps put this newsletter together, she graduates from St. Francis High School on the honor role on May 23rd and she will be attending the University of Alabama in the fall. Selfishly I do not want to see her go that far but I am also very proud of her for having the courage to go out on her own so far away. I love you Lauren and Congratulations to you I am so proud of you!

I want to again, thank everyone of Team Loyalty and their families for working together to CREATE the best pawnshop with the best culture and in my opinion, it takes healthy home and work environments it is not always easy, but I do appreciate all the work and dedication that you put into Loyalty Pawn. Thank You!

Roll Tide

Stan Lukowicz President

Pawn Shop Culture

The Illustrious Origins of the Pawnshop Around the World

As no economy or money-based society can prosper without any credit, pawn broking has a long history in the eastern and western cultures. This article will focus on the Eastern history of pawn shop culture.

In China the business model existed some 3000 years ago and overtime imperial authorities have strictly regulated it.

In Hong Kong the practice follows the Chinese tradition. As a security measure the counter is usually taller than the average person so that a customer can hold up his/her hand to offer their collateral. There may be a wooden screen between the door and the counter to protect the customer’s privacy. The symbol of a pawn shop in Hong Kong is a bat (signifying fortune) holding a coil (signifying benefits).

In Japan, the usual symbol for a pawn shop is a circled digit seven, because “shichi”, the Japanese word for seven, sounds similar to the word for “pawn” in Japanese.

In India, between the 9th and 6th century B.C. the Marwari Jain community pioneered the pawn broking business. Today, the job is done by many agents called “saudagar”. However, instead of working from a shop, they may go to people’s homes to solicit offers.

In Thailand, pawn broking is also a tradition where pawnshops are run both privately and by local governments.

A Letter from the General Manager

Hello All!!

Another month has passed us by! I know all of you have seen positive changes and now are living our Values. I’m proud to say that Loyalty Pawn is setting up every role within the company for success. We have had much positive feedback from our customers about our customer service and we will continue to provide top grade service.

Some successes to mention for the month of April is we are seeing higher foot traffic from the online group listings. This is creating new word of mouth from nontraditional customers. Since the listing process is relatively new to the company, let’s continue to get all team members engaged in this process. It’s always exciting to meet new customers after we have well marketed our products and services!

A very noteworthy subject to bring up is the candidates for employment. We are seeing many talented individuals applying for Loyalty Pawn. We have a continuous desire to find, foster and inspire an elite work force. If any of our valued team members know of any prospects, let them know about our company culture!

This is a very exciting time for the Loyalty Team. We have been advised by other industry professionals to make gradual changes from, product, merchandising, inventory outlets, training methods and much more. We are very fortunate and thankful to know that we can operate in an industry where our competitors happily advise and share their positive experiences. We are truly heading in the right direction and while having a keen sense for talent, It is no secret that we are positioning ourselves for tremendous growth and success!

Thank you very much everyone!

Manager

Wayne Silliman General

"Opportunities don't happen. You create them."

Chris Grosse

Upcoming Sales

May Anniversaries

Timara Hernandez May 2, 2017 1 year

Ryan Cornelius May, 2016 2 years

May Birthdays

Javier Becerra May 1st

Jorge Hernandez May 7th

Tito Molina May 11th

Ryan Hall May 18th

We would also like to welcome our newest hires to our Loyalty Pawn Team, Parker and Sydney working at location #1, El Camino Jose S working at location #2, Justin S working at location #3, Roseville and Jose M working at location #5, West Sacramento all as a sales lending associates.

CAPA Spring Conference in Fresno

Exciting, educational and fun times at the CAPA Spring Conference in Fresno May 5th and 6th. We started out with a tour of several of the local pawnshops where the owners opened their doors and their entire businesses to a group of 40+ pawnbrokers to learn best practices and tell us what they think they are doing right, form back room storage and office work to sales and merchandising. It is always very interesting to see how other run their business. Next, we all enjoyed a social event at the Fresno Grizzles AAA baseball game in the VIP poolside seating and they were playing our very own Sacramento Rivercats (Sacramento lost 11-2, bummer). This was a great time to mingle with pawnbrokers and some of our Vendors. The next morning started with breakfast and a legislative update. Which our largest legislative push this year is to reduce the holding period from 30 days to 5-7 days, YAY!! The exhibitor's hall then opened where we all went to each vendor to learn about their product or service, I think we are bring back Entropy luxury handbag verification tool. Keynote speaker was the Chief of Police for Fresno which was very interesting and is definitely a friend of the pawn industry. We had our educational roundtable with topics being legislative, coins, internet marketing, legal and compliance, GM sales and luxury handbags, these roundtables are for discussions and talking about best practices from everyone at the table. After that we had a little more time with exhibitors and then wrapped it up with a seminar of emerging surveillance technology there is some really cool video technology come down the road. The entire weekend was filled, and I believe we all learned a lot, and all came back with ideas to implement within our stores to make us more efficient. Thank you to all who attended and for everything you put in. We go to several of these a year and want to share the experience with as many of you as possible talk to your team leader and ask to be considered the next time one comes around!

TOP PERFORMERS IN MARCH

1st John Mark (#4 Broadway) Dylan Tinklenberg (#3 Roseville) David Palomares (#2 Florin Mall)

2nd Dylan Tinklenberg(#3 Roseville) David Palomares (#2 Florin Mall) Jon Galupe (#1 El Camino)

3rd Tony Perez (#3 Roseville) Mark Xiong (#2 Florin Mall) Jason Wagner (#2 Florin Mall)

4th Jason Wagner (#2 Florin Mall) Jason Wagner (#2 Florin Mall) Brittany Walker (#3 Roseville)

5th Jose Velasquez(#4 Broadway) Jon Galupe (#1 El Camino) Tito Molina (#1 El Camino)

Loan/Buy/Layaway End of Month Balances

Loyalty Pawn’s

Goals, Values, and Visions

“The Leader in Local Lending”

Company Wide Goals

• To Offer Immediate Relief with a Short-Term Loan.

• To Develop, Recruit and Inspire an Elite Work Force, Driven by Loyal Business Practices.

• To Provide the Highest Standard of Quality, Commitment and Value to Every Customer in Our Loyalty Pawn Family!

Core Values

• Loyalty

• Dedication

• Creativity

Company Vision

• Loyal People Committed to Everyday Satisfaction

Loyalty Pawn Employee Services Corner

Welcome to May!

Did you know that May is the fifth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian Calendars and the third of seven months to have a length of 31 days? And did you know that May is a month of spring in the Northern Hemisphere and autumn in the Southern Hemisphere? May Day is a public holiday usually celebrated on May 1. It is an ancient northern hemisphere spring festival and a traditional spring holiday in many cultures. If you were born between April 20th and May 20th your astrological sign is Taurus. Now, you may ask yourself, what does being a Taurus and the month of May have to do with Human Resources?

Absolutely nothing!

It’s just an awesome month whereby we’re soon leaving spring and getting prepared for summer! I just wanted to give a shout out to all you generous, dependable, patient, and loyal Taurus babies in the Loyalty Pawn Family!

HRA Benefits Card

Ever wonder what the heck your new HRA Benefit Card can be used for? Read on!! For Loyalty employees covered under a CalChoice Bronze or Silver medical plan, the new HRA Benefits Card will reimburse 100% of out-of-pocket expenses for medically necessary services (including deductibles, co-insurance, co-pays, and Rx co-pays, but excluding dental, vision and over-the counter expenses). This benefit is at no charge to YOU! It’s paid completely by Loyalty Pawn.

The HRA Benefit Card will not reimburse insurance premiums of any kind, including Medicare, individual health insurance, long-term care, cosmetic procedures, warranties, or membership fees that are not directly related to care.

What is the maximum benefit provided by the HRA?

The maximum annual benefit provided by HRA is CalChoice Bronze level – $3,150 Employee Only coverage or $6,300 Employee + Family coverage

CalChoice Silver level – $1,000 Employee Only coverage or $2,000 Employee + Family coverage

If you do not utilize the entire benefit, you may not roll-over the unused benefit to the subsequent plan year.

Who is covered under the HRA?

Employees, spouses, dependent children and domestic partners who are covered under a CalChoice Bronze or Silver medical plan are eligible to receive benefits under the HRA. You must be enrolled in CalChoice Bronze or Silver medical plan.

When does the HRA “refresh” (start over) each year?

The HRA benefit renews on January 1st each year so that it aligns with your medical insurance deductible. This means the full benefit will be available for qualified expenses incurred between February 1, 2018 and December 31, 2018.

Loyalty Pawn Employee Services Corner Cont.

What is the last date I can submit HRA claims for the plan year?

If you are an active participant on the last day of the plan year, your designated final filing date is March 31, 2019 in which to submit claims for services rendered by the last day of the plan year.

Does our HRA include a debit card?

Yes! New participants will receive two debit cards at no cost. You may provide the second debit card to your spouse or adult dependent that is covered under the HRA to pay for qualified expenses or keep the second card as an alternate card to use, just in case. If you order a third card or a replacement for a lost/stolen card, a $10 fee will be paid by the Participant. Your BASIC pacific debit card can be used to pay for qualified services at providers that accept VISA or by using your PIN

(Personal Identification Number).

To obtain a personal PIN for your BASIC pacific debit card, call 1-866-898-9795 and the automated system will walk you through the process. All debit card charges will require additional supporting documentation. Anytime you use the debit card, BASIC pacific will send you an email requiring you to provide supporting documentation. If you cannot provide documentation that illustrates the expense was eligible for reimbursement, you will be required to repay the expense, so be sure to only use the debit card for qualified expenses.

How do I enroll in the HRA?

When you are eligible for coverage under the HRA, Employee Services (Yours Truly) will automatically enroll you.

What happens if my employment terminates or I lose eligibility to participate in the HRA?

HRA benefits will not be payable for services rendered after the last day of the month during which you lost your eligibility to participate. (Refer to your SPD for information about COBRA). BASIC pacific must receive your claims for reimbursement no later than 90 days after the date you lost your eligibility to participate.

APRIL HR Haiku Contest Winner | Sad but true, no one submitted an HR Haiku entry. I’ll think up some more cool Employee Services contests in the coming months. In the meantime, enjoy the month of May and remember if you need HR, Payroll, Benefits, or Family support, Loyalty Pawn’s Employee Services is only a phone call, text message, or email away, 24/7/365. Here’s to your continued good health, peace and prosperity! ~Dmae

Guess what I am?

• I WAS REFERRED TO AS A OLD MINE CUT AND HAVE BEEN AROUND FOR 200 YEARS

• THE STANDARDS FOR THIS STONE CUT VARY MORE THAN MOST OTHER SHAPES

• MANY BUYERS ARE ATTRACTED TO THE ANTIQUE FEEL COMBINED WITH MODERN PERFOMANCE OFFERED BY THIS CUT

Crossword Puzzle Answer Key Loyalty Pawn Crossword Puzzle