LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — As tourism slumps in Las Vegas, the star of “Pawn Stars” reflected on why there aren’t as many tourists, especially international tourists.
“This has always been my theory of business. Evolve or die,” Rick Harrison told FOX5 Tuesday.
Fans from around the world come daily for Harrison’s autograph and a few photos or to tour the shop, but long before he was an international TV star, (Pawn Stars now airing in 150 countries), Harrison was a small business owner. He moved to Vegas in 1981.
“I remember when nothing was behind Caesar’s Palace, there was a big gap between Henderson and Vegas,” Harrison recounted.
Harrison opened the World Famous Gold and Silver Pawn Shop on Las Vegas Boulevard, now in business for 37 years.
“I’ve seen it get bad in town, and I’ve seen it boom… there’s been a lot more boom years than bad years. We all remember 2009,” Harrison shared.
About half of his customers are international and the decline in visitors to the pawn shop is particularly noticeable from Asian countries.
“Asian tourism is really, really down, you know, because usually it’s a big part of my business… China and Japan, Philippines, those numbers are really down… but Latin America is really, really strong. Europe, strong… Did some meet and greets earlier today. Had a bunch of people from Spain. I had some people from Poland. I had some people from the Czech Republic… a little bit less customers than last year, but I’m still getting good customers… still getting big crowds. We’re probably averaging around right around 1,500 people a day right now,” Harrison reported.
Harrison says his business is more than a TV show and the pawn shop itself with 80 employees, like Las Vegas, has to adapt to what the market wants.
“I don’t know anything about Pokémon cards, but Chum does, so I sell Pokémon cards… you give your customers what they want,” Harrison contended.
Harrison believes the Strip should change too, that unaffordable prices and resort fees are keeping tourists away.
“I was on the Strip the other night. Me and my fiancé had two drinks, and it was like $57… It’s supposed to be like $139 a night and then you show up and it’s, you know… $40 a night or $50 a night resort fee and then you have the parking fee and this fee and everything, it turns into $300 a night and that pisses people off,” Harrison explained.
Harrison also believes a lot of people had extra money coming out of the Covid pandemic and used it for Vegas vacations, so he believes there is a bit of a Covid hangover right now, but he believes tourism will always be strong in Las Vegas.
“It’s the most resilient town in in the in this country and I think everything is going to be fine… We still get millions of people every month you know. The entertainment in Las Vegas can’t be beat anywhere in the in the world, not just the United States, in the world,” Harrison asserted.
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