ISRAEL DIGEST'

Specially compiled by The Jerusalem Post

—$1 EQUALS 2.846 NIS (shekels) - Close Price 8120193 --

Leumi Shares Oversubscribed

Upscale Pawnshop Caters
to High-Profile Pros

TANYA GAZDIK SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

! iseasy to check stereo-
typical images at the door
when entering Norman's
Jewelry and Loan in
) Southfield.
Plush carpeting, well-
dressed sales associates and
lit-up display cases filled
with precious jewels create
an opulent atmosphere.
\ Wait a minute, this is sup-
/ posed to be a pawnshop.
Where are the burly loan-
sharks and the guns hang-
ing from the ceiling?
"We're trying to change
the image of pawn shops to
be more like a bank," said
> Sharon Gornbein, the secre-
tary/treasurer of the
Pawnbrokers Association of
Michigan. "I want people to
understand; I don't want
them to be scared. We want
to help our clients. We don't
play games. I've been there
— and that makes a big dif-
/ ference."
Mrs. Gornbein knows
first-hand how pawnbrokers
got their somewhat seedy,
skirting-the-law image.
In 1982, she sold her wed-
ding ring to raise funds
when she and her husband,
Norman, were opening a
jewelry repair business. She
ro-lizes now she probably
> was taken advantage of
because the ring was worth
more than she got.
When they were contem-
plating adding a pawn ser-
vice to their jewelry store
and repair shop, Mrs.
Gornbein went incognito to
visit other Detroit-area
pawnshops.
"I learned what not to do,"
)
she said. "Some of those
places are scary. It's no
wonder the business has the
reputation it does."
The couple decided right
off they wouldn't take guns
or appliances. On the con-
trary, their storage room
holding pawned merchan-
dise is chock-full of pricey
), yuppie toys.
After six months and
more than 1,500 transac-
tions, Mr. Gornbein still
gets excited about some of
the treasures of which he is
the temporary custodian.
Acquisitions include an
autographed Babe Ruth

Bank Leumi's pre-sale of
shares to institutional
investors was oversub-
scribed about 10 times at
the maximum price of
about $85 per unit, accord-
ing to a source in Clal
Issues, the major under-
writer of the issue.
Sources closely involved
with the sale said there
was very high excess

demand for the shares.
They said the success of
the pre-sale is an indica-
tion there will be large
demand for the public
offering of Leumi's shares,
which is planned for the
end of the month.
The issue involves the
sale of between 16 percent
and 20.2 percent of
Leumi's shares.

CPI Rises Only A Fraction

The Consumer Price Index
rose a moderate 0.1 per-
cent in July, marking the
lowest index so far this
year. Based on the indexes
for the first seven months
of the year, the annual
inflation rate for 1993 is
estimated at 10.5 percent.
Although economists
expected a slightly nega-
tive index, they said last
month's figure showed
there was low underlying
inflation. However, Bank.
Hapoalim's chief econo-
mist, Ptachia Bar-Shavit,

warned that "the last three
low indexes are not an
indication that we have
reached European infla-
tion levels."
Seasonal factors, such as
fruit and vegetable and
clothing prices, helped
ease inflation.
Housing prices surprised
economists by dropping 0.8
percent in July, following
steady increases since the
end of last year. Prices
actually dropped 1.3 per-
cent, while rentals jumped
2.2 percent.

Polgat Imports U.S Clothing

Norman and Sharon Gornbein hold a Picasso ceramic vase.

baseball, a 7-carat diamond
and a $20,000 Picasso
ceramic vase. Two solid-gold
Egyptian busts are museum
pieces and worth about
$250,000 each. Dozens of
cars — from Jaguars to vin-
tage Stingray Corvettes —
fill their back lot. Mrs.
Gornbein's father, Sy
Raskin, is an automobile
dealer who handles that end
of the business.
You don't have to own chi-
chi merchandise to obtain a
loan from the Gornbeins.
There are many later-model
family cars on their back lot.
And their back room contains
smaller jewelry pieces.
"We'll loan anywhere
from $20 up," Mr. Gornbein
said. "But we're not afraid
to make a $50,000 loan.
High-earning profession-
als are just as likely to come
up short at the end of the
month or encounter emer-
gencies where they need
quick cash," he said. And
they don't need to feel
embarrassed about seeking
help from the Gornbeins.
Mr. Gornbein takes high-
profile clients into his pri-
vate office so they are out of
the public eye and feel more

comfortable.
But, don't ask for names.
"We've been approached
by gossip columnists to tell
who our clients are," Mr.
Gornbein said. "But we're
not like that."
They charge 3 percent
interest on a six-month
loan. Clients have the
option of renewing their
loans another six months —
unless their pawn was a car,
in which case the loan has
to be renegotiated because
of decreasing value.
The couple doesn't want
clients to lose their valued
items. They go the extra
mile in sending out notices
that a loan is up and giving
people extra time before
they sell the merchandise.
Despite the 14-hour work-
days, the Gornbeins make
time for their family, includ-
ing daughters Jennifer, 10,
and Jaclyn, 4.
Mrs-, Gornbein doesn't
think it will be long before
Jennifer is waiting on cus-
tomers. She already has the
gist of the business down.
"She says it's the only busi-
ness in the world where you
smile handing out money,"
Mrs. Gornbein said. ❑

Polgat Industries, a
member of the Clal
Group, recently signed
an agreement with The
Gap Inc. to exclusively
distribute The Gap and
Banana Republic prod-
ucts in Polgat stores.
The agreement was
signed in the framework
of Polgat's policy to coop-
erate with international
fashion companies.
Polgat, a manufacturer
of woolen cloth and outer
garments, completed the
second quarter with a
net profit of close to
$950,000 almost
unchanged over the pre-
vious year. Earnings for
the first six months of

the year increased to
over $3 million compared
with just under $3 mil-
lion in the corresponding
period last year.
Net return on equity
was 13 percent on an
annual basis. In the sec-
ond quarter, sales fell 16
percent to almost $34
million compared with
almost $40.5 million.
In the directors report,
Polgat managing director
Mordechai Baron attrib-
uted the drop in sales on
the fall in the value of
the British pound and on
the closure of the territo-
ries, which hindered pro-
duction and distribution
activities.

Aryt In Talks To Acquire Shares

Aryt Industries announced
it is in advanced negotia-
tions to acquire a 10 per-
cent share in P-Com Inc., a
California telecommunica-
tions firm.
Aryt and a group of
investors will pay about $2
million to acquire the
share in P-Corn and if the
agreement is signed, Aryt
will be provided with an
option to raise its share in
P-Com to 51 percent at a
later date.
Aryt is leading a group
of investors, including
Evergreen-Canada Invest-
ments and companies

closely associated with
Evergreen, in its negotia-
tions with P-Com, accord-
ing to a source close to
Aryt. P-Corn is a privately
owned company which
develops, manufactures
and markets microwave
telecommunications equip-
ment.
In addition to this agree-
ment, Aryt and P-Corn —
along with the govern-
ment-sponsored Yozma
venture capital fund — are
negotiating to establish an
Israeli subsidiary of P-Com
to be called P-Corn (Israel).

