Johannsen

What Johannsen does

Pfandkredit Johannsen GmbH is a privately held German pawnbroker and jeweller headquartered in Hamburg, operating four physical branches across the city (Neustadt/Hütten principal branch, Wandsbek, Steindamm/Central station, and Barmbek). The company's core business is short-term collateral-based lending, issuing cash loans ranging from €10 to €100,000 against pledged items including jewellery, gold, diamonds, branded watches, luxury bags, Apple products, and (as of 2025) high-value vehicles. A defining service feature is the absence of credit-bureau reporting: Johannsen does not transmit customer data to Schufa, addressing a key pain point for borrowers with adverse credit histories or those seeking discretion.

The business model combines four revenue streams: interest and fees on pawn loans, retail sales of jewellery and luxury goods (including an online shop at shop.pfandhaus.de and in-person auctions of unclaimed pawned items), direct purchase of precious metals and luxury items from sellers, and ancillary jewellery services such as repair, alteration, and custom manufacturing performed by an in-house goldsmith. The company is privately held as a GmbH, employs approximately 15 staff, and operates entirely within Hamburg, Germany. Marketing is conducted organically through Facebook, Instagram, and the company website. There is no disclosed funding history, no parent company, and no public-market listing; the company appears to be founder/operator-owned.

Name

Johannsen

Legal name

Pfandkredit Johannsen GmbH

Website

https://johannsen-gmbh.de

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Pfandkredit Johannsen GmbH is a privately held Hamburg-based pawnbroker and jeweller operating four branches, offering €10–€100,000 short-term collateral loans (no Schufa reporting) alongside jewellery retail, in-house goldsmith services, and pawned-item auctions serving individual consumers and small sellers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Collateral Lending & Pawnbroker Services

NAICS

Credit Intermediation and Related Activities (522), Jewelry Retailers (458310), Used Merchandise Retailers (459510)

SIC

Personal Credit Institutions (6141), Retail-Jewelry Stores (5944)

akta.pro primary industry

Precious Metals & Jewelry Collateral Loans (FSAKALAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Online/Digital Pawn & Remote Collateral Lending (FSAKALAG), Electronics & Tools Collateral Loans (FSAKALAD), Luxury Pawn & Collateral Lending (Watches/Jewelry) (CRAKAKAG)

Keywords

• Collateral pawn loans
• Jewellery retail sales
• Luxury watch sales
• Gold buying services
• Pawned item auctions

Headquarters

HQ city

Hamburg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Collateral-based lending: Issues short-term cash loans (€10 - €100,000) against collateral including jewellery, gold, diamonds, watches, luxury bags, Apple products, and vehicles. Revenue generated from interest and fees on loans.
2. Jewellery and luxury goods retail: Sells jewellery, watches (including luxury brands like Rolex), and other high-value items through physical shop and e-commerce platform (shop.pfandhaus.de).
3. Buying and selling pre-owned valuables: Purchases gold coins, jewellery, luxury bags, and watches from customers at branches with immediate payment.
4. Auction of pawned items: Conducts regular auctions of unclaimed pawned items, generating revenue from sale proceeds.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Pfandkredit Johannsen issues short-term collateral-based cash loans of €10 to €100,000 against jewellery, gold, diamonds, branded watches, luxury bags, Apple products, and high-value cars, disbursed immediately at four Hamburg branches without sharing customer data with credit agencies such as Schufa. The loan business is supplemented by a retail jewellery shop offering custom manufacturing, repairs, and alterations, direct purchasing of gold and luxury goods from sellers, and regular auctions of unclaimed pawned items.

Product overview

Pfandkredit Johannsen operates a single, unified pawnbroker and jeweller business model across four branches in Hamburg, Germany. The core offering is short-term collateral-based loans (€10–€100,000) against jewellery, gold, diamonds, watches, luxury bags, Apple products, and cars — issued without credit agency checks. This is complemented by a retail jewellery shop (with custom manufacturing, repairs, and alterations), a growing car-secured loan product, and regular auctions of pawned items. The company also purchases precious metals and luxury goods directly from sellers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Collateral Loans (Pawnbroker Loans) Short-term cash loans issued against collateral including jewellery, gold, diamonds, branded watches, luxury bags, Apple products, and cars. Loan amounts range from €10 to €100,000 and are disbursed immediately at the branch without sending customer data to credit agencies such as Schufa. Targeted at individual consumers in Hamburg who need quick liquidity.
• Loans against Cars Discreet and quick loans issued against high-value old and new cars, available exclusively at the Hütten (Neustadt principal) branch. Appointments are booked by phone. Targeted at customers seeking short-term liquidity using their vehicle as collateral.
• Jewellery Shop Retail sale of an extensive range of jewellery, branded watches (including luxury brands such as Rolex), and other luxury goods through the four Hamburg branches and the online shop at shop.pfandhaus.de.
• Jewellery Valuation, Alteration & Repair Services On-site goldsmith service covering free jewellery valuations, custom jewellery manufacturing according to customer ideas, jewellery alterations, and watch repair including strap and battery changes performed immediately at reasonable prices.
• Auctions of Pawned Items Regular on-site auctions in Hamburg of unclaimed pawned jewellery and watches, allowing buyers to purchase authenticated valuable items at auction prices.
• Gold and Precious Metal Buying Direct purchase of gold coins, jewellery, luxury bags, and watches from customers at Johannsen's Hamburg branches, with fair offer pricing and immediate cash payment.

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights8 records

Broad incumbents

• Chrono24: Global online marketplace for new and pre-owned luxury watches, headquartered in Germany. Directly comparable to Johannsen's Rolex/watch retail and auction channel, with significantly larger online scale.
• The RealReal: US-listed online marketplace for authenticated pre-owned luxury including watches, jewellery and handbags. Comparable to Johannsen's authenticated luxury resale offering (auctions + shop.pfandhaus.de) but with national online scale.

Direct peers

• EZCORP: US-listed pawn operator (EZPAWN, Cash America International brands) running a global pawn-led retail network with collateral lending against jewellery and electronics. Closest large-scale listed analogue to Johannsen's pawn + retail model.
• FirstCash Holdings: US-listed international pawn operator (formed via FirstCash + Cash America merger) running thousands of pawn stores across the Americas offering collateral loans and pre-owned retail. Highly comparable business model, multi-branch scale and product mix.
• Cash Converters: Global franchised pawn and second-hand retailer offering secured short-term loans against personal property plus resale of pre-owned goods through franchised stores. Closely matches Johannsen's blend of pawn lending and pre-owned goods resale.
• H&T Pawnbrokers: UK-listed pawnbroker operating a multi-branch network issuing short-term secured loans against jewellery, watches and precious metals, plus retail sales of pre-owned items. Direct comparison to Johannsen on collateral mix, interest/fee revenue model, and branch-driven footprint.

Regional players

• Degussa Goldhandel: German precious-metals dealer offering gold/silver buying, selling and storage with physical branches in major German cities. Comparable to Johannsen on gold/precious-metals buying stream and German physical-retail footprint, though focused on bullion rather than collateral lending.
• ProAurum: German precious-metals dealer with retail branches across Germany buying and selling gold, silver and platinum coins and bars. Comparable to Johannsen's gold-buying revenue stream and German physical-retail presence, though not a pawnbroker.

Emerging players

• Borro Private Finance: UK-based online asset-backed lending platform issuing secured loans against luxury watches, jewellery, gold and fine art. Highly comparable collateral mix to Johannsen and the most direct online analogue to Johannsen's lending book.
• easyPawn: German online pawn / digital pawnbroker offering remote collateral valuation and lending. Direct competitive overlap with Johannsen's collateral lending product, with a digital-first delivery model Johannsen currently lacks.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/pfandkreditjohannsen
• Instagraminstagram.com/pfandkredit_johannsen
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/johannsen

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Johannsen