In 1946, Linda Pisano’s great-uncle, Max, worked at a pawn shop in the Bronx. With his boss ready to retire, Max bought the store and partnered with his brothers, Morris and Harry, to start a family business. Nearly 80 years and four generations later, Paradise Pawnbrokers continues to thrive in the heart of the Bronx, with Linda and her son Matthew at the helm.
For Linda Pisano, the world of pawn was never in her plans. Her ambition lay in the realm of construction, and she “never considered going into the family business.” Instead, she studied engineering and went on to build a career as a construction engineer, tackling major projects for the Port Authority of NY & NJ.
Her son, Matthew Pisano, on the other hand had a childhood dream of joining the family business. His earliest memories are tied to the pawn shop, and the ‘really important job’ his grandfather would give him: counting bundles of one-dollar bills in the vault. “I loved it,” he says. From the tender age of two, Matthew declared he wanted to be like his ‘Papa.’
Though Matthew studied journalism at university, that path ended abruptly in 2012 with the steep decline of print media. “Joining the family business was a no brainer at that point,” Matthew explains. He began working for Linda’s brother, Michael, who ran a separate pawn business in New England. There, Matthew put his writing degree to use, building an e-commerce department from scratch to serve as a new sales outlet for all eight of his uncle’s shops.
Life took an unexpected turn in 2020 when Linda’s cousin, Jason, tragically passed away. Up to that point, Jason had been managing Paradise Pawnbrokers’ day-to-day. Linda, whose involvement had been limited to helping with foreclosures as her father’s health declined, found herself learning the ins and outs of daily operations. She leaned on her brother for guidance as well as Matthew, who by then had worked nearly a decade for Michael’s pawn business. Eventually, Matthew joined his mother in the Bronx.
Matthew says his mother’s best advice for stepping into the business wasn’t advice at all, but simply her “trusting me.” He elaborates, “her asking me to take over managing the two original stores and explicitly telling me that they trust in me to be the future of these stores was the best ‘advice’ that I could have received.”
For Linda, the joy of working with Matthew lies in “being able to rely on someone who knows what he’s doing and learning from him.”
Linda and Matthew’s individual strengths now form a complementary whole at Paradise Pawnbrokers. Matthew, representing the fourth generation, handles the daily operations, driven by youthful energy and a bold outlook. Linda, with her deep administrative skills, acts as his sounding board, ensuring the business runs smoothly behind the scenes. She muses about the early days when her grandfather ran the business. “Women were not allowed to work there. Now, most of our employees are women.”
Outside of work, Linda enjoys gardening, solving The NY Times word games, and cherishing time with her grandson. Matthew, a keen hiker and backpacker, finds his hobbies now revolve entirely around his two-year-old son, with another child on the way. They’re already getting his little one out on the trails, helping him discover a love for the outdoors.
Looking ahead, Matthew’s goal is to open more Paradise Pawnbrokers locations across New York. “An absolute dream of mine would be to pair one of the new stores with an experience, like a speak-easy,” he adds. And while business growth is important to the Pisanos, their greatest reward is knowing the family legacy will continue.
“I want to see this almost 80-year-old business succeed for another 80-plus years,” he says, a sentiment that perfectly captures the enduring spirit of Paradise Pawnbrokers.
