Mostly credited as Les Gold, Lester Gold has an estimated net worth of $5 million. Born in Detroit, Michigan, he is a third-generation pawnbroker and the charismatic patriarch of American Jewelry and Loan which he opened in Detroit in 1978. His father worked his way into the jewelry store – a 50,000 square-foot empire and the boss to more than 45 employees. Known as “The King of Pawn”, the hard-nosed, old-school pawnbroker is street-smart and hard bargaining in his 40 years in the business. In 2011, he opened a second shop in Pontiac.

All of Gold’s children are employed in the shop and he hopes that one day they will take it over. His son, Seth, is the general manager and he handles all the marketing. The assistant manager is his daughter, Ashley. In 2009, Les started a reality show called Hardcore Pawn on TruTV. It is an American documentary reality television series produced by RDF USA. The main focus is on the human aspects of drama, conflicts, humor, and absurdity between the staff members and their customers rather than the significance of the items being brought into the shop.

The show has been accused of being simply a knock-off and a capitalization on the breakout success of Pawn Stars. However, Les defended that the show is a more realistic portrayal of a pawn shop than Pawn Stars. It shows all walks of life that come into the pawnshop and the day-to-day operations of American Jewelry and Loan, a family-owned pawn shop. Others also claim that some scenes have been staged but Les defends the show saying that no part is a setup.