Meet the Premier Team
Visit us to meet the Premier team. To give YOU the top quality service you deserve we provide the best trained staff in Kelowna. We are the only local store pawn shop / Jewelry buyer with:
3 G.I.A. Diamonds and Diamond Grading accredited buyers
4 G.I.A. Accredited / Applied Jewelry Professionals
4 Diamond Council of America 'Diamond Certified' team members
100% of our team is D.C.A. "Jewelry Sales" certified
You deserve expert help and it’s our job to give it to you! Please stop in and introduce yourself to the team (bios below!).
Team Bios
Martin Strasser
GENERAL MANAGER
Graduate Diamonds & Accredited Jewellery Professional Certificates from the Gemological Institute of America
Diamond Certified, Jewellery Sales &Advanced Jewellery Sales Certificates from the Diamond Council of America
Premier’s General Manager, Martin Strasser, served on the executive board of the B.C. Pawnbrokers Association. As a recognized pawnshop spokesman he has been interviewed by local newspaper, television and radio stations many times. Martin has been consulted by Kelowna RCMP and City Hall on issues relating to refining, improving or strengthening municipal bylaws relating to the pawn and secondhand industry. He’s also had the pleasure of presenting at several international trade shows related to the pawn industry.
In 2015 Martin (and Premier) were featured by Business Elite Magazine for our 20th anniversary. Find the article HERE.
GENERAL MANAGER
Eryn Bayes
ASSISTANT MANAGER
Diamonds & Diamond Grading, Accredited Jewellery Professional Certificates from the Gemological Institute of America,
Diamond Certified & Jewellery Sales Certificates from the Diamond Council of America
Graduate Sales Associate Certificate from the Jewellers Education Foundation of the American Gem Society
Eryn joined us in 2003. She brought her previous retail and administration skills to our operation and has assisted us in streamlining many aspects of our business procedures. Given her organizational prowess she oversees our online listings and website database.
Eryn received her Graduate Sales Associate from the American Gem Society in 2006 and her G.I.A. Accredited Jewellery Professional certificate in 2012. 2014 marked another achievement when she obtained her Diamond Certification from the Diamond Council of America – well done! She’s currently taking diamond grading through the G.I.A.
ASSISTANT MANAGER
Kyle Paulson
SENIOR BUYER
Diamonds and Diamond Grading Certificate from the Gemological Institute of America,
Accredited Jewellery Professional Certificate from the Gemological Institute of America,
Diamond Certified & Jewellery Sales from the Diamond Council of America
Kyle joined our team in late 2012 and is excited to be learning the trade. An active learner with great professional pride Kyle just completed his Diamond Certification through the Diamond Council of America. He enjoys Kelowna’s outdoor lifestyle including mountain biking and riding his motorcycle.
SENIOR BUYER
Dave Choy
SENIOR BUYER
Applied Jewellery Professional Certificate from the Gemological Institute of America,
Diamond Certified & Jewellery Sales from the Diamond Council of America
Dave brings over 30 years of sales and customer service experience to our store. He joined us early in 2015 and recently graduated his GIA Applied Jewelery Professional course. He’s an avid golfer on his off-time and frequently debates with our other staff on who plays a better game.
SENIOR BUYER
Ganbolor ‘Bella’ Battogtokh
Diamond Certified & Jewellery Sales from the Diamond Council of America
Bella joined our team in December of 2017. She speaks several languages fluently and has attended school in Cracow (Poland), Ankara (Turkey) and most recently Brighton College in BC. She is an avid reader.
Hugh Ferster
Jewellery Sales from the Diamond Council of America
Hugh joined us in 2019 and is an avid technology enthusiast. He is working on his Diamond certification through the Diamond Council of America.
Ernst Strasser
The ‘founding father’ of PJL
Immigrating from Germany shortly after World War 2, Ernst worked a difficult life in the drywall industry to support his family. He mortgaged his home and risked his retirement savings to start Premier in 1995. We are thankful for his vision and perserverance because it built the foundation of our work ethic today: strong value and strong principles.
The ‘founding father’ of PJL
Looking for Work? Join the Premier Team!
Premier is always looking for talented team players. Viewers of PAWNSTARS will know how diverse and interesting the pawn industry can be. If you relish a challenge, enjoy learning and can offer topnotch client service we’re interested in talking to you.
Our staff handle a diverse array of products from Rolex watches to flatscreen TV’s. We’ve helped people in financial difficulty with short-term collateral loans and 10 minutes later sold an engagement set to a young couple. We understand that this is an eclectic mix of skills and we’re prepared to train new staff.
Our team culture is very important to us. For this reason we suggest you watch our recruiting video to get a sense of who we are. We also feature more videos including our charity work on our Youtube channel HERE.