Like haggling? Then you'd be wise to tune into OLN's latest reality show, "The Liquidator," starring master-haggler Jeff Schwarz. The owner of Vancouver's largest liquidation store is Canada's newest -- and perhaps least likely -- reality star. Just ten years ago it would be unheard of for a TV show to be crafted around the wheeling and dealing going on at a cavernous overstock shop. But, of course, that was long before shows like "
Pawn Stars," "
Storage Wars" and "
American Pickers" started dominating the airwaves. Schwarz wears many hats, which sets his show apart from the others. When he's not sealing deals at his sprawling store, he's out in the field putting together estate auctions and chasing down the best bargains in town. Since he can't be everywhere at once, he has a savvy young apprentice named Daniel to help him out.HuffPost TV recently sat down with the very forthright Schwarz to chat about how he became a reluctant TV star, why he thinks the Pawn Stars are acting and how an old Ferris wheel turned out to be one of his most profitable turnarounds ever.
How did the show come about?I went to a wrap party for a TV show, and somebody there had heard of me and what we do. We were actually approached by one of the people from the production company. We thought it was a bit of a joke at first but the next thing we knew the guy hands me his business card, and two days later he shows up with his camera crew! [Laughs]
What was your first reaction to the idea?I was a little apprehensive, a little nervous. I wasn't too sure if I was the right person for it. And then I started running stuff by people. The more people said I couldn't do it, the more I said y'know what, I actually can do this.
There are a lot of shows on the air right now that feature some sort of negotiation component. Who do you think is the best negotiator on TV right now? For instance, someone on "Pawn Stars" or "Storage Wars" or a show like that?I'd have to say me.
You think you're better than all of those guys?The ones that are on TV, yeah. Is that a bad thing to say? The guys from "Storage Wars" aren't really negotiating, they're just bidding. And the guys from "Pawn ...