Last week we introduced you to a Pomona Swap Meet & Classic Car Show regular, Thomas Kern of TMK Fasteners. Well, in Pomona the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree… so this week we thought we’d go one generation further and introduce you to Thomas’ son, Jared Kern. (Yes, we know that out here it’s probably an olive tree.)

Although Jared is only fourteen years old and readily admits that he’s “not exactly a classic car fan,” he has been a fixture at the Pomona Swap Meet for the last three years. Using his dad’s vendor spaces (Road 17, Spaces 39 and 41) as a home base, Jared has established his very own parts hauling service. Customers ask us all the time about getting the parts that they’ve purchased back to their cars in the General Admission parking lot. Jared, with his wagon, is one easy way to do it!

FOR ONLY $5 PER HAUL, JARED WILL CARRY WHATEVER YOU BUY OUT TO YOUR CAR.

Jared started hauling in Pomona when he was just eleven years old. So how does a kid who’s favorite hobby is playing video games get into pulling a wagon at a swap meet? That’s all dad’s doing! “My business started when my father went to the Portland Auto Show as a vendor. He saw a bunch of people doing exactly what I do now, and he wanted to get me started,” said Jared.

Like father, like son: Jared and Thomas Kern at a recent Pomona Swap Meet.

Like father, like son: Jared and Thomas Kern at a recent Pomona Swap Meet.

Not a bad gig, though. Jared uses some of the money he makes in Pomona to support his video game habit. His current favorite is The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. (I won’t even pretend to be young enough, or cool enough, to have heard of that. Pac-Man, anyone?) Jared jokes and says that the rest of his money goes into an “offshore account.” Either way, we’d say that with his work ethic and entrepreneurial spirit, he’s well on his way to getting his dream car, an Audi R8.

Jared tells us that “nothing is too heavy” to haul, but we were a little surprised to hear about some of his more interesting cargo. “The coolest thing I’ve hauled was probably an old musket. And the strangest thing I’ve hauled was a meat grinder!” Of course, we’ll have a chat with our Compliance Team about the non-automotive items, but it’s just another reminder that you never know what you’ll find in Pomona! (Check out the photos below to see some of Jared’s typical cargo.)

The next time you visit the Pomona Swap Meet & Classic Car Show, keep Jared in mind if you need cheap labor to help get your purchases back to your car. If he’s not already on a haul, you can find him hanging out on the Main Aisle, or at his dad’s spaces (Road 17, Spaces 39 and 41)!