Comment by astura
2 years ago
>It's just that the interchange fees show up as one big chunk whereas the cash processing is lots of little bites, or even accounting for things that didn't happen (like skimming).
Not just skimming, but lost business for cash-only establishments is huge. The amount probably varies by type of business, but I sometimes go to a bar that's cash-only and I've seen so many people walk in, try to order, and walk out and never come back once they find out it's cash-only. Even groups of 15-20 people. That's a significant cost (in lost revenue) even if it doesn't directly show up as a line item.
Even I admit to choosing a different place from time to time I think "I could go to the cash only bar, but then I'd have to go to the ATM first or I could just go to the other place that doesn't require an extra trip to the ATM. I should probably just go to the ATM so I could have some cash on me anyways, but traffic is heavy or it's cold/rainy/dark/late."
I own a cash only bar.
I bought an ATM and don't charge a fee to use it. It's right next to the bar.
We still get some walkouts, but not very often. We have a strong reputation.