A coffee shop owner is bucking the cashless trend in Australia by offering a discount to customers who pay in cash, claiming his business has suffered ongoing problems with digital payments.
Richy Marchandise, 42, is offering customers 10 per cent off everything at Mimolette Café in Windsor, Melbourne, bucking the cashless trend.
The French-born coffee shop operator has worked in hospitality for 20 years and said the industry is worse off than ever due to sharp increases in the cost of supplies for his business.
Mr Marchandise told the Daily Mail Australia he does not mind discounting his prices for cash transactions because “it helps everyone”.
“There is a crisis. If people can save a little money and help us with cash flow, it will be good,” he said.
The business owner said his suppliers prefer to be paid in cash and when he doesn’t receive his electronic payments from EFTPOS on time (or they are delayed due to weekend hours), there can be a “snowball effect”.
“Holidays are the worst time of the year for us. It means we don’t get any money until the following Tuesday, which means five days without funds,” he explained.
“I have to pay my suppliers, I have to pay my wages. My priority is to always pay my wages on time because it’s the money for people’s rent.”
Richy Marchandise, 42 (pictured), said he has experienced many problems with EFTPOS over the years and it can cost more than $2000 a year to run, plus he said there are additional costs such as rolls of paper receipts.
Mimolette Café in Windsor, Melbourne (pictured) is offering customers a 10 per cent discount if they pay in cash.
The cafe’s new cash flow means it is no longer reliant on late payments to purchase items it needs for catering jobs, which had resulted in large orders being cancelled in the past and revenue being lost.
Mr Marchandise also said that having EFTPOS can cost him more than $2,000 a year just to have the machine available for his customers.
And there are other extras, like paying up to $260 for a bulk purchase of paper receipt rolls.
“In addition, EFTPOS payments to customers also have to pay fees. They charge us and they charge you. They make money at our expense,” he said.
Part of his decision to offer incentives for his customers to pay in cash was the constant problems with the EFTPOS system that forced him to change providers five times over the course of 11 years.
Coffee shop operator Richy Marchandise said his customers have embraced cash payments, which have increased by about 15 percent.
The cafe owner (pictured) said there have been multiple benefits to offering a discount to cash-paying customers, such as staff receiving tips and keeping their suppliers happy.
“If on a busy Saturday there are people queuing to place an order and the EFTPOS system is not working, people walk away. We lose customers and we can’t afford that in this climate,” he said.
Mr Marchandise said cafe customers now pay about 15 per cent more in cash than before the discount was introduced.
Your customers also get an additional 30 cents off their hot drink order if they use a cup with a lid.
“With the 10 percent cash discount, that’s almost a dollar they’ve saved,” he said.
On top of all the increased fees and costs, he said businesses were also paying UberEats 30 percent more to advertise and run promotions.
“We made $1,500 in one week with UberEats, but when all the associated commissions and fees were subtracted, we were left with $650,” he said.
Mimolette Café in Windsor, Melbourne (pictured, the café’s desserts) is promoting the benefits of its customers paying with cash.
Mr Marchandise’s staff have also seen a positive benefit from cash payments.
“EFTPOS puts an end to tipping. When I worked in a hospital 20 years ago, people used to leave their tips in a jar – that helped me pay my way through Swinburne University,” he said.
“Now the staff receives tips and is happy.”
Becoming more aware of the benefits of cash has also influenced Mr Marchandise’s family life.
“When you use cash, you see how much you spend. I’m teaching my daughter the value of the dollar,” she said.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted EFTPOS Australia for comment.