“How come you don’t take cash?”
Technology is constantly evolving, and in the past few years we’ve seen a number of businesses in the UK forgo cash in favour of card-only payments. While we know it’s annoying to have loose change in your wallet that you can’t seem to get rid of, there are a number of benefits to being a cashless business.
During the pandemic, we made the decision to stop taking cash in order to protect both our baristas and our customers from COVID, and realised it’s better for most to avoid cash completely. We often get a lot of questions about why we don’t take cash because not having the option is frustrating but we found when we explained our reasons why to more people, it’s understandable why it’s the inevitable conclusion…
Faster service & less hassle
We know your time is precious, especially during those busy morning rushes when you’re trying to grab your coffee and get out the door. By going cashless, we can speed up the entire transaction process. With digital payments (whether through credit cards, debit cards, or Apple Pay), everything is just faster. No fumbling with notes or coins, or waiting for change. You order, you pay, and you get your coffee — it’s as easy as that!
With reduced wait times, you can get your caffeine fix within minutes you won’t have to miss your bus or train before you head off.
It’s safer for our baristas
Handling cash isn’t just a hassle; it also introduces a whole lot of risks. From the possibility of counterfeit money to potential theft, dealing with cash can be a liability that we’re choosing to avoid.
For our baristas, not having to handle cash means less exposure to these risks, and it keeps both them and you safer. We’re also reducing the amount of money we have to keep in the shop, so there’s less chance of any break-ins or situations that put our baristas in danger.
Additionally, with digital payments, it’s easier to track transactions for both our business and for you. There’s always a possibility for error with cash; overcharging, undercharging, or making mistakes within the system. So, if there’s ever an issue with your payment or order, everything is documented within our system, so we can more easily handle refunds and understand what went wrong.
It reduces the risk of illness
We all know the drill — cash gets passed from person to person, and quite often, it can carry harmful germs. Since we’ve seen the impact of health crises in the past few years, we want to minimise any unnecessary exposure to illness. Digital payments mean fewer physical interactions and fewer opportunities for germs to spread.
Better use of our Team’s Time
As a small business, we have to be super efficient with how we manage everything. Cash creates more work for our team — handling cash and change, counting and balancing at the end of every day and making bank deposits. By going cashless, we free up our team’s time to focus more on what matters most: making you the best coffee possible and providing a great experience.
Disappearing banks
You’ll have noticed the steady disappearance of physical bank outlets in every high street - this means there aren’t many options near our shops to get change or deposit cash - and both of these services incur high fees. It also resulted in very few cash points for our customers to get cash out in the first place so even in 2019, pre covid - over 80% of our sales were via digital payment.
We understand that it’s not ideal for every customer, but with benefits like speed, convenience, and enhanced security, going cashless has enabled smaller independent businesses to keep their business going and moving forward with the changing high street. What do you think, is being able to pay on your phone, watch and card a help or a hindrance?