Cash Business?

Are there still a lot of businesses that only take cash or check? I'm not talking about the hot dog cart on the corner, I'm talking about actual stores.

I ask because there is a pet supply store in the next town west of me that I drive by all the time. The place has been there for years. I have never stepped foot in there until yesterday looking for wild bird seed. The guy running the place tells me about all the different seed he has and what size bags they come in, etc. I tell him I'll take a 20 lb bag and he says that he only takes cash or check. I looked at him for a minute and said "Cash or check? No debit or credit cards?" He said "nope". He tried to tell me there was an ATM at the gas station. I ended up walking out.

I don't carry cash on me while I work, so that's why I didn't have any on me, but I was kind of surprised in this day and age that someone wouldn't at least take debit cards. I know there is a fee to use those machines, maybe they don't get enough business to justify having one?

Even by me there is only one store I know of that doesn't take at least debit cards, almost all take credit cards as well. It's a car parts store and they accept cash only. A relatively big place too, bigger than other places that accept credit cards etc.

It's not common anymore, that's for sure...

...but I'd be half-inclined to support him for the decision, frankly.

I've been operating on a more cash-intensive budget than most folks for the past couple of years and it's actually inconvenient to buy gas with cash. Pay in advance, go back out and pump, go back in and get change, hope you have a penny or three if you happen to miss the even-dollar mark, etc.

I'm the exception to the rule. I don't think many businesses could take that stance (cash only) and survive in this day and age. Most of the folks I know don't have any actual cash on them at any given time.

There is an old-school diner near here that only takes cash. They are throwing away 30% of their business in order to save 2% in card fees.

Either that, or they are laundering a buttload of money for someone.

Hell, I just had to cut off my credit card because of a fraudulent charge attempt. I'm wondering what the hell I'm going to do for 10 days until the replacement arrives.

A bunch of bars still do it. I know a few places as well that are cash only and then have an ATM on the premises. The one that comes to mind is out in the middle of nowhere, and is part bar, part burger joint, part grocery store, part bait shop. Best burger around, too.

I've been running into stores that don't cash of 20's or above lately, which is really odd.

But, yeah, the no debit/credit thing I can totally see as a small business. Many of the places I go to are like that (or have a minimum purchase and/or an additional fee).

Duke wrote: Hell, I just had to cut off my credit card because of a fraudulent charge attempt. I'm wondering what the hell I'm going to do for 10 days until the replacement arrives.

Go to the bank, armed with your drivers license and account number, and withdraw the necessary funds to get you through said 10 days?

I could see bars and diners being able to pull it off (accepting cash only). If you've got more business than you can handle with all cash...then who needs to make it more convenient for MORE people to come?

It's not your typical business model, but different strokes for different folks, I guess.

Duke wrote: There is an old-school diner near here that only takes cash. They are throwing away 30% of their business in order to save 2% in card fees....

Oh now... don't kid yourself, that 2% is already built into all prices.

Really pisses you off when you think about when you pay cash, an extra 2% tax, for nothing!

This place has the best coffee in Columbus but you had better have cash Yeah, Me Too . With this place I think it is more of a statement kind of thing more than anything else. They do not have a website or VM.

mtn wrote:

Duke wrote: Hell, I just had to cut off my credit card because of a fraudulent charge attempt. I'm wondering what the hell I'm going to do for 10 days until the replacement arrives.

Go to the bank, armed with your drivers license and account number, and withdraw the necessary funds to get you through said 10 days?

I went to the ATM. It's just the temporary paradigm shift that's getting me, that's all. Took the kids out to dinner last night - I had to make it an actual To-Do task so I could remember to get enough money to cover it, rather than just not even thinking about it until I whipped out the old credit card. I could see me now - washing dishes in the back!

aircooled wrote:

Duke wrote: There is an old-school diner near here that only takes cash. They are throwing away 30% of their business in order to save 2% in card fees....

Oh now... don't kid yourself, that 2% is already built into all prices. Really pisses you off when you think about when you pay cash, an extra 2% tax, for nothing!

Of course it is. They won't raise their prices, I guess? It's not like they are visibly 2% cheaper than anywhere else around.

On a related topic, the other day I ran across a gas station with different cash and credit prices. I haven't seen that in this century, though it used to be pretty common in the '90s.

I about lost it in the STATE of Kansas DMV the other day..

They wanted to charge 2.75% on top of the registration to cover the use of a card...

WTF!

OK.. So I have a couple small business's.... I don't take cards very often because most folks just pay cash or check.. No problem..

But I do have this...

http://gopayment.com/

So I can take cards no problem...

But I really ain't buying the Kansas treasury dept can't score a better deal than 2.75%

All the Chicago rich that own summer homes on Lake Michigan live near New Buffalo, Michigan. Redamak's has the best burgers and is PACKED on most ALL summer evenings.

CASH only

I find that very few small businesses will take checks from strangers anymore, and I feel thats for good reason. I can go online right now and print up a E36 M3 ton of checks in someone else's name needing only their routing # (which you or I or anyone else can call their bank and get no problems no questions asked) and their account number, which you can get in thrown out mail, stealing their mail, guess, etc... in fact you can just make up an account number for the purpose of bouncing checks.

so I dont fault them for that.

but really no reason not to take debit/credit unless you live under a rock. my iphone plus like a $20 thing they sell at WALMART of all places means I can take debit payments for 3 cents on the dollar or whatever. at least give your customers the option and charge them 3 percent more.

I think if you are anywhere other than a very small town where everyone knows you only take cash, only taking cash means giving up on a lot of sales.

It costs money to take cards. We pay a flat fee per transaction, plus a percentage, plus an annual fee. If homeboy takes cash only, his prices should be a little lower. If not, berkeley him. American Express and Discover are the worst. If you want to stab somebody with a little knife for bad service, use AMEX.

I have a $20 minimum at the shop. I don't make squat on sub $20 items, so buy it, don't buy it, whatever. Learned that in the Caribbean, where all the stupid white tourists are scared to carry $20 around with them, so they want to use a berkeleying amex for a stick of gum.

With our international business, we don't even think about checks. Credit cards are subject to a 4.5% additional charge, exactly what it costs us through the processing company. "Oh, you deal international? Extra charge, pal". Wire transfer, no charge. Have seen cash only once, when a client flew in. Just the way it is, we get no complaints. Had someone hack our main checking account a few weeks ago. Got the account number and the routing number, which are on the wire transfer info, and they printed up a bunch of checks. They appeared all over the country, seven as far as we know. We took no loss, but a few people took losses of thousands of dollars. Strange part was that CitiBank told one caller that the check was good a week after we closed the account. He did not cash it.

We take it all. We have a check scanner to deposit checks real time with our local bank. That being said we have recourse of with holding product if the check bounces in the process. Cash was a large part of our biz when I started 16 years ago, but now it is about 10% if that. There is a lot of safety in not having cash on hand. So while the fees are crappy with taking plastic, they safety benefits out weigh it for us.

I work here part time:

We only started accepting cash a few months ago, it was a good 60 year streak but oh well...

Duke wrote: ....On a related topic, the other day I ran across a gas station with different cash and credit prices. I haven't seen that in this century, though it used to be pretty common in the '90s.

That's pretty common in CA in gas stations.

Although I had heard (maybe not true anymore) that the CC companies will disown you if do that since it lets everyone in on their little secret tax.

Hell, even the hot dog carts are getting into taking credit cards nowadays, with things like Square on the iPad. I can't imagine a retail business not taking credit cards.

"throwing away 30% of your business to save 2%" is exactly right.

I spent a week in Brooklyn recently. I'd say 75% of the restaurants and bars we went to were cash only. No problem for me - I haven't had a credit card in years. Actually, I haven't even had a bank account for about a month.

throwing away 30% of your business to save 2%

Yeah. Except dude running the hot dog cart is probably pulling $1k a month in SS/Disability and not reporting his "hot dog income" to the IRS. Save him a lot more than 2%.

their little secret tax.

Somebody's gotta pay for all those "cash rewards" and "sky miles."

fidelity101 wrote: I work here part time: We only started accepting cash a few months ago, it was a good 60 year streak but oh well...

Cool pic. That's a damned shame. Waffle House started taking cards a year or two ago. Broke my heart a little.