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Melbourne Cafe Offers 10 Per Cent Discount To Customers Paying Cash

A Melbourne cafe is offering a 10 per cent discount to customers, but only if they pay in cash.

Richy Marchandise runs the Mimolette Cafe in Melbourne, and is willing to make less profits during the cost of living crisis if his customers pay in cash because “there are so many things that are wrong with EFTPOS”.

"EFTPOS does not work as well as they claim. People get impatient when the system is down, and we lose sales constantly. In 11 years, I have changed EFTPOS providers five times," he told Yahoo Finance.

Marchandise also said he has to pay about $2000 in fees for his EFTPOS system, and that there is often a delay in the payments reaching his account.

So Marchandise is now trying to incentivise his customers into using cash. He said that previously, only about 5 per cent used cash, but that has gone up to 20 per cent thanks to his discount.

Barista Steph said that the increased use of cash has meant their tips have also gone up.

"Before joining Mimolette, I wasn't familiar with the concept of tips. But now, our tip jar overflows regularly," she told Yahoo Finance.

"At the end of each week, we divvy up the tips among the staff. It's a fantastic perk, especially since card payments rarely result in tips.”