Wednesday, October 11, 2006

Plastic Only: Cafe Refuses to Accept Cash


These days you can buy almost anything with a credit or debit card. But Snap, a cafe in Washington, D.C.'s, Georgetown neighborhood is taking it one step further. Snap's owner has decided to stop accepting cash. Are we moving toward a cashless society?

18 comments:

Anonymous said...

This makes sense. Pure and simple, this café hit the nail on the head. Before Greece there was no money at all, then until the civil war there was no paper money (or at least very little in America), but once we had paper money was backed by precious metals. Well now we have stumbled upon then next currency; ones and zeros. Why have cash at all, if we truly think about it and other than personal, embarrassing, or illegal purchases it in unnecessary. I applaud the café for stepping up there game and maybe would recommend a sign that told customers so there would be less confusion. I mean come on, a sign.

Anonymous said...

This cafe was right. Why risk places in the hood getting robbed all the time. Washington D.C and the area of Georgetown are very high in the rates of crime. This would lower crime rates, and make this cafe a hit. I think our whole society should move to a cashless based econ. I would rather tell a hoodrat i didnt have cash then to give him my card.

Anonymous said...

We'll I've never heard of this before..owning a cafe that only accepts credit cards? In some ways I guess it is a safer way to care for your money, but hey, if you don't trust your employees with your money then why are they working there? I just don't see how this cafe is still bringing in the same amount of costumers. On the other hand, plastic is much better looking than those dead white European males...

Mr. Rood said...

Ummm Zach- Have you ever been to Georgetown? If diplomats, Ambassadors and Senators count as hoodrats, then your analysis holds. But I am of the opinion that they are far to busy in other illicit activities to rob the cash register.

Anonymous said...

It seems like an odd concept. I never go anywhere without cash cause there are lots of places that wont ccept credit cards and i really dont want a credit or debit card cause they only seem to cause alot of problems like building up enormous debts. However, I do see where the safety of not having to carry any actual money in your store would prevent many possible robberies and employee thievery. It could catch on but probably not in the near future.

Anonymous said...

It seems weird that the common asked question is do you accept credit and at this cafe it is turned around to do you accept cash. A good point was made that now she doesn’t have to worry about having her employees dealing with large sums of money. I think they are on to something. Unfortunately not everyone has a credit card or likes to use it in many cases people like to pay up front especially if it’s a small purchase. It’s a weird concept but maybe soon there will be other places with the same policy.

Anonymous said...

Policies like that of the cafe will create positive and negative views. It will help maximize profit for the store, as theft (by customers and employees) will be almost eliminated. Also individuals will no longer need to carry cash around in order to enjoy a place like the cafe. Cash can be very hard to keep track of since it tends to build up in small bills and coins. A credit card almost never leaves one's wallet and there few of them. However, cash keeps people's spending in check. People are more inclined to use a credit card on a big expense rather than cash because when we use cash it seems like we are losing more. If credit cards became the only way to buy things then erratic spending might increase. I believe this policy will fit the area because college kids usually are not making money and they normally use credit cards anyway.

Anonymous said...

This is a great idea ! I work in a store and we hate dealing w. cash. Its such a hassle to count, keep track of, and get it to the bank. for all those who say that credit cards cause u to get into debt...get a debit card and this wolnt happen. I would favor a cashless society.

Anonymous said...

ive never been to a place that doesnt except cash..by only excepting plastic she is losing money because she has to pay a fee everytime someone uses their card..she may feel more comfortable going away but in the long run it would be a better idea to take cash..

Anonymous said...

seems like a smart idea for security reasons however it would also cut out alot of busness too. not every one has a credit or debit card such as teenagers who can't have one. as teenagers we buy alot we usualy have to start makeing our own money and spending our own money. therefore if every thing went to plastic either our parent would have to be incharge of what we make and how we spend it till we are 18 or an entire new system would need to be made.

Anonymous said...

i think we are moving towards a cash society, but in many ways its not a turn for the best, mainly becuase then my pool business wouldnt be as much fun cuz itd be all legal and stuff. and many other kids would have that problem. it might be good for this stupid cafe cuz they dont want stuff stolen, but its not good when applied to everything else. and georgetown is a very nice area there are no hoodrats

Anonymous said...

I think this makes sense in many ways in the fact you would have to carry cash, which you may lose and its not like you can cancel cash like you can with a credit card. I think thiis dosent make sense in the way in which identity fraud may become a problem. If they are going to base money on just credit cards then they are going to find another way in which people may be identified. Also unless they find some way to manage debt then the country's population is going to be deep in a hole. Some people have a hard time managing their money and if they have a "unlimited" access to it through a credit card they will be in serioud trouble when their bill comes around.

Anonymous said...

I think this makes sense in many ways in the fact you would have to carry cash, which you may lose and its not like you can cancel cash like you can with a credit card. I think thiis dosent make sense in the way in which identity fraud may become a problem. If they are going to base money on just credit cards then they are going to find another way in which people may be identified. Also unless they find some way to manage debt then the country's population is going to be deep in a hole. Some people have a hard time managing their money and if they have a "unlimited" access to it through a credit card they will be in serioud trouble when their bill comes around.

Anonymous said...

I deffiently agree that this cafe is moving in the right direction with an idea that I blieve will be the norm in the future, how far into the future I have no idea I would guess not too far. It is much much more convenient than having to carry cash and when you lose your card im sure you could just call up and cancel it or something and get a new one unlike cash and it would lower robbery rates and D.C. is a dirty area with a high crime rate, when we went there 8th grade the kids that got to go with the cops saw like 2 murders in one day and like a drug raid where a cop killed someone or something crazy like that.

Anonymous said...

In this cafes case, considering they are placed in a fairly decent neighborhood, this is not a bad idea. Most customers in the area most likely carry plastic on them regularly. I dont think the hoodrats stealing all the loot is really the issue behind this considering a cashless buisness in the hood would fail miserably. I believe this is more about the owner being able to simplify her buisness responsabilitys, even though it may cost her a portion of the demographic.

Anonymous said...

i cant believe how much our culture is changing. its amazing how credit cards are quickly becoming the norm. but it makes sense. for security reasons (being able to cancel it if it gets stolen)and for luxury reasons (its better then carrying around a wad of cash). i think within our lifetime, credit cards will soon be accepted/mandatory everywhere, and its largely for the better.

Anonymous said...

Although it seems like an odd idea i think it's really smart. Credit cards are so much easier to handle and easily cancelled if it is lost or stolen. Debit cards, although easy to handle and not bulky to carry around, if it is lost and not cancelled quickly serious damage could be done. This cafe is moving in the right direction and seems good for people already acquinanted with credit/debit cards, but a cashless society would come with some flaws. For example, kids are not typically well educated about how to use credit and debit cards and would be stuck with a big responsibility if they were to be given one, the system would need to be altered in order to work for EVERYONE.

Anonymous said...

I think that our country is moving towards a cashless society. However, I think that cash should still be widely used. Credit cards are being used more now because of ordering items online and because of vacations. Many of the summer people who come out to Montauk pay with a credit card at the deli I work at. It is easier to handle and use credit cards. I would not want a credit card because I don't want to even think about debts that could be slowly accumulated.
If the trend continues and more stores follow the same footsteps as Snap, we would all be forced to get credit cards. I think that this would cause identity theft to increase. I don't want us to be a completely cashless society. We shouldn't have to use a credit card to pay for a cup of coffee.