if these restaurants wanted to put a debit/credit machine they would. all they have to do is pass the buck on to the customer. raise prices slightly, put in a minimum amount to use a debit card, add on 25 cents to every transaction etc etc etc. around 30-40% of our customers use some sort of card. i know for us, we just take the hit because we understand that its the cost of doing business.

some of you dudes need to get your head out of the sand.

Also I know alot of business that are owned by people in Asia in richmond that make absolutely no profit. I mean some of the clothing stores in the asian malls in richmond don't get more then 2 customer a day and the rent is crazy expensive. Seems to me that some business are in these places to lose money. And a few are cash only places too.

what type of business?

At my place of work I'd estimate 75-80% of transactions are card as opposed to cash. Though most purcahses are $40-$100.

Also one of the first times I went to Richmond to eat was with hchang when we went to bubble tea. I couldn't believe it was cash only! I don't think before then I had ever seen a cash only place. Of course I asked to borrow cash before ordering though...

using a typical asian, hole in the wall, restaurant as an example.

many "asian" businesses operate with an expectation at a loss purely to gain immigration into canada. canadian gov't is perfectly fine with this because the end result is still revenue in their pocket, weather the person gains entry thru investments (which most times the outcome is at a loss) or starts a business, which they pay the gov't back in taxation. many ppl that immigrate into canada this way understand its an acceptable monetary loss.

i see many shops still operate as cash only. many shops stay competitive by being the "cheap eats", thus returning customers (unless they really suck that bad). being asian, they probably try to keep as many costs down as possible, retaining as much as possible while minimizing expenditure. with pos machines, cc companies charge % of transaction as fees, some even use per time use as fees. if charge back happens, the business owner is on the hook. with news of so much fraud happening with cc transactions, this alone is enough to detour business owners from having a pos machine. sounds stupid right, but remember the whole incident a few years back, with fake pos machines grabbing ppl's pin's and cc numbers out in north van? if that incident didnt happen, we wouldnt have the chips on the cc today. technology for use of cc's is getting there, but canada, and states are still behind when it comes to cc security, compared to the rest of the developed world.

still stupid not to have a pos machine, but i also am understanding. a new business owner, with little to no credit developed with their banks, would most likely have higher fees to have a pos machine at their business.

You know why?

The people who own them come to Canada on investor/entrepreneur class visa, meaning they had to, in the past, show that they could invest $500,000CAD in liquid cash upon entry, or for the new Mainland Chinese, $1.6MCAD.
They buy these shit businesses, run it for the required 5 or 7 years or whatever it is now, at which point they get Canadian citizenship. At this point, they sell it to another wealthy immigrant who also runs it for the sole purpose of obtaining citizenship. These people don't really give a shit because they probably have 2 or 3 factories somewhere else in the world.

I know, because that's what lots of my friends' families do, and have done for more than 10 years.

gaining immigration thru different means,

they use to use the example of the corner store owned and operated by a new immigrant that can barely speak english.

another way of gaining entry is, as pointed out, via investment aka buying your way in. does the gov't care? not really, its revenue either way to them. and a sticker price of 1/2 a mil, or whatever the current $$$ is, its all to the gov't.

i know of ppl that gained entry via this way, investments, and lost well in excess of 350,000+, but this is still considered acceptably loss

QFT.

There are a few shops in Langley that take cards, but if it's under a certain amount (usually either $5 or $10), they'll tack on the extra few cents onto your total bill. I'm fine with that as it's cheaper than being charged $1.50 from a non-Credit Union ATM to get cash. I've never understood why other companies wont do that instead of being a cash only location. Cash Only places aren't common in Langley -- hell, I don't even think one exists here -- so it's not something I think about when I decide to make a trek out to Richmond or Coquitlam for dinner. If I see a sign on the door saying that they don't take cards, I simply bypass it and go onto the next place. Not my problem if they don't want my business.

one other thing comes to mind, because i really just thought of it.

i know a person that recently just purchased a vehicle in china. i found it absolutely hilarious, he went in, brought a briefcase full of cash. i asked him why he didnt just cut a cheque or even charge it onto his card. his response, "the dealership still prefers to deal in cash only"

i think its the asian mentality, pay for it upfront, and not charge it onto a card, buy something you if you only have the means to afford it right now otherwise save for it, which credit is basically money you dont really have.

that would be fine for large purchases but for something like less than 50 bux (or so) it should be fine with debit/credit

LET ME EXPLAIN ONE MORE TIME

Debit cards charge a flat fee for every transaction.

Credit cards charge a percentage.

This reminds me when i was at a gas station buying drinks. My friend and I were purchasing some stuff and my friend gave the cashier the change and when i was up next the cashier wouldn't let me by a couple of pennies

I just don't know why some people feel so entitled to being able to pay with plastic at a restaurant. The restaurant doesn't have to do it if they don't want to. If you want to pay card, just go somewhere else! It's pretty simple. If you feel that the restaurant is being dumb, feel free to let them know - but believe me, I'm sure you're not going to be the first person to tell them - and most of the places I frequent that are cash only are so busy that it honestly doesn't make a difference to them.

What about Tim Hortons accepting Mastercard only, no visa - just because they have an agreement with Mastercard?

^ I remember for the longest time tim hortons never took debit or cc's. Its been maybe 3-4 yrs since they finally introduced it.
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If i was the owner of a HK coffee shop, I'd be doing it cash only too.

The owner could easily say take the guys DL or something of vaule say his phone or something. When the dollar is paid the guy gets his belongings back.

Another way is to take pics of the girl/guy and say if you don't pay tomorrow this is going on line and posted in front of my store stating these cheap Ass doens't have enough to pay lol.

EDIT: If i WAS THE owner I would totally make one of the stay till they get cash or get something of value of theirs to keep till they pay up.

we have stores in mall food courts. so the prices are around the 10 dollar range

mainland chinaman style payment

Yep, and don't forget the tip they haven't paid unless they are too cheap to leave one also.

Some people are missing the point they chose to eat there. Has ability to pay by going to ATM around the corner but refuse to due to the ATM fee.

Correct me if I am wrong, I thought it was illegal for merchants to charge a fee to use Visa, MC or AMEX. I believe it violates their agreement with the credit card company.

Tims used to not accept any form of plastic cause it slowed down transactions. I remember when they first started taking MC it was pay-pass only.

To me that is a reasonable reason to say "cash only", yet even they succumbed to pressures of people wanting to pay with plastic. I have a Tim Card that auto reloads from my Visa, don't want a MC.

fun for fact..

canada post (at least the one at my place) doesn't take credit card when I pay for taxes on parcels I pick up. Cash or debit only.

another fact
santouya, the japanese ramen store in robson/denman that i believe couple of revsceners go, accept only CASH or DEBIT.