One of the chain’s downtown Seattle coffee shop now only accepts card and mobile payments. In the coffee shop business, speed is key, especially on those busy mornings.
The company has not commented on the duration of the test, limited to a single location. The Starbucks in question is located inside the Russell Investment Center.
The goal is to speed-up the transaction time. Switching to a cashless system reduces the risk of thefts, as physical exchange of money and bank runs are eliminated. The cashless Starbucks does offer one exception to the no-cash rule: a tip jar by the register made it clear that bills and coins were still welcome there.
“The test will help us understand how cashless forms of payment may impact our customer experience,” a Starbucks spokeswoman told the Seattle Times.
The company recently made further investments in its app, which allows customers to order and pay ahead. Therefore, the decision might also be a bid to push people to turn to their app, a move that could pay big. According to a MarketWatch report, as of 2016, Starbucks customers had 1.2 billion USD loaded onto Starbucks cards and the mobile app.
