Dangerous Man Brewing (Minneapolis) recently replaced their paper receipt system with a new paperless point-of-sale (POS) system.
By switching, they are protecting patrons and staff from unnecessary exposure to Bisphenol A (BPA), which can have negative health effects even in small amounts. They also are saving money and reducing paper waste.
In the first 6 months, they had 18,776 credit card transactions without paper receipts, saving over 9,000 feet of paper. In a year, that prevents about 43 pounds of wasted receipts and as much as a half-pound of BPA chemical.
The new system is saving the brewery $276 in receipt paper purchases per year. Unexpectedly, the biggest cost savings came from no longer needing to count and enter nightly tip receipts, saving about 30 minutes every shift. It now takes 30 seconds for the new POS system to do it automatically. That is $6,240 in payroll savings per year. They realized further operational efficiencies from customers, who are more likely to start a tab as they no longer have to wait for staff that keep customer credit cards; and tabs save staff time by preventing multiple transactions with the same customer.
After some initial staff training, adjustments, and troubleshooting with charging and usage, they were in full swing in about a month. They have eliminated printers entirely. Initially, a few customers got frustrated at the lack of paper receipts, but often were satisfied with an option to get an e-reciept.
The MPCA encourages businesses to switch to paperless systems because receipt papers typically contain high concentrations of the chemical bisphenol-A (BPA) or related chemicals. BPA can transfer onto skin and into bodies when people handle them.
Get inspired by other businesses realizing the benefits of going paperless! Read more success stories on the BPA in Thermal Paper project page.