USA Technologies, Inc., a provider of wireless, cashless payment and M2M telemetry solutions for self-serve, small-ticket retailing industries, announced that its customer, Pepi Food Services, has signed an agreement to go 100 percent cashless by the end of 2012. Using USA Technologies ePort Connect(R) cashless payment and telemetry service, Pepi plans to convert its entire vending machine base to 100 percent cashless three years ahead of Pepi's original plan.
Pepi Food Services, based out of Dothan, Ala., is a leader in the vending and food services arena. Two years ago, Pepi began working on a plan to roll out a cashless solution to its vending machine base over the course of a five-year period. Based on outstanding customer response to the machines already networked and incentives such as USA Technologies' JumpStart program, Pepi has implemented plans to accelerate that timetable, with full deployment targeted for the end of 2012.
"Our decision to go cashless was really about the customer experience," said Vic Pemberton, president and founder of Pepi Food Services in a prepared statement. "We've had such a great customer response to the cashless experience on our vending machines that we decided to speed up the implementation. We knew we were going 100 percent cashless eventually – that was always our vision--and with USA Technologies' JumpStart program, there was really no reason to wait. We like to say we're doing it because we have to "feed the kids" – that kids today – even my own – just aren't carrying cash. In fact, we're noticing that many more of our customers now get their paychecks on a debit card. At Pepi, we want our customers to be able to buy with whatever is in their pocket."
Pepi's decision to accelerate cashless with USA Technologies was based, in part, on the ease of USA Technologies' "end-to-end" solution, including USAT's integrated telemetry services that provides customers with cashless payment and remote data collection. Pepi has also benefited from USA Technologies' innovative JumpStart program – a bundled option that enables customers to quickly deploy the ePort cashless payment and telemetry service without upfront capital costs.
Pemberton added, "USA Technologies' one-stop shop makes it easy for us to scale quickly over a short amount of time because we don't have to worry about piecing together a system and managing many suppliers. It's simple: we install the ePort(R), and it works.
"Also, we are always on the lookout for the latest trends and technologies and USA Technologies helps us stay ahead of the curve. For example, we have already deployed some of their NFC/contactless and mobile payments technology. When that trend reaches mainstream vending, we want to be ready," concluded Pemberton.
USA Technologies now has nearly 60,000 terminals linked to its ePort Connect service that are able to accept NFC/contactless payments – RFID and mobile – enabling its operator customers to accept these new forms of payment. The service is designed to be open to all mobile payment platforms, including Google Wallet, ISIS, PayPal and others.
"We are thrilled to support Pepi Food Services in this accelerated, 100 percent cashless conversion plan," said Stephen P. Herbert, chairman and chief executive officer of USA Technologies. "The team at Pepi has long recognized the value of offering cashless payment systems to their customers and they have been a big proponent of integrating technology and innovation into their operations. We look forward to a seamless transition and an ongoing, strategic relationship."
Operators interested in the ePort cashless payment and telemetry system can visit USA Technologies online at www.usatech.com or call at 800-633-0340.
