The Rudd Group, supplier to the UK licensed pub trade and hospitality sectors, has released details of a successful trial with contactless payment methods on pool tables.
Early results have shown that on the tables the company currently has out in the field, contactless is contributing to over 50 per cent of the cashbox takings.
Like many sectors, the pub trade is having to evolve its offerings to meet the demands of an increasingly cash-free society.
“With the decline in players carrying cash it is imperative as an industry that we push forward with both contactless and cashless payment solutions,” said Rudd Group marketing director Helena Rudd. “For the last few months we have been rolling out contactless payment methods on our pool tables and it is pleasing to see that the tables fitted with these devices have seen a significant increase in cashbox takings.
“The majority of this is down to more people playing on the tables. However, a portion of it has also been generated by the ability to use this transition to increase the price of play on the tables. We're happy with the results so far and will continue to monitor and roll out these new payment solutions.”
The trial has shown that:
• One table solely set to contactless payment only, has an average net balance of circa £70 per week.
• Contactless tables are indexing at 140 per cent, meaning they are providing a 40 per cent uplift.
• Contactless has proven a great hit in venues near to student areas as this demographic is increasingly carrying less cash.
“Naturally, contactless payment solutions come with added costs to us as a supplier,” said Rudd. “As a result of this, we have increased the price of play in some venues but this does not seem to have deterred any customers.
“We currently use a variety of different hardware and payment providers as we are trying to determine the best fit for our operation as a whole. It is our aim to use the same contactless units across all of our machines, not just pool tables.”
