As Edinburgh’s Fringe festival draws to a close, it looks set to be another record-breaking year. Last year alone there were nearly 3,400 shows put on across 300 venues with 2.5 million visitors. And this year is set to be even bigger. There’s no doubting of the boost to the city’s profile and economy that the festival provides, and more and more payments are being made by card.
Here’s a quick snapshot of card payments at the Edinburgh Fringe. The information below is taken from Paymentsense merchants within Edinburgh, comparing the first 7 days of the Fringe Festival in 2016, 2017 and 2018.
Fringe Festival 2018 Transaction Data
Number of transactions made on card readers – 46,721 (+51% since 2016)
% of payments made using contactless in 2018 – 57%
% increase of payments made using contactless since 2016 – +26%
Average value of transaction – £25
Average takings per business – £3685 (+20.5% since 2016)
Total amount spent on card readers – £1,171,826 (+18% since 2016)
Edinburgh goes cashless
As more small businesses adopt card readers, the popularity of card and contactless payments continues to rise. Last year there were 4,140,689 card transactions in Edinburgh alone.
According to our last year’s research, nearly half (45%) of UK shoppers walk out of smaller retailers and independent outlets if they can’t pay by card. A further quarter (25%) are also unlikely to return to a store if it didn’t accept card payment on a former visit. If you don’t accept card payments – it’s going to hurt your business.
If you are just starting out or have an existing provider but would like to change, why not get a card machine for your business? Setting up a small business card machine is faster and easier than you might expect and can be done in a matter of days. There are three different card readers available from Paymentsense, meaning there’s a convenient payment solution to suit your business needs.
About Paymentsense
Paymentsense is Europe’s leading merchant services provider enabling over 70,000 small and medium-sized businesses to process over £6 billion worth of card payments per year. From card machines to integrated solutions and payment gateways, Paymentsense supplies small businesses with card processing solutions that allow them to take payments in-store, online, over the phone and on the move. If you’re interested in a faster and smarter way to take payments, fill out our form online to receive a quote.
Image credit: David Monteith-Hodge