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BackAustralian cafe owner to raise prices as credit card surcharge ban looms
Australian cafe owner to raise prices as credit card surcharge ban looms
BREAKING
SCMP Economy51 minutes agoBusiness1 min readChina

Australian cafe owner to raise prices as credit card surcharge ban looms

credit card surchargeprice increasesmall business

Quick Look

Ross Surace, co-owner of Lennox Street Deli in Melbourne, plans to increase coffee prices by 50 Australian cents and panini by A$1 when Australia bans credit card surcharge fees on Thursday, as the change could cost his business an additional A$1,200 to A$1,500 weekly in bank fees.

AI-generated summary

Why It Matters

Australian businesses currently impose credit card surcharges to offset bank-imposed card processing fees, but a ban on such surcharges takes effect Thursday, requiring businesses to absorb these costs or adjust prices.

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Ross Surace is preparing to raise the price of a coffee by 50 Australian cents and a panini by A$1 (US$0.70) when the country bans credit card surcharge fees starting on Thursday.

The co-owner of Lennox Street Deli in Melbourne’s Moonee Ponds neighbourhood said bank-imposed card fees already cost his business more than A$1,000 (US$690) a week, even after the cafe recoups some of the expense by adding a 1.9 per cent surcharge to customers’ card payments. Once that option disappears, Surace estimates the cafe could pay an additional A$1,200 to A$1,500 a week to process transactions.

The coffee and panini price increase “just covers the surcharge that we’re losing”, he said.

Thousands of smaller Australian businesses face a similar choice: absorb the cost of customers tapping their cards, squeezing already thin margins, or build it into prices and risk driving away cash-strapped consumers.

What to Watch

AI outlook — possibilities, not facts

  • Lennox Street Deli will implement the planned price increases of 50 Australian cents on coffee and A$1 on panini when the credit card surcharge ban takes effect on Thursday.

    Very likely · Within days

Open Questions

  • How will consumers respond to the price increases at Lennox Street Deli and similar businesses?
  • What percentage of small businesses will absorb costs versus raise prices?
  • Will the Australian government consider further support for small businesses affected by the ban?

Related Topics

credit card surcharge
PeopleRoss Surace
OrganizationsLennox Street Deli
PlacesMelbourneMoonee Ponds
Topicsprice increasesmall businessmelbournelennox street delibank feesaustralian dollars
This article was originally published by SCMP Economy.

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