One of the greatest challenges of being a Small Business Owner (SBO) is having to wear so many hats. Not only are you the owner but you may also be the book keeper, cashier, sales person, compliance, janitor, driver and gopher all at the same time. Here are a couple of things going into effect this year that may be helpful for you to know or prepare for if you haven't already done so. Just looking out for my fellow SBOs. :)
For those of us on Oahu, starting on July 1, 2015, the plastic bag ban goes into effect and we can no longer provide plastic packaging to our customers unless it is a compostable plastic bag. There are exceptions of course. While it may be better for the environment, it's an added cost to buy biodegradable bags, paper bags or recyclable bags. Not that in the long run this isn't a good thing, just something we have to be aware of. For more info, go to: http://www.opala.org/solid_waste/archive/plastic_bag_ban.html.
Second, for those of us who accept credit cards, we need to upgrade our terminals to the EMV card readers that can accept the chip cards by October 15, 2015 of this year. If we don't, we the MERCHANT would be responsible for fraudulent charges and not the issuing bank. Again, not a big deal as the new terminals are more secure and may also allow you to accept new forms of payment such as Apple Pay as well. We recently upgraded our terminal and have been happy with it. Still waiting for someone to come and make a purchase with Apple Pay though. :) I got this in an email from Checks Unlimited, which I thought summed up everything up regarding the EMV card readers quite nicely. I know it's a little hard to read so click on the pic and it'll go to an enlarged version. Hope this bit of information helps. Happy selling!
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| Source: Checks Unlimited.com |
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