Getting a whip going in the pub will never be the same again – and pubbing in general will be more relaxed and fun thanks to a partnership between Visa and Flypay to reinvent how people run tabs in bars.
Announced at this week’s Managed Pub Summit – now that sounds way more exciting than the events I get to go to – Flypay has teamed up with Visa, Fullers and Zonal to create an app that takes all the stress out of running a tab in a pub.
The initiative will make paying in pubs as a group experience significantly more efficient, says Flypay. Currently, pubs keeping cards behind the bar represent a PCI compliance problem for operators, in addition to regular walk-outs. In terms of consumers, forgotten cards are a huge problem, and the lack of visibility over their tab, can leave customers feeling anxious.
Instead, the technology will allow customers to set up an instant pre-authorised tab through the Flypay app, add others to the tab, see live bill information through a POS integrated approach, and leave at the end of the night without needing to remember to settle their bar bill. Leveraging the existing tab interface means there is almost no retraining requirements for front-of-house teams, or operational changes to the bar.
Oliver Boardman, IT Operations Manager at Fuller’s, comments: “Although we already have a robust pre-authorisation system in our pubs that means no cards are left behind the bar, at Fuller’s, we are always focused on creating the best experiences for our customers. Paying at the bar, particularly when paying for a group, is an area the whole industry could improve upon. We’ve really enjoyed working with Flypay on shaping this solution.”
The solution is currently exclusive to Zonal EPOS customers. “Zonal has not only worked with us technically to get this solution working through their superb Aztec integration, but has also worked with us to look at the bigger picture to ensure our solution solves the real problems for their customers,” says Tom Weaver, CEO of Flypay.
