Much-loved Mary Street Bakery has reversed its decision to go cashless after customers were left infuriated by the move.
Mary Street Bakery owner Paul Aron ditched the pandemic-era cashless policy at all five locations on Tuesday.
Mr Aron told WA Today the backflip comes after angry customers vented their fury at the bakery’s staff.
“The reason we’ve gone back is because staff were getting abused,” he said.
The decision to refuse cash payments was a way of circumventing hurdles like processing cash daily takings amid the decline in bank branches.
Despite the “expense” and “pain” of accepting cash, Mr Aron was happy to bring it back.
“It’s time that it takes for our stores to count cash in the morning, in the afternoon and when they close, and it’s the time it takes my accounting team to reconcile seven cash drawers and to figure out unders and overs, and the closure of bank branches is making it really hard to bank.
“I also realised over time that it is difficult for some people not to use cash, and I don’t want to alienate any of our customers,” he said.
The move comes after a group of independent MPs in Canberra introduced the Keeping Cash Transactions in Australia bill.
The bill aims to prevent Australia from becoming a cashless society amid the decline of cash transactions.
If the law passes, refusal to accept cash payments of up to $10,000 in a “face-to-face setting” could see individuals face a maximum fine of $5,000 and businesses up to a $25,000 penalty.