EMV upgrades can be a time to reconsider partners or enhance system functionality.
By Pat Pape, Contributing Editor
C-store retailers are staring down the October 2015 deadline when those who are not EMV (Europay, MasterCard and Visa) compliant will become responsible for any fraudulent purchases made with non-EMV credit or debit cards at their stores.
As some retailers explore their options, they are finding the silver lining in having to make the changes.
Take for example Mirabito Fuel of Binghamton, N.Y., which operates 75 Quickway Food Stores, Mirabito and Convenience Express Stores. Until recently, none of those stores were in compliance with the EMV card-acceptance standards.
Eric Bunts, director of information technology at Mirabito Holdings Inc., looked ahead to the October 2015 deadline and realized that the chain needed a massive technology update in order to comply. It was then that the company adopted that oft-quoted philosophy about taking lemons and making lemonade.
“We were going to be forced to make the investment to be compliant,” said Bunts. “And we wondered what additional benefits could be achieved through this project. So, we came up with a wish list of [technology] functions that we’d always wanted.”
“We used our wish list as a guide to look at different manufacturers and products, and ultimately, it resulted in us making a change from one manufacturer to another,” added Bunts, whose company converted to POS designed by transaction technology provider NCR and a back-office operation supported by ADD Systems. “As a byproduct, we will be able to enhance our functionality far above and beyond what we had previously.”
Stay tuned to CSD’s June issue for more on Mirabito Fuel’s transition and how other c-store chains are making the best of the pending deadline.
