Square Upping its Credit Card Fee, How a Wellness Center Saved $1 Million in Health Costs
Welcome to the Small Business Run Down. Each day, we bring you stories that impact small business owners and their workforce.
We’re almost halfway through October, which means that Thanksgiving and Black Friday are right around the corner. Have you registered your business for Small Business Saturday? 2019 marks the event’s 10th year and last year saw a record-breaking $17.8 billion spent at the nation’s independent businesses. Don’t miss out!
Okay, the PSA is over. On to today’s news!
New credit card fee charge could take bigger bite out of small biz profits
Starting November 1, small businesses that use Square may see the credit card processing company taking a larger bite out of their profits. The company announced that they are changing their fee structure and merchants who deal in smaller volumes of items with lower price points may see the cost of doing business rise significantly.
The Number: $66.67. The new fee structure drops Square’s share from 2.75% to 2.6% … and add 10 cents to each transaction. If the transaction is $66.67, the charge is the same. For anything smaller, it’s now more expensive.
The Quote: “Most small businesses operate on a pretty small margin. It takes a lot of money coming through to break even.”
City of Dayton lowers healthcare plan costs with employee clinic
Okay, so the city of Dayton isn’t exactly a small business, but with rising healthcare costs jacking up companies’ bottom lines, it’s worth taking a look at innovative attempts to address the problem. Dayton has opened a health and wellness center for employees and their families, saving the city over $1 million in healthcare costs over the past year.
The Number: 28%. Between 2016 and 2018, the city’s healthcare plan saw the number of ER visits decrease by 28%.
The Quote: “Our stats are that every time a city employee or someone covered by our health plan walks through the emergency room doors, it’s about $1,500 — minimum.”
AZ Veterans use experience and skills to make impact as SBOs
Pima Community College in Tucson, Arizona is making an impact when it comes to supporting men and women who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces. The institution recently hosted its 10th annual Veterans Small Business Conference, which is aimed at helping vets use the skills they acquired in the military to become successful small business owners. The program offers vets an opportunity to access funding, get training, and participate in networking events and even provides mental health help.
The Number: 10. Pima Community College held its 10th annual Veterans Small Business Conference, highlighting the achievements of business-owning veterans and connecting them to resources and networking opportunities.
The Quote: “The skills that I learned in uniform: leadership, discipline, resourcefulness, the ability to no matter what accomplish the mission. Those were the things that carried forward into business.”
