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Darianna Bridal & Tuxedo, a Warrington, Pennsylvania, based bridal shop is closing in on its ten-year anniversary. “My wife and I just started it from nothing. We had no experience in retail. We had no experience in bridal. We just, one day said we’re gonna open a bridal store and we did it,” said Darianna Bridal & Tuxedo co-owner Franco Salerno. A combination of the couple’s two daughter’s names, Daria and Deanna, what started as a small operation has now expanded to a full-fledged business that sells wedding dresses and rents and sells tuxedos, prom dresses, and more.
“We just try to give people a really nice experience. We have a really sweet, kind staff. We have great reviews online — it’s been a fun time and we’ve had Square since day one,” said Salerno.
Exploring new ways to accept contactless payments
Contactless payments have gained popularity with Darianna’s Bridal & Tuxedo customers in the last few years. Salerno says customers will often leave their wallets at home or in the car and only realize when they come into the store. They’re pleasantly surprised to find that the store accepts contactless payments and that they can use their phone to make purchases immediately rather than turning right back to retrieve their wallets. Tap to pay on iPhone is a brand-new capability that helps business owners take commerce to a new level, allowing them to accept contactless payments using only an iPhone. With the Square Point of Sale app and tap to pay on iPhone, a business can accept contactless cards and Apple Pay and other digital wallets.
Darianna Bridal & Tuxedo has been a part of the tap to pay on iPhone early access program, allowing their customers to transact in this new contactless way. “Every time we launch something that Square is offering, people think we’re much bigger than we really are. We’re much more sophisticated and the customers are loving it,” said Salerno. With tap to pay on iPhone their customers can simply pay by holding their contactless payment method over the business’s iPhone to complete a transaction. This streamlined payment option gives businesses more flexibility and ease of use in adapting their commerce experience to changing consumer preferences.
Salerno’s customers have found tap to pay on iPhone easy and convenient. “They’re fascinated by the ability just to hold the card over my iPhone and pay that way,” said Salerno. The store has a large footprint so when customers are picking up tuxedos or a gown in the back, they can now pay right there rather than walking to another part of the store. He adds that most of his customers are between 23 and 34 years old, so adopting new technologies helps his business be flexible and allow his customers to pay in the ways they prefer.
Customers are buying into contactless payments
Tap to pay on iPhone has been an instant success for Darianna Bridal & Tuxedo so far, making transactions immediate and frictionless.
They aren’t alone in exploring new methods of payment. The Square Future of Commerce Report 2022 surveyed 1,500 restaurateurs, retailers, and salon and spa owners along with 1,000 consumers across the country. This year, the majority of customers (84%) responded favorably to buying and interacting with brands that allowed them to buy at their convenience through text message, QR code, ordering apps, and contactless payments.
As consumer demand for more contactless payment methods increases, businesses are not only investing in better ways to accept payments but also managing their cash flow by consolidating business operations. In addition to tap to pay on iPhone, Darianna Bridal & Tuxedo uses Square Contracts, Square Invoices, Square Marketing, Square Team Management, and Square Payments all in concert with one another. With his stores’ sales data all in one place, Salerno regularly pulls reports, using them to forecast business decisions and file taxes. “I always compare today’s sales to the same exact day last year. I always compare, where am I year to date? Where am I for my fiscal year? I also look at my makeup. How much was tuxedo rentals? How much was bridal gown sales?” said Salerno.
With tap to pay on iPhone and Square, Salerno is able to streamline accepting contactless payments and business as a whole.
