It can get a bit chaotic, says Kristina Rapson, but that\u2019s to be expected when you run\u00a0<\/span>a\u00a0<\/span>pet shop in town \u2013 two of them, actually, now that\u00a0<\/span>Dogfather<\/span>\u00a0has grown to a pair of locations.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Rapson is<\/span>\u00a0director of operations for\u00a0<\/span>Dogfather<\/span>, which she describes as \u201cupscale pet boutique\u201d catering to the apparel, toy<\/span>\u00a0and dietary<\/span>\u00a0needs of pampered pooches and cats in midtown Toronto.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Humans receive special care at\u00a0<\/span>Dogfather<\/span>, too<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>Rapson says<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Dogfather\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0staff engage in a real, one-on-one conversation with customers from the minute they walk through the door until they\u2019re ready to leave with a purchase (and\/or<\/span>\u00a0freshly groomed<\/span>\u00a0p<\/span>et<\/span>) under their arm.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt’s really important to have a conversation with the customer when they’re shopping, because a lot of people may not even know what they’re coming in for,\u201d Rapson says. \u201cWe try to make that easier for them by asking them the right questions about their\u00a0<\/span>pet\u2019s\u00a0<\/span>personality, and what they like and what they don’t like, and that way we can find them the right products.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Dogfather<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>started with a\u00a0<\/span>tiny shop in the<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>neighbourhood<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>of Rosedale\u00a0<\/span>back in 2001.<\/span>\u00a0It became a hit with\u00a0<\/span>local pet owners<\/span>, largely by offering cheekier and more charming wares than the typical pet store<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>Eventually, like a fast-growing puppy, the business got too big for its original doghouse.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n To keep up with demand,\u00a0<\/span>Dogfather<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>opened<\/span>\u00a0a second, larger store a few blocks away in the Yorkville area<\/span>\u00a0last year.<\/span>\u00a0\u201cWe needed two locations<\/span>,\u201d R<\/span>apson says<\/span>, \u201c<\/span>because our first location started getting so busy that we physically couldn’t handle the\u00a0<\/span>amount<\/span>\u00a0of customers coming into the space<\/span>.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Rapson says\u00a0<\/span>Dogfather<\/span>\u00a0was an early adopter of\u00a0<\/span>Interac<\/span><\/i> Debit contactless payments, around the time of <\/span>the products\u2019<\/span>\u00a0debut in 2010.\u00a0<\/span>The business<\/span>\u00a0realized the benefits almost immediately.\u00a0<\/span>\u201cWe’ve had\u00a0<\/span>Interac<\/span><\/i> Debit contactless payments at the store for many years now \u2013 actually, before a lot of other stores had it, to the point where our customers didn’t even know what it <\/span>was<\/span>.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Before long, it became clear that\u00a0<\/span>Interac\u00a0<\/span><\/i>Debit contactless payments was helping <\/span>Dogfather<\/span>\u00a0manage its growing clientele\u00a0<\/span>\u2013<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>human and otherwise\u00a0<\/span>\u2013<\/span>\u00a0within the confined quarters of the original store. It\u2019s an effective crowd-control tool, Rapson says<\/span>, especially on weekends.<\/span>\u00a0\u201c<\/span>Interac\u00a0<\/span><\/i>Debit contactless payments really helps us check customers out faster when it’s crowded, because <\/span>tapping their card<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>or device\u00a0<\/span>allows them to not have to put in their PIN.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Rapson\u2019s\u00a0<\/span>favourite<\/span>\u00a0thing about\u00a0<\/span>Interac<\/span><\/i> Debit contactless payments<\/span>? It helps<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Dogfather<\/span>\u00a0deliver on its commitment to\u00a0<\/span>personalized customer service.\u00a0<\/span>Interac<\/span><\/i> Debit contactless payments enables people to pay by debit without having to think about entering their PIN. That allows <\/span>Dogfather\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0staff to keep talking with customers\u00a0<\/span>\u2013<\/span>\u00a0about pet nutrition or\u00a0<\/span>favourite<\/span>\u00a0dog parks<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>or whatever the subject may be \u2013 all the way through to the conclusion of the payment transaction. \u201c<\/span>Interac<\/span><\/i> Debit contactless payments helps us keep the conversation going,\u201d Rapson says.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n There are other benefits that anyone would appreciate if they\u2019ve run a small business, especially in retail. Over the years,\u00a0<\/span>Interac<\/span><\/i> Debit contactless payments has become so popular with customers, Rapson says, that \u201c<\/span>we have days at\u00a0<\/span>Dogfather<\/span> where we do zero cash transactions.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt makes our life so much easier not to have cash transactions,\u201d she says, \u201cbecause we don’t have to run to the bank as frequently and do deposits.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n A<\/span>nd a<\/span>s anyone who runs a small business knows, debit transactions are\u00a0<\/span>\u201c<\/span>good funds<\/span>\u201d: M<\/span>anagers and owners can look at their debit transaction balance at the end of the day and know that it won\u2019t be chipped away by chargebacks. \u201c<\/span>It’s really great that we don’t have to deal with chargebacks with\u00a0<\/span>Interac<\/span><\/i> Debit contactless payments,\u201d Rapson says. \u201cIt just makes everything less stressful. We don’t have to worry about having to deal with paperwork, and in the long run everything runs more smoothly.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n It\u2019s impossible for things to go perfectly smoothly\u00a0<\/span>when you\u2019re running<\/span>\u00a0a pet boutique<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0The critters may be cute, but\u00a0<\/span>they can be rambunctious\u00a0<\/span>\u2013<\/span>\u00a0and messy.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cAt\u00a0<\/span>Dogfather<\/span>, we have puppy accidents daily,\u201d Rapson says. \u201cBut at least using\u00a0<\/span>Interac<\/span><\/i> Debit contactless payments has been hassle-free.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Rapson\u2019s\u00a0favourite\u00a0thing about\u00a0Interac\u00a0Flash? It helps\u00a0Dogfather\u00a0deliver on its commitment to\u00a0personalized customer service.\u00a0Interac\u00a0Flash enables people to pay by debit without having to think about entering their PIN. That allows\u00a0Dogfather\u2019s\u00a0staff to keep talking with customers\u00a0\u2013\u00a0about pet nutrition or\u00a0favourite\u00a0dog parks,\u00a0or whatever the subject may be \u2013 all the way through to the conclusion of the payment transaction. \u201cInterac\u00a0Flash helps us keep the conversation going,\u201d Rapson says.\u00a0[Read more]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":74839,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"content-tags":[279,283,300],"content-category":[189],"spokespeople":[],"in_the_know_post_format":[169],"class_list":["post-74830","content","type-content","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","content-tags-interac-debit","content-tags-payments","content-tags-small-business","content-category-business","in_the_know_post_format-article"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/stage.interac.ca\/wp-content\/smush-webp\/2021\/05\/Dogfather-6-4-scaled.jpg.webp\")
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