Opening a second location: card payment checklist

Define what is changing

Record the new trading address, legal entity, opening date, business activity, expected card sales and usual transaction size. Distinguish a second branch from a new company or an independently operated business sharing premises. Tell the provider which arrangement applies.

Use a realistic quiet-month estimate as well as an expected ordinary month. A successful first site supports your planning, but its card volume is not proof of the new location's volume. A different mix of eat-in, takeaway, retail or advance bookings can change the requirements.

Decide who needs to take payments and where

Walk through the customer journey: a bar and restaurant, two retail tills, reception and vehicle handover, or several independent salon operators. Count simultaneous payment points rather than just staff numbers. Include outdoor or mobile use if it matters.

Test the intended connection in the actual payment areas. Ask about the supported WiFi or mobile connection, battery charging and the response to an outage. A coverage check at the front door does not establish that a terminal will work at every table.

If staff will also take deposits or orders by phone, compare a virtual terminal and payment links. Confirm how remote payments and reporting will work across the locations.

Confirm integration and reporting before hardware

Give both the EPOS supplier and proposed payment provider the exact system name, version and required workflows. takepayments says integration is available for certain products and selected partners, so a general claim of 'EPOS integration' is not enough. Use the checklist to check your EPOS integration.

Write down who can issue refunds, view reports and manage each location. Ask how an individual outlet reconciles its sales and how the owner sees the group total. Confirm whether a merchant account or bank destination must differ for separate legal entities.

Price all locations on the same basis

Ask which items are charged per terminal, per site or per account. Include software, rental, processing, minimum charges at each location and installation where applicable. An apparently small charge can multiply across the group.

Illustration: four terminals at £18 monthly plus two location services at £12 monthly total £96 a month, or £1,152 a year, before processing. Those invented figures are a costing exercise, not a package offered here. Check whether the original location's terms change when the new one is added.

Build a launch sequence with clear owners

Agree who handles the application, EPOS configuration, equipment delivery, staff training and first reconciliation. Confirm approval before treating an intended go-live date as guaranteed. Keep the existing site's working payments available while changes are tested.

Use the provider-approved process to check a payment, receipt, refund permission and settlement report before relying on the setup during the opening rush. If integration or installation is delayed, ask the provider which temporary arrangement is permitted; do not assume that moving an old terminal is sufficient.

Use the opening as a focused review

An expansion can justify reviewing payments, but it does not prove a change of provider is needed. The existing setup may already meet the new requirements. Compare the value of continuity with any supported improvement.

Awais's payment check asks about locations, timing and the reason for looking. Use the existing-business route if you already trade, even when this particular branch is new. Any proposal is offered through his takepayments / Global Payments role.

Your comparison checklist

Common questions