VICTORIA -- Some businesses in downtown Victoria are asking customers to keep their cash in their pockets.
Whistle Buoy, a craft brewery in Market Square, is adopting more stringent sanitary measures to stop any potential spread of the COVID-19 virus.
“A cash-free society is a thing in our future that may occur, but 2020 is not the year I was expecting to say that,” says Isaiah Archer, a partner at Whistle Buoy.
Customers at the craft brewery must now pay by credit or debit to eliminate the transfer of germs through the handling of cash.
Additionally, there are no longer menus on tables and customers can no longer bring in their own growler containers for refills.
“Growlers are a staple in the craft beer industry,” says Archer.
In place of the take-home containers, Whistle Buoy is offering “crowlers”, a 32 ounce can of beer that is sterilized and sealed by staff.
“We seal it right here at the bar,” says Archer.
Whistle Buoy is not the only Market Square merchant that is turning away from the use of cash. Local café Hey Happy has also moved to debit and credit transactions only.
