Blackbird and AeroPay Announce Strategic Partnership to Bring Cashless Payments to Cannabis Businesses for Online Ordering
The partnership will give cannabis businesses and their customers a complete online ordering experience
CHICAGO and RENO, Nev., Jan. 19, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Blackbird, a cannabis software and delivery company, and AeroPay, a leading financial technology company that provides payment processing solutions to the cannabis industry, announced a strategic partnership to bring cashless payments to cannabis businesses for online ordering. The partnership includes an integration of AeroPay's payments platform into Blackbird's white-labeled dispensary menus and the BlackbirdGo cannabis marketplace. The two companies also have plans to bring greater efficiencies to other parts of the cannabis supply chain such as physical retail and B2B.
Through the integration, cannabis patients and customers using Blackbird will be able to pre-pay online at the time of check-out for delivery or curbside pick-up orders. Payments made with AeroPay will be facilitated through a secure bank-to-bank transfer between the patient or customer and the business.
"Cash payments have dominated the cannabis retail consumer experience until now," said Tim Conder, CEO & Co-Founder of Blackbird. "As licensed cannabis operators, we know the benefits of moving toward cashless payments but also understand the challenges with banking as a cannabis business. Our partnership with AeroPay and the integration of our platforms allows our retail partners and their customers to easily accept digital payments and remove the hurdles associated with being a cash only business. Additionally, AeroPay's banking relationships will help eliminate barriers for our retail partners."
Taking traditional card payments isn't possible for cannabis business owners and most major banks avoid banking cannabis businesses due to the industry's federally illegal status. This forces cannabis businesses and their customers to transact almost exclusively in cash. AeroPay's compliant solution offers a safe, simple, and streamlined way for patients or customers to pay their favorite cannabis businesses.
Dispensary patients and customers ordering through a Blackbird white-labeled menu or the BlackbirdGo marketplace will have the option to pay with AeroPay. For first time AeroPay users, the sign-up process is two easy steps and happens directly on the menu at the time of check-out — customers simply create an AeroPay account and link their bank. For repeat users, payments can be completed with a single click.
"Our approach has always been to create a better payment experience for both businesses and their customers," said Daniel Muller, CEO & Founder of AeroPay. "Blackbird is a premier end-to-end logistics and delivery company in the cannabis space and our partnership allows us to do just that for the cannabis industry."
While the focus of this integration with Blackbird's menus is to improve the retail and consumer experience, both Blackbird and AeroPay also provide B2B solutions for the cannabis industry. The companies have plans to streamline the cannabis experience in other parts of the supply chain and lower the volume of cash by implementing digital payments.
"We're excited about the future of our partnership with AeroPay as both companies have the ability to service the entire value chain," said Conder. "This is only the beginning of a long-term relationship that has the opportunity to change the way cannabis businesses operate."
"Payments have been especially inconvenient for cannabis businesses and we are thrilled to work with the team at Blackbird to create a seamless cannabis shopping experience that is safer, faster, and cashless," said Muller. "Ultimately, we want to give cannabis businesses the ability to operate in the same manner as any other business would."
About Blackbird
Blackbird is a software and services company in the cannabis industry that provides marketing tools and transportation solutions to help cannabis operators grow their businesses and their brands.
Visit myblackbird.com to learn more about how we keep it moving.
To schedule an interview, contact:
Jamal Barghouti, Director of Marketing
Email: [email protected]
About AeroPay
AeroPay is a financial technology company providing alternative payment processing solutions to state legal cannabis businesses. With AeroPay, cannabis businesses can offer a convenient and contactless digital payment option to their customers, suppliers, and business partners. AeroPay has been approved to work in every state where cannabis businesses can legally operate as well as Washington D.C.
For more information, visit www.aeropay.com or email [email protected].
To schedule an interview, contact:
Alex Lipnik, Director of Marketing
Email: [email protected]
248-217-0282
SOURCE AeroPay
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