Through the Hanover Bucks program, students are provided with a pre-paid card and declining balance account they can use at local Hanover restaurants and businesses.
Several students interviewed by The Dartmouth said they would likely be interested in an off-campus dining program, but did not have enough information about Hanover Bucks to know whether they would pay for a card.
"Well, it sounds like a great option for students, but there hasn't been enough publicity so I'm skeptical that it will catch on quickly," Alyssa Penick '12 said.
Jennifer Carter, co-founder and managing director of Hanover Bucks, explained that the Hanover Bucks card is different from credit and debit cards.
"There is no debt; there are no bank fees," Carter said. "It can only be used at x' number of merchants. It really is a community-based card."
Several area businesses will accept Hanover Bucks cards, including Everything But Anchovies, Wheelock Books, Lou's Restaurant and Boloco.
"My friends and other people I hadn't known in the past all of them love the idea," Robert Krattiger '11, who is responsible for student relations and marketing at Hanover Bucks, said.
Students using Hanover Bucks will not have to pay transaction fees for purchases at participating restaurants and will not have to carry cash with them when shopping in certain Hanover stores, Krattiger said. The cards can be purchased online.
Participating locations will also offer discounts exclusive to students making purchases with the card, Krattiger said.
EBAs owner Ed Bogosian said in an interview with The Dartmouth that he has not yet decided whether he will offer discounts to students making purchases with the Hanover Bucks card.
Ramunto's Brick 'n Brew Pizzeria will use Hanover Bucks to promote the discount nights that are already available at the restaurant, Vinnie Mackle, Ramunto's owner, said.
While several local business owners were optimistic about the Hanover Bucks card, some expressed skepticism about the program.
"We're hesitant because it's very expensive," Nick Yager, co-owner of Gusanoz Mexican Restaurant, said.
Yager said the Hanover Bucks company takes a percentage of each transaction made with the card for its own profit. This percentage is larger than the standard percentage taken by credit card companies for every transaction, he said.
"When I first looked at the contract, I looked to see the costs and when I saw them, I just said I wasn't interested," Yager said.
Ken Gorlin, owner of International DVD & Poster, also said accepting transactions using the Hanover Bucks card would not be profitable for his business. Because he already works on a "thin profit margin," Gorlin said, the main beneficiary of each transaction would be Hanover Bucks, rather than International DVD & Poster.
Although the fees for the Hanover Bucks program may be higher than those associated with credit and debit cards, Carter said, the company also offers services and benefits to local business owners that other cards do not have.
"Also bundled into those services are direct access and marketing to students, which provides a lot of other incentive," Carter said about the Hanover Bucks program.
Many of the business owners who plan to accept the Hanover Bucks card said the benefits of accepting the card outweighed the higher costs.
"It's a little higher than my fees," Mackle said. "But if they do the marketing correctly, it'll well be worth it."
Hanover Bucks was founded by the same three people who ran the Green Card program, which provided a similar declining balance card for student use in the Hanover area from 1993 until late 2005. One of the founders, Taran Lent, is a member of the Class of 1996.
Several of the business owners who will accept the Hanover Bucks card cited their past experience with the Green Card as a reason they chose to participate in the Hanover Bucks program.
"The Green Card did very well back when we had it," Mackle said. "It always offered good deals for students. That's the whole idea [of Hanover Bucks], to utilize their marketing to the students."
Other business owners, however, chose not to accept the Hanover Bucks card because of their previous experience with the Green Card.
"We had the Green Card before, and it didn't work," Rocio Menoscal, owner of Traditionally Trendy, said. "So I don't think [Hanover Bucks] is a good idea. I don't think it will work in Hanover."
