Tap & Wash Unattended Payment Reader Solution for Car Wash Industry

How it Started

Mondo Products has been a leading supplier in the car wash market since 1970, offering a wide range of products from chemicals to equipment, all backed by nationwide service across Canada. Self-serve car wash operations have characteristically been known as coin car wash due to their historic cash requirement. However, in 2016, Mondo recognized a shift in consumers’ payment behaviors, trending away from cash and saw this as an opportunity to offer their car wash clients with a modernized unattended payment solution. The company actively began to source a partner that could facilitate acceptance of all forms of unattended payment including credit card, debit card and mobile. After researching the market and vetting several manufacturers, Mondo found that only KioSoft could provide the durable weatherproof unattended payment readers, plus the backend connectivity and management tools, that were needed to excel in this new venture.

The timing of the introduction proved to be ideal, as KioSoft was actively looking for a well-established partner in the Car Wash industry for distributing its revolutionary contactless Tap & Wash payment system. In fact, KioSoft’s Contactless Reader (now known as Ultra VXT) was specifically engineered to withstand the rigors of the car wash application, with a ruggedized and waterproof enclosure (certified IK56 Waterproof & Dust, and IK09 Vandal Resistant). The KioSoft reader was tested by Mondo for operation under the direct spray of a high-pressure water jet, with exposure to high moisture conditions, in addition sub zero Canadian winter temperatures. The results of the pilot installation at Mondo’s own car wash location in Oshawa, Ontario proved the viability and resilience of the solution, so Mondo began rolling out Tap & Wash technology immediately across Canada, beginning in early 2017.

Ground-Breaking Technology

The Ultra VXT Reader was designed to seamlessly integrate with traditional coin car washes using Coin Pulse Retrofit technology. The All-in-One Payment Reader provides flexible payments options including Contactless Tap (with enabled cards), EMV, Swipe, ApplePay / GooglePay and KioSoft’s KioPay mobile payment app. KioSoft and Mondo had a unique offering in the market with the only fully PCI-certified contactless payment technology available in Canada. As a result, demand for Tap & Wash grew rapidly and Mondo’s installations skyrocketed from a single location in December of 2016 to over 1000 locations coast to coast by 2021. Mondo has found their Tap & Wash systems to be durable year after year, consistently running smooth under the most adverse conditions.

Car Wash Operator Benefits

Right from the beginning, Mondo saw improved operational efficiency, higher transaction volume and profitability, all while having dramatically lower maintenance costs. A major advantage of the Tap & Wash system was the increase in average transaction amounts per visit. Mondo found customers were spending more on their car wash experience because they were no longer limited by the amount of change in their pockets. Furthermore, the ease-of-use of the versatile payment readers attracted new clientele who were previously driven away by the coin requirement.

The launch of Tap & Wash by Mondo, in partnership with KioSoft, quickly gained traction with Coin Car Wash operators across Canada. It was revolutionary in the market as the first system of its kind to accept all varieties of payments, offering new levels of speed and convenience. Now customers have the option to pay through the KioPay mobile app – the easiest and cleanest payment method in today’s world. They simply scan the QR code on the VXT screen to start their wash. Promoting the KioPay app translates into improved customer retention and loyalty for car wash operators.

Another great selling point for Mondo to car wash management was the automation of payments as they no longer need to deal with the burden of collecting coins, rolling coins, and making manual deposits. Car Wash operators utilizing the Tap & Wash technology platform also have access to a comprehensive portal that allows them to view transactions, usage, and performance in real-time, while providing diagnostics as well as remote updates.

Moving Forward with KioSoft

As much as drivers enjoy seeing their vehicles sparkling clean, they appreciate Tap & Wash as it removes the obstacle of digging for coins which previously deterred them from entering car wash bays. Mondo continues to successfully convert coin car wash operations over to the new technology by pointing to the success of its existing installations and the customer satisfaction with frictionless payments.

Mondo and KioSoft have now installed Tap & Wash at over 1200 locations across Canada. Mondo is thrilled with the market opportunity and is hoping to make Tap & Wash ubiquitous for car wash operations across the country. A major goal for the coming years is migrating more customers to the KioPay mobile app for realizing improved recurring revenue streams.