Use the Payment Processing page in LaundroPortal to apply for a new Laundroworks-managed Stripe Merchant Account for your location. Once the account is approved, you can use it to take card payments in the LaundryCat app, and for payments at your VAC kiosks if they use Stripe PINpad terminals (S700 or P630).
Setting up a new Stripe Merchant Account takes five steps:
Open the Payment Processing menu
Submit the Stripe merchant application
Add your preferred bank account
Set the account as active for LaundryCat (if LaundryCat is enabled for your location)
Contact Laundroworks support to register the VAC PINpad terminals to the newly created Stripe Merchant Account (if using supported PINpad terminals)
Currently using a different payment processor for LaundryCat?
If LaundryCat app payments at your location currently go through another payment processor, such as Worldline, we strongly recommend switching to a Stripe Merchant Account. See Switching to Stripe from Another Payment Processor below.
Before You Start
Have the following ready before you begin the application:
Your business details, including the legal business name, business type and company structure
A physical business address. P.O. Boxes and private mailboxes are not accepted.
Details for the Account Representative, who must own 25% or more of the company
Your bank account details: the account number, plus the transit and institution numbers (Canada) or the routing number (US)
Identity and business verification documents, in case Stripe asks for them
New Stripe Merchant Accounts are charged a transaction fee of 4%, only on approved transactions. Payouts are sent to your bank daily, and new payments are held for up to 7 business days.
Step 1: Open Payment Processing
Log in to your LaundroPortal.
On the Locations page, click the address of your location.
In the Management Tools panel on the right side of the page, click Payment Processing.
Step 2: Submit the Stripe Merchant Application
Check for an existing Stripe account first
Only create a new Stripe Merchant Account if your location doesn't already have one, or if you need to create a new one because of a change of ownership.
After you choose ▶ Add New in the Merchant Account drop-down (see the steps below), look under Account Information:
No Stripe account listed and no orange messages: your location doesn't have a Stripe Merchant Account yet. You can go ahead and create one without contacting support.
A Stripe account is listed in the Merchant Account drop-down, or orange messages say a Stripe Merchant Account is applied for LaundryCat or your VACs but you aren't authorized to access it: your location already has a Stripe Merchant Account. Contact Laundroworks support before creating a new one. You may only need to be given access to the existing account by a LaundroPortal user who already has access to it. If this is a change of ownership, see the note below instead.
Change of ownership: The store will likely already have a Stripe Merchant Account in use. You'll create a new Merchant Account so that it can be used for payment processing once the ownership change becomes official. For the full process, see Selling a Store - Change of Ownership.
Own more than one location?
We recommend opening a separate Stripe Merchant Account for each location, rather than sharing one account between them. With a separate account for each location:
Each location's payouts can be deposited into a different bank account (if desired).
You can set a different Payment Statement Descriptor for each location, so customers can see on their bank or card statement which location processed a payment.
There's no charge for having more than one Stripe Merchant Account. You're only charged the transaction fee on the payments each account processes.
Submit the application
On the Merchant Accounts tab, leave the Payment Processor set to Stripe.
In the Merchant Account drop-down, choose ▶ Add New.
In the Country/Currency drop-down, choose Canada/Canadian Dollars or US/US Dollars.
Review the Merchant Account General Terms and Merchant Account Requirements. The requirement links open Stripe's documentation, including how to choose your business type and which verification documents are accepted.
Click Add New Merchant Account.
The Stripe registration form opens in a new tab.
Fill out the form and submit it. Stripe uses this information to verify your business, so make sure it matches your business records.
Tip: If the form doesn't open after you click Add New Merchant Account, your browser may have blocked the new tab. Use the open the Registration Form by using this Link link in the message on the Payment Processing page instead. This link only shows until you refresh the page.
You don't have to finish the form in one go. To come back to it later, choose the new account in the Merchant Account drop-down and click Edit Merchant Account. If the form still doesn't open, right-click Edit Merchant Account, choose Copy link address, and paste the link into a new browser tab.
Step 3: Add Your Bank Account
Payouts from your Merchant Account are sent to the bank account you connect here.
Refresh the Payment Processing page.
In the Merchant Account drop-down, choose your new Merchant Account (it's usually selected by default).
Scroll down to Connected Bank Account, which shows Not configured, and click Add Bank Account.
Enter your banking details.
For a Canadian account, enter the Account Number, Transit Number and Institution Number.
For a US account, enter the Account Number and Routing Number.
Click Apply.
Once the bank account is connected, the Connected Bank Account section shows the bank name, the last four digits of the account number and the Account Status.
Example video: Watch an example of adding a bank account
Step 4: Set the Account as Active for LaundryCat (if applicable)
Stripe reviews your application and bank details. Once they're accepted, you can apply the new Merchant Account to LaundryCat app payments at your location.
If the LaundryCat app is not enabled for your location, you can skip this step.
Open Payment Processing and choose the new Merchant Account in the Merchant Account drop-down.
Click Set Active for LaundryCat.
Review the confirmation and click Apply.
A green Applied Merchant Account for LaundryCat Payment Processing message confirms that LaundryCat app payments now go to this account.
Be sure to configure the LaundryCat app for the location in the Mobile App Configurations menu.
Note: The Set Active for LaundryCat button only appears once Stripe has accepted the account. If you don't see it yet, check back later, and fix anything listed under There are outstanding issues that could affect service.
Step 5: Register Your VAC PINpad Terminals (if applicable)
If the VAC kiosks at your location use Stripe PINpad terminals (S700 or P630), contact Laundroworks support to register the terminals to your new Stripe Merchant Account. Once they're registered, card payments at your VACs go to this account.
If your VACs don't use Stripe PINpad terminals, you can skip this step.
Switching to Stripe from Another Payment Processor
If LaundryCat app payments at your location currently go through another payment processor, such as Worldline, we strongly recommend switching to a Stripe Merchant Account. To switch, follow Steps 1 to 4 above.
When you click Set Active for LaundryCat in Step 4, the confirmation shows the Merchant Account that is currently applied and lets you know that:
Credit cards that customers saved in the LaundryCat app will be removed. Customers will need to re-enter their card details to make payments.
An alert message will be shown in the LaundryCat app for a time to let customers know. Contact Laundroworks support when you'd like the alert removed.
Benefits of switching to a Stripe Merchant Account:
Initiate refunds directly from the LaundroPortal's Payment Processing menu
Manage your Merchant Account and review payments, payouts and saved cards right in LaundroPortal
Better chargeback and dispute handling
No PCI compliance checks or audits
To learn what each tab of the Payment Processing page shows, see Stripe Payment Processing in LaundroPortal.
Need Assistance?
For help setting up your Stripe Merchant Account, contact the Laundroworks support team at support@laundroworks.com or call 1-888-629-8620.