Leatherwork And Crypto Currencies

[Beaverslayer]

So far in Alberta and BC this is what I have found for businesses that accept Bitcoin.

1 Winery in Kelowna

2. sausage shop in Vancouver

3. Restaurant Vancouver

4.A store in Vancouver

5 A Restaurant in Edmonton

This is not something that tells me I must throw my money away for bit coin use. It is probably a great idea but: Tim Horton's, Safeway, Coop, Gas Stations, Car Dealerships,Enmax, Telus, do not recognize this and Stephen Harper wants you to pay your taxes in money, they won't accept bit coin. I can't pay Comicon, Horror Con or any other show I do in bit coin. Right now it is not only not feasible but definitely not logical for me to accept what I can't use.

Now if in the future more larger companies are on board with it then I will consider it but to buy one coin for $247. dollars is not beneficial to me. I am not a millionaire and I can't afford to have my money ties up in something I can not use.

leatherwytch,

As Bitcoin is a relatively new technology, there are not as yet a whole lot of Brick and Mortar stores that accept it as a payment method. This is changing on a daily basis and more and more are beginning to see the benefits of Bitcoin. Yes, at present time you cannot pay your Enmax bill and such with Bitcoin, but you can pay it with money you have made by the sale of items generated by Bitcoin. This is why I told you about CaVirtex and Bitcoin Brains right here in Calgary.

CaVirtex has a service where you can accept Bitcoin as payment and have those Bitcoins converted immediately into Canadian dollars and deposited into your bank account. This is exactly the same as accepting Visa, Mastercard or AMEX but without the fees those companies charge. Take for example if you use the "Square" credit card processing service, they charge you 2.75% to do a transaction with there service, that is $2.75 for every $100.00 in sales. CaVirtex will charge you ZERO fees for the first $100,000.00 in sales and only 0.5% on any sales after $100,000.00, so as you can see you are saving a substantial amount of money in fees alone.

You mention that buying one Bitcoin at $247.00 is not a beneficial thing for you to do....I agree wholeheartedly with that. I'm not saying for you to ever buy a Bitcoin, there is no need for you to do this, I'm only saying that by accepting Bitcoin as another form of payment in conjunction with your present forms of payment will very possibly add to your customer base and increase your sales and bottom line.

Once you have accepted Bitcoin as payment (via a payment processor such as CaVirtex) the Bitcoin is converted to "Real Canadian Money" and is then spendable at all those places you mentioned, just like if someone payed you via a credit card or cheque, those also have to be converted and deposited into your bank account before you can use those funds at the places you mentioned...but Bitcoin does not have the fees those other forms of payment have, and there is a fast growing international community of people who want to buy things with Bitcoin.

[Beaverslayer]

Again - none of the CO´s Im buying from is accepting bitcoin - no one ever asked me to do so and why the hell is it me who has to tranfer a virtual currency to a CO that iturns it in to real money? Why don´t bitcoin users turn their moeny into hard currency and then pay me?

Don´t know what this FIAT is - do they tun bitcoins into real moneny for free?

We have SEPA payments in Europe and that is for free I still see no purpose for virtual money.

have to run ... later

Constabulary,

First off, "Fiat" is what you use every day, it is cold hard cash, the Euro is "Fiat".

The reason you require a company to convert Bitcoin into hard cash, is the same reason you have a bank account that turns your pay check into hard cash, it's the same reason you gave credit card processing services, because carrying around cash is getting to be a thing of the past.

Credit cards as well as debit cards are basically the exact same thing as "Virtual Currencies" they are just older and (at present) much wider used in the world.

Bitcoin users want to buy things using their Bitcoins and not have to pay some multinational company high fees to do so. Credit cards and debit cards are limited to the amount that you can carry on them, and the amount you can spend at one time. Bitcoin does not have these restrictions as it is not run by a multinational company that's sole reason for being in business is for profit.

There are thousands upon thousands of people all over the world that get payed their wages in Bitcoin, pay all there bills with Bitcoin and fly on commercial airlines payed for with Bitcoin as there are numerous companies that you can book and pay for flights in Bitcoin if you so desire.

You, like many people have yet to see the benefits of Bitcoin, just like when the internet and email first came about people where skeptical and didn't understand how it all worked. Who thought that back in 1985 that today you could talk to someone face to face through your computer? Who would have thought that they could make a phone call on a small little hand help phone to almost anywhere in the world to almost anywhere in the world so easily?

This is just the beginning of Bitcoin as I have said before, this is the ground floor. Believe me when I tell you there are millions upon millions of people that use Bitcoin every day and each day there are new people. Bitcoin may not be for you, just like I hate and detest credit cards, but it is being used and it is another way of marketing your leather work business.

[raysouth]

HMMMMMMMMMM--------- I suppose I am just out of the loop. I have heard of the bitcoin thing but do not understand a thing about it. Rather confusing to an old timer that has always dealt in hard cash.

I think, after reading the information in this topic that it would be best to have extensive knowledge about the stock market, be a mathematician, a computer wizard, and be able to spend your time following what is going on with this thing.

When I first heard of the term, I wondered what a bitcoin looked like. lol. After collecting coins for a number of years, I thought that this might be something to add to the collection lol.

Now I think I have learned that it is something that is not tangible or something one can physically touch. Don't think I could ever keep track of that type of currency. Hard enough to do with the paper and metal I use daily.

Not knocking the use of whatever this is, just don't think I could ever be comfortable with the product. Best for the electronic savvy folks of today.

Good luck to all that find it of interest.

God Bless.

Ray

[leatherwytch]

Beaverslayer,

I want to thank you for bringing up bit coin. I have spent all day researching this and speaking with a company in Vancouver, https://www.quadrigacx.com I suggest everyone else in Canada who wants to find out more please contact them. The nice fellow who explained it to me made it all clear.

This is something that will increase our business not make it a problem. Actually Paypal is considering setting up for bit coin also. The best part is you can take everything else and this too.

I have decided to sign up and with this you don't lose money but a chance to make more. It is not like Fiat currency it is not physical therefore it confuses governments.

I am sure anyone anywhere who would like to discuss bit coin with this company could. They have both an online POS and a brick and mortar. They charge one percent of each transaction. No set up fees or months fees and nothing to send into the government. The system can transpose the bit coin into USD, CAD or gold and then even direct deposit it into your bank account.

Edited February 5, 2015 by leatherwytch

[Beaverslayer]

leatherwytch,

I'm glad I was able to help you and that you were able to research more about Bitcoin and come to the realization that the possibilities of Bitcoin increasing your online pressence as well as your sales is there. I am more than happy to also help you get your website and such more exposure to the Bitcoin community once you are set up and ready to go, just let me know when.

If you don't already have one, I suggest you get a Twitter account set up as this is a very good platform for mass marketing a website....kind of like I tell two friends and they tell two friends, but it's more of hundreds of friends and all very fast. Another would be a Facebook page for your leather work business, which is another very good mass marketing platform that is free just like Twitter.

There are a number of "Forum" type sites just like this one that are Bitcoin based as well, and once you get all set up you should open up a topic on a few of them and list your website and the services you provide that you'd accept Bitcoin for payment.

Once you start getting sales from Bitcoin people, they are going to tell other Bitcoin people that you are a reputable and good business and sales should pick up from there.

As I've said, I am here to help you as much as needed.

[Tramps Leatherworking]

I respect Beaverslayer trying to increase his investment, but I guarantee you folks, that anyone pushing Bitcoin to you has a vested interest in it, they either mine them and/or trade them... Their success in making money depends on their ability to increase the use of this digital currency... I will never accept anything but cold hard cash, there is no good reason to get involved in this --- If this can be easily converted to cash, then the people who have them can convert them and pay me... I have done lot's of research on this, so it is not just my opinion...

[Troy I]

I'm with you Tramps....Beaverslayer is trying way too hard to sell this venture...not worth the risk...besides what is wrong with established currencies, why do we need something else...I'll tell you...it is because a select few will make millions while the masses are left holding the bag.

My advice is to run away very fast.

This is just my opinion, so take it for what it is worth.

[Beaverslayer]

I respect Beaverslayer trying to increase his investment, but I guarantee you folks, that anyone pushing Bitcoin to you has a vested interest in it, they either mine them and/or trade them... Their success in making money depends on their ability to increase the use of this digital currency... I will never accept anything but cold hard cash, there is no good reason to get involved in this --- If this can be easily converted to cash, then the people who have them can convert them and pay me... I have done lot's of research on this, so it is not just my opinion...

As I stated before Tramps, I respect your opinion (and what you stated above....IS YOUR OPINION)

I do not respect you assuming my sole intention for "Informing" and "Helping" people look into another form of increasing sales and marketing their goods as "Beaverslayer trying to increase his investment". This is what I would consider an attack on me personally. Everything I have ever done or posted on this forum was for the sole intention of "Helping" other leather workers...always has been always will be...

You personally have decided that Bitcoin (and most likely credit cards and PayPal and such) are not for you and only accept "Cold Hard Cash" for your goods, this is all well and fine. But....yes BUT, there is a whole other world out there, and in that world there are many many many other forms of payment that are accepted and people use every day of the week.

When it comes to "Mining" Bitcoin, today it is not worth a individuals time nor money to even consider mining them, this is done by companies that have invested millions of dollars into mining them. I, as stated above "Mine" Altcoins (they are like Bitcoin but only a few are accepted like Bitcoin) and I trade those on an exchange for other Altcoins and when needed I convert those to Bitcoin and sell them.

If you truly believe that by me posting here on this forum trying to get people to use Bitcoin to make the price of Bitcoin go up so I make more money, well, I'm sorry but that really does make me laugh. Even if 500 of the people that frequent this site were to accept Bitcoin and use it on a daily basis, this would have zero effect on the daily price of Bitcoin. The price is determined by people who trade millions of dollars worth of Bitcoins hourly, not by retail sales people. It's like when people complain about the price of gasoline and blame the big oil companies for the price...it is not the oil companies, it is the people who trade "Futures Contracts" of oil and gasoline who determines the price of gasoline and oil, just like any other commodity.

Your opinion of "If this can be easily converted to cash, then the people who have them can convert them and pay me" is no different that saying if you have a credit card/debit card or PayPal, then use it and convert that to cash and pay me with the cash.

[Beaverslayer]

I'm with you Tramps....Beaverslayer is trying way too hard to sell this venture...not worth the risk...besides what is wrong with established currencies, why do we need something else...I'll tell you...it is because a select few will make millions while the masses are left holding the bag.

My advice is to run away very fast.

This is just my opinion, so take it for what it is worth.

Troy I,

I don't see where I am "Trying way too hgard" to sell this venture. I posted about Bitcoin and accepting it as a payment method for custom leather work done by people who frequent this forum as another way to increase sales and market their goods. People responded with questions and concerns and I posted replies to those.

Just in this section of the forum there are 320 topic posts related to "Marketing and Advertising" with 3,349 replies to these posts. All these posts are about Marketing and Advertising, this is just another one of those posts that gives leatherworkers the opportunity to look at another form of payment.

You ask what is wrong with the currencies we have today and why do we need another one. Well, you may want to ask the people of Cypress about that, also the people of Zimbabwe, they will be more than happy to explain to you exactly what happened to the money that their Governments printed for them.

When it comes to "Needing" a new currency, nobody is saying that we need it, but it is there for your use should you decide to use it. Who said we needed credit cards and debit cards? why have so many people stopped using "Cash" and instead pay with a debit card? It's called "Progress" and adapting new technology to the ever changing world.

Do you truly believe that companies like Microsoft and Overstock.com only accept Bitcoin in hopes of driving the price of Bitcoin up? no they accept it as a payment means because they realise that their sales will increase and their cost of making that sale will decrease. Sure there are people who are involved with Bitcoin that are going to make millions of dollars, no different thatn the banks and credit card companies have been doing for years.

[cgleathercraft]

If I remember correctly the amount of bitcoins are finite. meaning no more will be created only their value will increase (or decrease) depending on what we put in and take out (except whatever is left to be mined). Basically the value of a bitcoin is based almost entirely what we invest into it. The more people that buy in the more its worth. The more people withdraw the more it goes down.

While I might accept it as a form of payment, it won't bring much value to the bitcoin world because I wouldn't just leave the coins to sit. They will find their way directly into my bank account and it will be a one way transmission.

[Tramps Leatherworking]

As I stated before Tramps, I respect your opinion (and what you stated above....IS YOUR OPINION)

I do not respect you assuming my sole intention for "Informing" and "Helping" people look into another form of increasing sales and marketing their goods as "Beaverslayer trying to increase his investment". This is what I would consider an attack on me personally. Everything I have ever done or posted on this forum was for the sole intention of "Helping" other leather workers...always has been always will be...

You personally have decided that Bitcoin (and most likely credit cards and PayPal and such) are not for you and only accept "Cold Hard Cash" for your goods, this is all well and fine. But....yes BUT, there is a whole other world out there, and in that world there are many many many other forms of payment that are accepted and people use every day of the week.

When it comes to "Mining" Bitcoin, today it is not worth a individuals time nor money to even consider mining them, this is done by companies that have invested millions of dollars into mining them. I, as stated above "Mine" Altcoins (they are like Bitcoin but only a few are accepted like Bitcoin) and I trade those on an exchange for other Altcoins and when needed I convert those to Bitcoin and sell them.

If you truly believe that by me posting here on this forum trying to get people to use Bitcoin to make the price of Bitcoin go up so I make more money, well, I'm sorry but that really does make me laugh. Even if 500 of the people that frequent this site were to accept Bitcoin and use it on a daily basis, this would have zero effect on the daily price of Bitcoin. The price is determined by people who trade millions of dollars worth of Bitcoins hourly, not by retail sales people. It's like when people complain about the price of gasoline and blame the big oil companies for the price...it is not the oil companies, it is the people who trade "Futures Contracts" of oil and gasoline who determines the price of gasoline and oil, just like any other commodity.

Your opinion of "If this can be easily converted to cash, then the people who have them can convert them and pay me" is no different that saying if you have a credit card/debit card or PayPal, then use it and convert that to cash and pay me with the cash.

What I stated above "IS NOT" just my opinion --- you stated in an earlier post that you mine and trade these, so you DO have a vested interest in increasing their value... If someone on here wants to invest in any commodity, then that is their choice, I just feel people need the whole story before making such a decision. Making people think there is NO risk to this is just not being honest.

This all I will post on this subject, and like I said, "Good Luck" with your investment.

[leatherwytch]

Beaverslayer,

Thanks. If I need your assistance I will contact you. i do have websites and I do them myself. I will be adding bit coin to my websites.

It was good he was able to put it that I could visualize it and it was so much less confusing than I felt it would be.

The risk involved in this is maybe holding it instead of changing it over to Fiat. But it can also be a benefit. Unlike currency the bottom won't fall out but it can go higher or lower. it is a combination of playing the barter stock market.

I like it does not cost me a cent to hook it up to my business. It only costs a miniature amount of money per transaction. I don't believe I will get a million transactions off the bat.

Edited February 6, 2015 by leatherwytch

[Constabulary]

--- If this can be easily converted to cash, then the people who have them can convert them and pay me... I have done lot's of research on this, so it is not just my opinion...

My words! I absolutely don´t see why I should do it. I somehow have a "Sales Show" feeleing here.

We have a saying here: "Wes Brot ich ess, des Lied ich sing" or freely translated: "Whose bread I eat his song I sing"

Some interesting aspects here (I don´t eat their bread but worth reading it)

http://www.tradingacademy.com/resources/financial-education-center/financial-professionals-share-their-opinions-on-bitcoin.aspx

Good luck with this stuff - I´m out.

[leatherwytch]

Constabulary,

No one HAS to do it. It was mainly a suggestion. I surely doubt 5000 people will come thundering to my site because I have bit coin. I am putting it there because it is not a pain in the butt to transpose to fiat. If I can make more money by running it, then why not. If I don't have to pay taxes on it, even better. We are all adults it is each persons individual choice to do it or not. Beaverslayer was just giving us a heads up on how to move business forward. If it works it works. If it doesn't, no harm, no foul. It doesn't cost me anything and that is good with me.

[Thor]

Haha those Calgary guys had a winter impact..

Bitcoin blabla.. When you mention bitcoin as an alternative to other payment methods you should mention the risks as well and especially in the last little while it was in the media and a few guys and companies seemed to loose a little too much with it.

Constabulary seems to be from northern Germany. Tough to convince these guys. Almost as tough as convincing a swiss person ;-)

Again common sense isn't all too common anymore, but it must be used to understand the system. This looks like catch22. Marketing must be done for every product but this goes a bit overboard, which makes it suspicious. Reminds me on one of these MLM systems. But to befair, we all said the same about PayPal a few years ago.

[Beaverslayer]

Thor,

Winter here in Calgary this year has been pretty nice actually, seeing as all the Alberta Oil Sands contribute so much to Global Warming and all.

Most of the risk regarding Bitcoin is from holding it and hoping the value will increase or buying Bitcoins at a high price and again hoping the value goes back up over $1,000.00. If you are accepting it as a payment using a reputable company as your POS provider, and having them convert it to US dollars or the currency of your country, then the risk as well as the cost. is actual far less than conventional credit card/debit card, PayPal or even Western Union Money orders.

As long as you price your goods in a "Dollar" amount and the person pays with Bitcoin at time of check-out, then the Bitcoin is converted at that time. This eliminates the volatility of Bitcoin value changes.

Yes people have lost millions of dollars "Investing" in Bitcoin, no different than people who have lost millions "Investing" in the stock market. People bought large quantities of Bitcoin when the price was very high, just to watch the price drop very low, as long as you convert your Bitcoin sales to Fiat once received you are not faced with this problem.

Now back to basking in this glorious Alberta winter...if Global Warming is real...Bring it on...

Edited February 7, 2015 by Beaverslayer

[leatherwytch]

I won't be able to hold onto any bit coins. So any I get will roll over very quickly.

[cgleathercraft]

I hate to bring up this old thread again but I believe it could save someone lots of headache.....

I set up an account with coinbase.com a while back and just had it sitting there ready to go to accept bitcoins as payment for a couple wallets that I was going to make to test the market. I had to enter my bank information in order to get the bitcoin account verified and usable. This morning my account had been cleaned out in less than 2 hours. The bank had identified that the transactions came with the same ID as coinbase.com. Luckily I'll get most of the money back since it was caught early enough.

my suggestion - turn away from bitcoin and keep walking. there is enough of a market in USD or any other standard currency to keep us all happy.

Best of luck and hope I'm the only one that got bit by this.