POS and Restaurant Technology Financing
Modern restaurants are tech-heavy. The POS isn’t a single terminal anymore — it’s terminals, handhelds, kitchen display screens, expo monitors, self-order kiosks, back-office laptops, scheduling and inventory software, and the SaaS subscriptions that tie them together. We finance the whole stack as one project, not seven separate purchase orders — the same way we approach restaurant financing across North Carolina, structured around how operators actually buy.
Hardware and Software, Bundled
The most useful thing we do on technology financing is bundle hardware and software into a single agreement. The terminals, the kiosks, the cabling, the install, and the SaaS subscription that actually runs the operation all sit on one finance agreement. One predictable payment. No vendor relay race.
Lease vs. Finance — Match It to Your Upgrade Horizon
POS hardware ages fast. The right structure depends on how long you want to hold the equipment.
- Lease (24-48 months) — Lowest monthly payment, return-or-upgrade at end of term, and you’re always on current-generation hardware. Good for high-volume operators who care about the latest features.
- Finance-to-own (36-60 months) — Slightly higher payment, but you own the hardware at the end. Good for stable operators planning to keep the system 5+ years.
We model both side by side so the decision isn’t a gut call.
Self-Order Kiosks and the QSR Upgrade
Self-order kiosks have moved from QSR experiment to standard hardware in two years. They drive average ticket up, free your team for kitchen and service, and pay back fast. Most operators finance the kiosk roll-out as one project — kiosks, mounts, cabling, payment integration, and the back-end software — to keep the cap-ex from blowing up a single quarter.
End-of-Lease Options
End-of-lease is where badly structured POS leases bite. We disclose every end-of-lease option upfront — buyout, upgrade, return, or extend — so there are no surprises. If the right path is to refresh to next-gen hardware, the upgrade path is built in. If you want to keep what you have, the buyout is fixed and known.