Overview

Firehouse, an international restaurant chain based in Jacksonville, Florida, operates over 1,200 locations across 46 states, Puerto Rico, Switzerland, Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, and the Middle East. To support its global expansion strategy, Firehouse partnered with Santex to address significant challenges in payment management within a highly regulated and risk-exposed industry.

The Challenge

We identified several obstacles in the payment ecosystem that hindered operational efficiency and profitability:

• High processing costs: Fees from banking institutions, transaction networks, and compliance with standards like PCI DSS negatively impacted profit margins.

• Fraud risks: Increasing threats from fraudulent activities and sophisticated cyberattacks demanded robust security measures to protect financial data.

• Complex regulations: Many jurisdiction-specific regulations, including data protection laws and AML requirements, create significant challenges for compliance and limit integration capabilities for payment platforms.

• Scalability and technical vulnerabilities: Rising transaction volumes and user growth tested the limits of existing infrastructure, which was also a frequent target of cyber threats.

The Solution

The Santex team implemented a comprehensive payment management solution focused on security, scalability, and user experience:

Secure and scalable infrastructure: A robust system was developed to handle high transaction volumes without compromising performance.

• Advanced security measures: Techniques such as tokenization, real-time monitoring, and strict access controls were deployed to mitigate vulnerabilities.

• Efficient processor integration: Firehouse optimized transaction flows by working with key payment processors like First Data, Chase Orbital, and Worldpay.

• Key features: The platform included functionalities like authorization, recurring payments, and detailed analytics, enhancing transparency and decision-making.

• Real-time monitoring: Dashboards and alert systems, such as Opsgenie, were integrated to track performance metrics and security in real-time.

Key Outcomes

1. 66% faster payment system implementation: The new microservices architecture reduced the implementation time for new payment systems from six months to just two.

2. 97.8% transaction success rate: Improved processing efficiency, reducing errors and approval times.

3. Detection of over 2,000 fraud attempts monthly: Demonstrating the effectiveness of the enhanced security measures.