Small Business Owners: Make Credit Card Spending Work for You
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In Points Intervention, I help people get their awards earning on track. In the episodes below, I worked with a New York City restaurant owner, helping him to maximize points and miles to get the best return for his business.
My second Points Intervention was with Christophe Carón, owner and manager of Délice and Sarrasin, an authentic French crêperie in New York City's West Village. The cafe, where Christophe's mother is the chef, has been open for four months, and he is curious to see if he should switch credit cards to maximize the business's future spending.
Episode 1: Saving on Foreign Transaction Fees
Christophe uses a Delta Platinum Card from American Express. Yes, the increasingly devalued Delta, because of its partnership with Air France.
After chiding him for his airline choice, we also got into the thorny world of foreign transaction fees. Christophe imports many of the cafe's ingredients directly from France every month, which can be brutal on the bottom line when foreign transaction fees are factored in. So in addition to trying to get him to jump the Delta ship, I'm challenged with finding him a good credit card for foreign purchases.
Episode 2: Using a Cash-Back Business Credit Card
In this episode, I made two card recommendations for Christophe based on how he runs his business, and his three goals: he wants travel perks, he's looking to avoid foreign transaction fees and he wants to add additional employees to whichever card he chooses.
If Christophe wants to stick with Delta, The Business Platinum Card from American Express OPEN currently offers 40,000 points after $5,000 spent within three months and features plenty of benefits, from lounge access at airports he uses often to perks at luxury hotels. If Christophe learns how to leverage these advantages, the Business Platinum card might make sense — but it costs $300 for each additional card holder, which can add up.
So my top recommendation for him was actually a cash-back credit card; Capital One has a Spark Cash for Business Card that gives you a cash bonus of $500 after $4,500 spent in the first three months just for signing up and meeting a minimum spend requirement — and additional cardholders are free.
Also, for every dollar you spend you get 2% back, which means that in addition to Christophe avoiding foreign transaction fees and adding cardholders with no additional annual fee, he can actually make the card work for him based on his spending.
Episode 3: Paying Bills with a Credit Card
For my final episode with Christophe, we talked about paying bills online via credit card. Christophe mentioned that if he doesn't pay certain vendors using Automated Clearing House (ACH), they charge him a fee.
So once again, it looks like the Capital One Spark Cash for Business is the winner in Christophe's case — and probably in the case of many other small business owners, too. With the 2% cash back on his spending, it would at the very least cover the fee, and anything else on top of that is gravy.
Do you or your small business need a Points Intervention? Be sure to email intervention@thepointsguy.com to share your detailed story.
TPG featured card
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Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| 3X | Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases. |
| 1X | Earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases. |
Pros
- Delta SkyClub access when flying Delta
- Annual companion ticket for travel on Delta (upon renewal)
- Ability to earn MQDs through spending
- Various statement credits for eligible purchases
Cons
- Steep annual fee of $650
- Other Delta cobranded cards offer superior earning categories
- Earn 100,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $6,000 or more in purchases with your new Card within the first 6 months of Card Membership and an additional 25,000 bonus miles after you make an additional $3,000 in purchases on the Card within your first 6 months, starting from the date that your account is opened. Offer Ends 04/01/2026.
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card Members receive 15 Visits per Medallion® Year to the Delta Sky Club® when flying Delta and can unlock an unlimited number of Visits after spending $75,000 in purchases on your Card in a calendar year. Plus, you’ll receive four One-Time Guest Passes each Medallion Year so you can share the experience with family and friends when traveling Delta together.
- Enjoy complimentary access to The Centurion® Lounge in the U.S. and select international locations (as set forth on the Centurion Lounge Website), Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge in the U.S. (see the Centurion Lounge Website for more information on Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge availability), and Escape Lounges when flying on a Delta flight booked with the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card. § To access Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge, Card Members must arrive within 90 minutes of their departing flight (including layovers). To access The Centurion® Lounge, Card Members must arrive within 3 hours of their departing flight. Effective July 8, 2026, during a layover, Card Members must arrive within 5 hours of the connecting flight.
- Receive $2,500 Medallion® Qualification Dollars with MQD Headstart each Medallion Qualification Year and earn $1 MQD for each $10 in purchases on your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card with MQD Boost to get closer to Status next Medallion Year.
- Enjoy a Companion Certificate on a Delta First, Delta Comfort, or Delta Main round-trip flight to select destinations each year after renewal of your Card. The Companion Certificate requires payment of government-imposed taxes and fees of between $22 and $250 (for itineraries with up to four flight segments). Baggage charges and other restrictions apply. Delta Basic experiences are not eligible for this benefit.
- $240 Resy Credit: When you use your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card for eligible purchases with U.S. Resy restaurants, you can earn up to $20 each month in statement credits. Enrollment required.
- $120 Rideshare Credit: Earn up to $10 back in statement credits each month after you use your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card to pay for U.S. rideshare purchases with select providers. Enrollment required.
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card Members get 15% off when using miles to book Award Travel on Delta flights through delta.com and the Fly Delta app. Discount not applicable to partner-operated flights or to taxes and fees.
- With your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card, receive upgrade priority over others with the same Medallion tier, product and fare experience purchased, and Million Miler milestone when you fly with Delta.
- Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases and earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees. Enjoy international travel without additional fees on purchases made abroad.
- $650 Annual Fee.
- Apply with confidence. Know if you're approved for a Card with no impact to your credit score. If you're approved and you choose to accept this Card, your credit score may be impacted.
- Terms Apply.
- See Rates & Fees