And what would be the motivation for InComm, the Vanilla provider, to do that? Let's see--I can make some portion of $3.95 for every card ever sold with each customer buying multiple cards or I can make $3.95 once off each customer.

The Sierra Club might like the latter; InComm is not the Sierra Club. Although it might be nice if VRs could be bought for a lower price or once for $3.95, InComm wouldn't stay in business with that model.

And, I assume, given the choice, we'd want InComm to keep offering this product, just as we want CVS to continue to offer the option of buying them with a credit card.

I assume poster means that you would be able to take the card back and get it loaded again for another $3.95, rather than buy another piece of plastic.

^

Are these cards loss leaders for CVS? If so, then they will disappear (or go cash only) without better monitoring.

Loss leaders are the items used to bring profits from other products. (fishing hooks? to catch bigger fish?).
Don't worry about VR disappearing, there are plenty other products in the market. If CVS wants 'Cash' who in the right mind would buy VR and waste $3.95 activation fee? no miles/ no points no VRs
U worry like CVS CEO, U don't get paid! have doubts about his ability? This has been debated extensively in the past.

Then why does WG insist on cash for VRs? There must be a market for VRs even when cash is required.

Credit card fraud.

Anyone buying VR cash at WG?

Manager's excuse? not more than buying anything else

Higher cost. $500 or more of a hit vs buying 100 bucks worth of junk.

Remember that BlueBird/VR are intended for the un/under-banked rather than credit card junkies. So if you don't have a bank account, and need to pay a bill remotely, doing it via bluebird may be almost the only choice (since you don't have a debit card either to do it at Walmart).

And since you are probably poor and don't have much clout, it makes a lot of sense to charge you $3.95 for the opportunity to use our product. Still cheaper than a bank, if you could find one....

If it's such good business for CVS, why not have a thousand VRs on hand at all times? By "loss leaders" I meant that they are hoping to generate other sales. Whether due to losing money on each $500 card, credit card fraud, buyer theft and hoarding, or employee fraud (e.g. getting kickbacks from the heavy churners), I have my doubts this will continue for very long.

Within 15 miles radius from home, 60% of the CVS are cash only.

50% of the remaining 40% stores that take CC, run out of inventory for Months, not just weeks. Basically once it runs out the initial lots, those stores never seem to restock. And the stores that do not restock seems to slowly increase in number.

So essentially only 20% of the CVS within 15 miles radius actually have VRs that can be bought with CC, despite there are like a doz stores within that driving range.

Therefore, in my area, VR will soon join the endangered species list.

You just have to find creative means to move the vrs from the cash only stores to the cc stores. These means do exist and dont necessarily involve theft of anything

Nope, you dont need VR if you are willing to pay $1 extra cost per piece.