Choose how employees pay

Updated May 25, 2026

Choosing how employees will pay for merchandise is one of the most important decisions when setting up your company store. The payment method impacts employee participation, budgeting, reporting and the overall success of the program.

Launch by Lead Apparel offers flexible payment options for employee merchandise programs, including Launch codes, gift cards and employee-paid ordering.

Most companies today choose Launch codes because they provide companies with more flexibility around budgeting, employee eligibility and long-term program management.

Launch codes

Launch codes are the most popular payment method on Launch and the preferred option for most employee merchandise programs.

Companies can issue:

A fixed dollar amount per employee
A percentage discount up to 100% off

Launch codes are commonly used for:

Employee onboarding
Holiday gifting
Department budgets
Employee anniversaries
Client gifting
Ongoing company merchandise programs

Unlike traditional gift cards, companies are only billed for the amount employees actually redeem.

For example, if an employee receives a $200 Launch code but only spends $125, the company is only billed for the $125 that was used.

Launch codes also support:

Employee tagging
Department-based eligibility
Company email restrictions
Optional expiration dates
Evergreen onboarding programs

Companies using Launch discount codes can optionally limit how many products employees are allowed to order, helping maintain budget control during fully funded programs.

Fixed Amount codes also allow employees to spend beyond the code value by paying the remaining balance with a credit card at checkout.

This flexibility allows companies to manage employee merchandise programs with significantly less administrative work.

Gift cards

Gift cards are still available on Launch, although many companies now prefer Launch codes because they provide more flexibility and operational control.

With gift cards:

The company purchases the balance upfront
Employees redeem the balance over time
The full amount is charged regardless of how much is ultimately used

Gift cards can still work well for simple one-time gifting scenarios, but Launch codes are typically more efficient for ongoing employee programs.

Employee paid

Employee-paid stores allow employees to place orders using their own payment method at checkout.

This setup is most commonly used when:

Employees have company-issued purchasing cards
Merchandise ordering is optional
Employees order independently

If companies require employees to pay for the entire order using a personal payment method, participation rates are almost always significantly lower.

In some cases, only 5–10% of invited employees will ultimately place an order.

For this reason, many companies choose to subsidize all or part of the order through Launch codes instead.

Credit card payments are always accepted at checkout. Employees can use a credit card to pay any balance above a Launch code or gift card value, or pay for the entire order directly if no funding method has been assigned.

How payment methods impact participation

The payment structure directly affects employee participation rates.

Companies typically see the strongest participation when:

Employees receive enough funding to comfortably order premium products
The ordering experience feels simple and enjoyable
Employees are not burdened with significant out-of-pocket costs

Well-funded Launch code programs combined with premium merchandise often achieve participation rates between 95–100%.

One common mistake companies make is offering a small employee allowance while expecting employees to cover a large balance themselves. In many cases, this reduces excitement around the program and lowers overall participation.

Best practices

Use Launch codes for most employee merchandise programs
Offer enough funding for employees to comfortably order premium products
Limit product quantities when using 100% discount codes
Use employee tagging for department-based programs
Leave onboarding codes active indefinitely for new hires
Avoid overly complicated employee-paid ordering structures

Launch codes vs Gift cards
Fixed Amount vs Discount codes
How to create your first Launch code
Tagging employees for Launch codes
Budgeting for employee merchandise