Why Pret's coffee giveaway leaves a bad taste | Brand Republic
06/07/2015 15:54

Why Pret's coffee giveaway leaves a bad
taste
Pret stores are offering what is being hailed as 'free flirt whites'
Pret's new 'loyalty' scheme, which allows staff to give free coffee to people they
'like' leaves Ben Stephens, executive chairman at Stack, feeling a bit flat (white).
Pret A Manger has caused quite the storm in a coffee cup. The chain is facing
flak regarding its policy of encouraging staff to give away free coffee to customers they
"like" or "fancy". Pret's boss, the chief executive Clive Schlee, says that this approach
is cheaper than a loyalty scheme, but critics argue it is potentially discriminatory and,
now that the policy has been revealed in public, risks looking inauthentic.
Free flirt white
http://www.brandrepublic.com/article/1344291/why-prets-coffee-giveaway-leaves-bad-taste
Page 1 of 4
Why Pret's coffee giveaway leaves a bad taste | Brand Republic
06/07/2015 15:54
Schlee says that his free flirt white giveaway isn’t a direct alternative to a loyalty
scheme but works mainly as a piece of staff motivation. He doesn’t even position the
gifts as a reward for frequent managers, saying instead that staff can use their
discretion to give away a "certain number of hot drinks and food each week".
Rather than provide handouts for good-looking people, Pret could invest in this
approach and bring longer-term brand benefits as opposed to the risks involved
with a haphazard favouring of one customer over another
Less than exhaustive research among Pret staff (I have just been in and asked),
reveals a slightly different story. It sounds to me like they’ve been freshly briefed since
Schlee’s comments were published, because they say they use the giveaway to thank
regulars, people who are nice to them and people who buy lots. Sounds like a loyalty
drive, of sorts, to me.
Worth the money
However, the CEO says he doesn’t want a complicated "Clubcard-style" points
scheme because it costs money. He doesn’t have to have one. But, for the money, I’d
argue, you get results. Especially when Schlee has ambitions to play in the big league
and match the scale of McDonald’s.
He might want to look at how My Starbucks Rewards, based around a plastic loyalty
card and mobile app, is doing in terms of making payment easier, encouraging the trial
of new products, and rewarding specific groups of customers who deserve a big hug.
Three simple but powerful services that I’m sure Pret wouldn’t mind being able to
deliver. In the food chain sector, Nando’s is reaping great benefits from its revamped
loyalty scheme, based around its Nando’s card and related website.
Creativity, data and technology
However, if that’s just too technical and costly then Pret could do worse than look at
what Café Nero is achieving with its loyalty stamp card (a free coffee for every nine you
buy). It’s enough to make me walk past Starbucks on my way into work every morning
and is certainly more targeted than the Pret approach.
Café Nero’s is a rare exception, though, to today’s successful loyalty schemes, which
tend to deploy a consistent blend of creativity, data and technology. Rather than
provide handouts for good-looking people, Pret could invest in this approach and bring
longer-term brand benefits as opposed to the risks involved with a haphazard
http://www.brandrepublic.com/article/1344291/why-prets-coffee-giveaway-leaves-bad-taste
Page 2 of 4
Why Pret's coffee giveaway leaves a bad taste | Brand Republic
06/07/2015 15:54
favouring of one customer over another. As it stands, Pret risks a backlash from the
72% of us who don’t get the free stuff and significant damage to its brand.
This article was first published on
marketingmagazine.co.uk
http://www.brandrepublic.com/article/1344291/why-prets-coffee-giveaway-leaves-bad-taste
Page 3 of 4
Why Pret's coffee giveaway leaves a bad taste | Brand Republic
06/07/2015 15:54
   

Before commenting please read our rules for commenting on articles.
0 Comments
 Recommend

BrandRepublic
⤤ Share
Login
Sort by Newest
Start the discussion…
Be the first to comment.
✉
Subscribe
d
Add Disqus to your site
%
Privacy
If you see a comment you find offensive, you can flag it as inappropriate. In the top right-hand
corner of an individual comment, you will see 'flag as inappropriate'. Clicking this prompts us
to review the comment. For further information see our rules for commenting on articles.
http://www.brandrepublic.com/article/1344291/why-prets-coffee-giveaway-leaves-bad-taste
Page 4 of 4