Waitrose major change to free coffee could see £3 penalty
The supermarket is offering MyWaitrose members the option to 'borrow' a reusable coffee cup, in order to redeem a free coffee when doing their shopping.
It comes as earlier this year, MyWaitrose customers were able to start claiming a free coffee (as long as they had a reusable cup) without buying anything.
This was introduced following a shake-up to the loyalty scheme, which saw Waitrose ditch the free newspaper initiative.
#costofliving ♬ Window Shopper - Instrumental - 50 Cent @catchagemm ☕️ Grab a FREE hot drink from Waitrose everyday .. this has no expiry date and is expected to run for the foreseeable future! When this offer was first introduced, the drink was free with no purchase required, Waitrose later re-introduced the offer with a purchase as a requirement in 2022 however this has now been scrapped and the original offer is BACK The coffee in the machines is from the cafe Nero roasting company! ☕️ #waitrose
But Waitrose has now installed this new 'circular' system in nine of its UK stores last week.
The trial was first spotted in the Newark store by founder of the Meals Collective, Olly Pinder, The Grocer reports.
What is the new Waitrose loyalty perk 'Borrow a Free Cup'?
Advertised in shops as 'Borrow a Free Cup', the new loyalty scheme trial works by customers accessing a cup from a dispenser by tapping their card.
Once released, they can fill the cup with a hot drink of their choice, just as they normally would.
How many cups of tea/coffee should you drink a day?
However, MyWaitrose members will then have seven days to return the cup to a designated point in store or face a £3 charge, as explained by The Grocer.
It's thought the trial will run for the next few months.
A Waitrose spokesperson told Newsquest: 'We're currently conducting a reusable cup trial in nine of our branches – it kicked off this week and is available for MyWaitrose members to use when redeeming their free coffee, or for our café customers to use if purchasing one.'
Recommended reading:
Waitrose launches own-label viral pistachio chocolate bar
Towards the end of last month, Waitrose launched its own-label pistachio chocolate bar following the recent viral Dubai chocolate craze - the No.1 White Chocolate & Pistachio Nuts with Sea Salt bar.
The supermarket has added pistachio paste to the white chocolate, making it pistachio green in colour.
Additionally, the bar is also laced with chopped pistachios for a more 'authentic' pistachio flavour and 'delicious' crunch, with no katif pastry in sight.
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