Changes To Starbucks Rewards

USPA NEWS - Changes to the Starbucks Rewards Program that took effect on Monday means customers now need to spend twice the amount of money to get free items. Under the old program structure 50 stars were required for a free brewed coffee or tea, but will now require 100 stars.

A Starbucks Rewards member earns stars when they make purchases. If they use a Starbucks Card, one dollar spent equal two stars. For credit card or other payment methods, members earn one star per dollar.

On Friday February 10th, a spokesperson for Starbucks Canada, Leanne Rizzi released the following media statement, “To ensure the long-term sustainability of the Starbucks Rewards program and to meet the changing needs of our members, we occasionally need to make changes to the program. She went on to say, “And while some items may require additional stars to redeem, other popular items like iced coffee and packaged coffee will need less stars to redeem and be easier for members to be rewarded. For example, if you’re looking for packaged coffee, you will actually save under the new rewards structure. Packaged coffee up until now would require 400 stars, but has now dropped down to 300 stars under the new system."

There are still some great perks that are exclusive to Reward Members. These include receiving a free drink or baked good on their birthday. Members can also enjoy a free refill of hot/iced brewed coffee or tea during in café visits throughout the year.

Since the announcement advising of the changes to the Starbuck Rewards program, I have visited several different Starbucks locations in my area and asked customers for opinions on the topic. Some advised that they had not heard anything about the changes, others said it didn't affect them as they were not Rewards members, and many members were not happy with the changes saying they felt it was a money grab. I even spoke to a Starbucks employee who said, "the changes were not designed to benefit the customer." It is interesting to note that despite the negative feedback, no one said that they planned to drop Starbucks from their daily routine.

For more details on the perks and benefits of the Starbucks Rewards program visit:
https://www.starbucks.ca/rewards