Exclusive: Pret A Manger to launch ‘Pret Perks’ loyalty scheme in the UK

Pret A Manger is preparing to launch a UK-wide loyalty scheme called ‘Pret Perks’, we can exclusively reveal.

Information is scant so far. It will be based on traditional coffee shop schemes, with customers earning one ‘star’ for every purchase. The slogan is ‘The more you Pret, the more you get’.

Stars can be redeemed for ‘perks’. You will require 10 stars to receive a free product – it isn’t clear what products are included.

It appears that Pret Perks will initially only be available to iPhone users, with the app behind the scheme only being offered through the App Store. You will get one free star for signing up. You need to scan the QR code from the app to collect your ‘stars’.

You will NOT earn ‘stars’ when claiming a free coffee from your subscription unless something else is bought at the same time. All Pret coffee subscribers will receive a nominal one star per month as part of their subscription.

One attempt at gaming the system is already blocked in the rules. Any purchases made in quick succession will be amalgamated together, so you cannot buy a coffee and a sandwich in two transactions and earn two ‘stars’.

Once you have hit 10 ‘stars’, you will have 30 days to claim your free product. Your free gift will expire at this point.

Whilst I will certainly do well out of this scheme – my wife and I probably do 15 Pret visits per week between us, and we would share an account – it seems a bit of a shame in some ways. Pret has always stood aloof from loyalty schemes on the basis that, like Four Seasons or Mandarin Oriental hotels, it didn’t need gimmicks like Pret Perks because the quality of its products was so high.

There is no additional information available at present. The website here is not active and the ‘Pret Perks’ app is not yet loaded into the App Store. It’s also possible that it will use an updated version of the existing Pret app.

More as we get it, since this scheme will clearly be as popular as Avios for our London-based readers ……