Latest news with #StarbucksRewards
Business Insider
5 days ago
- Business
- Business Insider
Starbucks' latest change could mean you'll acquire rewards points more slowly if you order one drink each visit
Starbucks ' latest change could affect loyalty program members who bring their own cup for baristas to fill. Starting June 24, the coffee chain will scrap its bonus for customers who bring their personal, reusable cup to stores. Currently, Starbucks Rewards members get 25 stars for bringing their own cup. Instead, Rewards members who use their own cup will earn double the stars on their entire order. At its most basic Rewards tier, Starbucks Rewards members get one star for every dollar that they spend before sales tax. Members can redeem stars for free food and beverages. A Starbucks spokesperson confirmed the planned change to Business Insider. The spokesperson confirmed that the company will continue to offer a $0.10 discount as well when customers bring in their reusable cups. The change means that Starbucks customers who tend to order a single drink when they stop by could earn rewards more slowly under the change. Under the current system, a beverage that normally earns nine stars would earn an extra 25 if a customer brings in their own cup for a total of 34, for example. With the change, the same order would earn 18 stars. On a Reddit page devoted to Starbucks, one poster said that they were accustomed to getting the bonus on their regular coffee run. "Honestly the 25 stars is what keeps me going back daily," the post reads. "I love saving my stars for when I go on vacation." Customers who order sandwiches or other food items, which tend to cost more than beverages and thus earn more stars, could earn rewards more quickly with the change, meanwhile. It's the latest change that Starbucks has made in the last several months. Since Brian Niccol became CEO in September, Starbucks has made numerous changes at its cafes. The chain has trimmed its menu options, added shifts at some stores, and now asks baristas to leave customers handwritten messages on single-use cups. Starbucks offers incentives for customers to bring their own reusable cups, including the 25-star bonus and the $0.10 discount, in an effort to cut down on single-use plastics and paper cups. The chain extended the incentives to drive-thru and mobile orders in 2024.
Miami Herald
6 days ago
- Business
- Miami Herald
Starbucks makes major change in rewards program loyal fans will hate
True Starbucks fans may remember when the coffee chain had its old brown and white double-tailed mermaid logo and the wooden checkout counter. Those who have been loyal Starbucks fans since the inception of its Rewards Program in 2008 may also reminisce about how easy it used to be to accumulate rewards points and get free drinks regularly. Don't miss the move: Subscribe to TheStreet's free daily newsletter Since taking over as Starbucks' CEO, Brian Niccol has emphasized the need to bring the company back to its roots by focusing on its core products and personalizing the coffee shop experience like it once did, which sounded like music to many loyal fans' ears. Related: Starbucks faces huge new rival Over the last few months, Starbucks (SBUX) has implemented multiple in-store, hospitality, operational, and internal changes to bring back customers and increase sales. However, the company recently announced a major change that some loyalty members may not be as happy about. Image source: Getty Images The Starbucks Rewards Program took a massive turn for the first time in 2023 when Starbucks made one of the most significant adjustments by increasing the number of stars needed to redeem free drinks. Although this change almost seemed like a test of its fans' loyalty, despite them remaining true to the brand for years, many savvy rewards members found ways to accumulate more stars per purchase made. Related: Starbucks CEO makes major announcement in turnaround strategy Starbucks Rewards Members earn one star for every dollar spent when paying with a personal credit/debit card or cash, and scanning the QR code on the app, no matter the menu item or merchandise product. However, if you purchase a gift card and reload it or use the Starbucks Gold Card, which only the top loyalty members know about, the number of stars doubles per dollar spent. Another way members could maximize their stars was by bringing in a reusable cup so baristas could fill it up with the desired purchased beverage. This would gain members 25 stars and 10 cents off the entire order. After nearly two years of finding new strategies and loopholes to obtain more stars, Starbucks seems to have caught up to its rewards members' tricks. Beginning June 24, members bringing in their reusable cups will receive double the stars on their entire order per dollar spent, as stated in an email by Starbucks to all rewards members. Although this may sound like a far better deal than the previous 25 stars per order, it's the complete opposite for those who only purchase a beverage during every visit. To make up for the previous number of stars earned, members would have to spend at least $12.50 per order, making it impossible to obtain 25 stars if only ordering a single beverage. More Retail News: Taco Bell launches spicy new menu item featuring a hot partnerForget Starbucks, these coffee chains are stealing consumersStarbucks CEO sends strong message about customers, stock drops This new policy is a brilliant way for Starbucks to encourage its loyal fans to purchase more items in exchange for more stars. However, it also means more money spent per visit, straining loyal customers' finances. Nonetheless, there is a bright side to this new change. Members who usually spend at least $12.50 per visit will still earn the same number of stars as before, and if they bring multiple reusable cups, the number of stars earned will increase. Related: Veteran fund manager unveils eye-popping S&P 500 forecast The Arena Media Brands, LLC THESTREET is a registered trademark of TheStreet, Inc.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
How Starbucks' CTO balances tech investments that can make work easier for baristas without losing the human touch
A key pillar of the turnaround plan at Starbucks that's being spearheaded by CEO Brian Niccol is to focus more on human connection between employees and customers and put less emphasis on technology. So what does that mean for Chief Technology Officer Deb Hall Lefevre? 'The technology story here at Starbucks—guess what?—the star of the story is not technology,' says Lefevre. 'It's human connection in our coffee houses.' Technology, she says, will continue to be weaved throughout Starbucks' strategy, ranging from in-store automation investments to newer technologies like generative artificial intelligence. But technology is now intended to work more quietly in the background. That's a reframing of thinking at Starbucks, which was an early adopter and fast mover in mobile, a technological advancement that the restaurant chain mastered by courting 34 million active Starbucks Rewards loyalty members using its app in the U.S. alone. During a 16-year career at rival McDonald's, where Lefevre held various leadership roles including serving as chief information officer of the U.S. business, she kept a close eye on her rival's technological prowess. 'I often envied the tech that I was seeing, from a consumer perspective, at Starbucks,' says Lefevre. 'They were the benchmark for all of us in the industry.' Starbucks had perhaps too much success on mobile and lost its way a bit with how the physical stores were being managed. Frequently heralded as a much-desired 'third place,' a space to convene between work and home, some critics lamented the stores had become too impersonal. Investments tilted toward the mobile experience, even leading Starbucks to open minimalist stores that were pick-up only locations for takeout orders. This led to some dissatisfaction as the guest experience felt more impersonal. Mobile orders were so popular they would pile up and result in long wait times, discouraging both in-person and even online shoppers. Niccol was recruited last year from Chipotle Mexican Grill to get the coffee giant back on track, a turnaround that's still a work in progress—Starbucks recently reported a fifth consecutive quarterly decline in U.S. comparable store sales. Some early changes are operational, including simplifying the menu and launching fewer limited edition items. Others are intended to make the chain's coffee shops feel more personal, like bringing back handwritten names and notes after using printed stickers for a time. That's one example of Starbucks ceding efficiency gains from technology in favor of warmer hospitality. Niccol and Lefevre are encouraged by a recent pilot last quarter in 700 locations where Starbucks increased its investment in staffing and adjusted the sequencing algorithm for orders, which helped reduce wait times for in-cafe and drive-thru customers without hurting those buying via mobile. Starbucks says that on average, wait times dropped by two minutes, bringing 75% of cafe order wait times to under four minutes at peak demand. Lefevre, who joined Starbucks in 2022, says these adjustments can give Starbucks' baristas more time to create a 'moment of connection' with customers. Other more subtle technology investments include the 200,000 connected devices Starbucks has deployed to 10,000 company-operated stores, one of the largest Internet of Things (IoT) rollouts in the quick-service restaurant sector, according to Lefevre. Digital menu boards will be rolled out across U.S.-company owned and operated stores over the next 18 months, which can be updated and monitored remotely, saving time for staff in the stores. Sensors are able to measure and monitor the thickness of coffee that's being ground on site and improve the operational efficiency of refrigerators and freezers. Starbucks has also made tweaks to improve the mobile experience, including sharing even more precise estimates for wait times for when an order is ready. Another update that will roll out this summer is around price transparency, more clearly explaining how each modification that a customer makes to customize a drink will affect the final price. Lefevre's AI investments include some of the basics, like offering Microsoft Copilot to assist customer support employees and corporate employees. Starbucks has also unveiled a digital tool to improve scheduling for baristas. The new feature gives employees a wider pool of stores across a district to swap shifts, resulting in half a million more shifts filled in the most recent fiscal second quarter ending March 30 from the prior-year period. 'It's a win for our customers because they're walking into fully staffed stores,' says Lefevre. Lefevre imagines that future use cases for AI and other emerging technologies could range from generative AI being used to speed up the in-store training experience, to using augmented reality to help baristas track inventory, and even a customer-facing virtual 'AI barista' that could help customers select their order. 'It's a world of possibilities across the board, from store design to supply chain,' says Lefevre. 'There's just so many things that we're thinking about, day in and day out.' John Kell Send thoughts or suggestions to CIO Intelligence here. This story was originally featured on Sign in to access your portfolio
USA Today
07-05-2025
- Business
- USA Today
Starbucks is giving away free cold foam this week: How to redeem the offer
Starbucks is giving away free cold foam this week: How to redeem the offer Show Caption Hide Caption Starbucks updates dress code to highlight green apron Starbucks is rolling out a new dress code for baristas to enhance the visibility of the brand's signature green apron and create a more unified look. unbranded - Newsworthy If you're a Starbucks fan and were looking to try the company's cold foam, you can do so for free this week. The coffee chain announced Starbucks Rewards members in the U.S. and Canada can add cold foam to a cold beverage for free May 7-11. The company is also introducing its new Brown Sugar Cream Cold Foam, which offers a "light and silky texture with a caramel-like sweetness," according to Starbucks. The coffee maker recommends pairing it with a Cold Brew, Iced Chai or Iced Flat White. Starbucks offers a variety of cold foam flavors, including Chocolate Cream Cold Foam, Vanilla Sweet Cream Cold Foam and Salted Caramel Cream Cold Foam, among others. For customers looking to try the limited time spring flavors, Starbucks says it recommends the Lavender Cream Cold Foam with an Iced Chai Latte or a Cherry Cream Cold Foam with an Iced Matcha Latte. Customers can redeem the offer by ordering a cold beverage in the Starbucks app and applying the coupon or by letting the barista know you'd like to apply the offer when ordering in a participating cafe or drive-thru. If you're not a Starbucks Rewards member and want to redeem the offer, you can sign up for Starbucks Rewards by downloading the Starbucks app and creating an account. Customers can also join at Gabe Hauari is a national trending news reporter at USA TODAY. You can follow him on X @GabeHauari or email him at Gdhauari@
06-05-2025
- Business
Starbucks offers free cold foam for a limited time, unveils new flavor
Starbucks has a sweet surprise for cold foam fans. From Wednesday, May 7, through Sunday, May 11, Starbucks Rewards members can enjoy cold foam on any cold drink for free for the coffee chain's Cold Foam Days, according to a press release on the company's website. The promotion applies to beverages customized with any variety of cold foam. Adding to the excitement, Starbucks is launching a new cold foam flavor: Brown Sugar Cream Cold Foam. Described as having a "light and silky texture with a caramel-like sweetness," the new topping pairs especially well with Cold Brew, Iced Chai or an Iced Flat White, the company said. Starbucks also encouraged customers to use the free Cold Foam Days to explore new drink combinations. "For example, try the Vanilla Cream Cold Foam with an Iced Matcha Latte or Salted Caramel Cream Cold Foam with an Iced Caffe Latte," the press release stated. "If you're interested in trying the limited time spring flavors, we recommend the Lavender Cream Cold Foam with an Iced Chai Latte or a Cherry Cream Cold Foam with an Iced Matcha Latte." To redeem the offer, Rewards members can order through the Starbucks app and apply the coupon at checkout or simply ask their barista to apply the promotion when ordering in-store or at the drive-thru at participating locations. If you are not yet a member, you can join Starbucks Rewards by downloading the Starbucks app and creating an account, or by signing up at This limited-time offer follows the launch of Starbucks' spring menu earlier this year, which introduced a range of lavender-infused beverages, including the Iced Lavender Cream Oatmilk Matcha, Iced Lavender Oatmilk Latte and Lavender Crème Frappuccino.
