Overheard a guy saying loyalty cards are a scam at my local shop

I was sitting near the counter at Blue Bottle in Brooklyn last Tuesday and this older guy told the barista his punch card was a waste of time. He said it forces you to keep coming back even when the coffee is just okay, like a trap or something. It got me thinking about how I've bought 12 lattes there this month just to get the 13th free, even when I wanted to try somewhere else. Now I'm wondering if I'm just chasing a free drink instead of actually enjoying the coffee. Has anyone else ever felt weird about those loyalty programs?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_kim1mo agoTop Commenter

Truthfully I used to be all about loyalty cards and thought they were a good deal. But after reading this it makes me realize how much of my coffee habit is just about filling the card instead of actually enjoying what I'm drinking. Last month I went to this place I didn't even like that much just because I was two stamps away from a free one. It's kind of wild how these programs trick you into staying loyal to something that's just okay. I guess the real scam is that you end up spending more money than you would have without the card.

seanjackson1mo ago

Dude fr. It's like the card owns you instead of the other way around.