A couple of days ago Starbucks announced that they are changing the rewards members benefits for people with registered Starbucks cards on October 16, 2012. They claim to be “improving” the benefits system, but they are no longer going to offer complementary soy milk and flavour shots for members. They are also removing the free tall beverage when you purchase a pound of coffee perk.
Instead the new program will allow you to get a free drink with every 12 drinks purchased instead of 15 and you can use your free drink vouchers for food as well. Getting a free drink with 12 purchases is a minimal improvement and if you are someone who gets soy milk and flavour shots, the increase cost of your drinks outweighs the new benefits.
I personally am very upset by this news because I am a loyal gold member and I am lactose intolerant and cannot drink milk. The free soy milk was the reason I signed up for the card and the reason I come to Starbucks. If you are already paying $5 for a drink, I don’t see why people with dietary restrictions should have to pay even more at a premium coffee shop that encourages customized drinks.
If you are upset by this I encourage you to contact Starbucks and tell them about how you are unhappy with the new system. You can submit suggestions to their website, contact them on Facebook or Twitter, or call them at 1-800-STARBUC. There is also a petition circulating online to bring back the old benefits. I personally won’t be giving Starbucks my money anymore and I’m going to support other coffee shops instead.
Photo Credit: David Faragalli
Just another reason to not give Starbucks your hard earned dollars.
It is a shame…the free soy was the whole reason I joined the program in the first place! I loyally sought them out to keep my status, but now it’s just disappointing. I have no more reason to go there once this ‘improvement’ takes effect.
And to think, they will be finished building one in my own town in just a few weeks…and I used to be excited about that. :/
This is disappointing! For some reason, the $0.50 difference between a grande latte without flavour ($4.31) and a grande latte with flavour ($4.87) is the breaking point for me in buying a coffee. Guess I’ll just be brewing my own drinks at home…my waistline will thank me!