The Pret Coffee Subscription launched in 2020 and was the first of its kind in the UK, offering customers up to five barista-prepared drinks every day for a monthly fee. This included any milk or milk alternative plus one extra add-on, such as syrups.
After finding success in the UK market, it was launched in the US in September 2021 and France in a month later.
In addition to offering great value to customers, Pret banked on subscribers buying food at the same time as redeeming drinks on their subscription. The impact of the subscription was clear, as subscribers in the UK typically spent up to four times more at Pret than those without subscriptions.
In fact, Pret discovered that croissants and bakery items were the most popular things bought by people using their coffee subscription. Coffee loving subscribers are also able to calculate their weekly, monthly and yearly minimum savings from the subscription by using a bespoke Coffee Subscription Savings Calculator.
In April 2023, Pret announced it would be expanding the Pret Coffee Subscription in the UK to cover all its freshly-made food, snacks and drinks, to reward its most loyal customers. Pret has now rebranded its Coffee Subscription to become Club Pret. Club Pret is now used 1.25m times per week (up 11% year-on-year) in the UK.
The subscription has also helped Pret attract and retain its most loyal customers, with subscribers reportedly transacting with Pret 28 times per month on average, compared with just two times per month for non-subscribers.
Subscribers of Club Pret have access to a 10% discount on all Pret food, drinks and snacks sold in shop, for £30 per month as well as up to five barista-prepared drinks per day, with any additional drinks benefiting from the 10% discount. This includes Pret’s full range of 100% organic and Arabica coffees, teas, hot chocolates, and iced drinks. Shoppers are able to use the 10% off discount any time they visit the stores and there are no limits to how many times they are able to use the discount per day or per billing cycle.
A new range of Pret Coolers, replacing Pret’s frappes and smoothies, will also form part of Club Pret, with Pret’s full range of iced drinks now available in 90% of shops, following a significant investment in ice machines.
This profile first appeared in the SubX Subscription 2023 report, the first report to look at how consumer engagement in pre-paid models has opened new innovation. For example, the concepts of privileged access and advance purchase are finding new forms in the metaverse with exclusive launches, releases and drops of NFTs (digital assets) and physical products.
Now, more than 40% of subscription plans unlock additional retailer-specific perks. We will map and analyse the emerging subscriptions-enabled business models and consumers’ changing ideas of ownership, based on the latest sector and market information.
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