Pret A Manger is ditching its “too good to be true” free drinks perk and food discount for subscribers, with analysts suggesting the chain needs to “rethink its strategy”.
The Club Pret subscription benefits will end in September, the coffee chain said in a statement, as it looks to provide “better value for everyone”.
Under the changes, subscribers will no longer receive five free barista made drinks per day. Instead, they will be able to redeem 50 per cent off on up to five barista made drinks a day for a reduced monthly free of £10, which will be just £5 for existing and new subscribers until 31 March, 2025.
Clare Clough, Pret’s managing director, said: “It’s almost four years since we introduced our coffee subscription at the height of the pandemic, and I’m proud of the role Club Pret has played for us and our customers since.
“It was an innovative way to reconnect with our loyal customers and introduce Pret to tens of thousands of new ones, bringing customers back into our shops with an offer that almost seemed ‘too good to be true’.
“Four years and over a quarter of a billion coffees later, we have decided that it’s time to rethink how it works.”
It was one of the most popular subscription services with thousands of people signing up.
The changes mean the 20 per cent discount on food will be removed and dual pricing will be scrapped across its food products.
Analysts said the increase of prices has turned consumers away.
Dougie Hastings, director of strategy at Yonder Consulting, said: “Pret dominated the office-worker lunch market for many years, but struggled with the sudden barrenness of London during the Covid-19 pandemic despite the introduction of its subscription offering and mobile app.
“As a result of this, and a cost of living squeeze, prices at the chain have increased significantly over the past few years, pushing some consumers to more affordable competitors.
“But while the prices increased, the quality didn’t.”
He added that now it is much like the rest of the market.
“It’s hard to tell what Pret offers that is so different from the rest of the market now. It’s neither high-end nor affordable and it doesn’t have the allure of local, independent coffee spots.
“Pret needs a full rethink of its strategy – either upping the in-store experience or reducing its costs. Its recent move to crackdown on customers sharing their Club Pret subscription may bring them some added income in the short term, but at the end of the day, major strategy changes are required.”
Ryta Zasiekina, Founder of Fintech Company CONCRYT, added: “For subscription-style loyalty programmes to work, consumers must feel like they are getting value from them.
“Changing that model after a long period can have the opposite effect, rather than making consumers feel like they’re getting a good deal, it can make them feel cheated.
“Companies operating subscriptions must ensure that customers are able to use alternative payment methods to collect payments, as one of the most common reasons for transactions failing – and damaging the customer experience – is expired card details. Anything companies can do to improve the customer payment journey will deepen customer loyalty and bolster revenues.”
Ms Clough, of Pret, said: “We know this is a change. But with Club Pret subscription, our coffees, teas, Coolers and iced drinks will continue to be the best offer on the high street, and at a much more accessible price than the £360 a year people have to pay for the current scheme.
It comes after some customers abandoned their subscriptions saying they were “no longer worth it”.
Others complained the deal could not be used in service stations or abroad.
One coffee lover wrote on X (formerly Twitter) this morning: “@Pret Your new coffee subscription changes are laughable. What started off good, progressively got more expensive. Subscription going from £15 to £20 to £30. Food prices in shops rising weeks before introducing 20 per cent off so in reality there isn’t any real saving. And now this.”
Ms Clough said the discount on food was “something we never really got comfortable with”.
It comes on the same day that Pret lowered the price of its signature 100 per cent organic Arabica filter coffee to 99p – a price it previously held for over a decade.
Its all butter croissant will also drop to £1.99, following price reductions made to some of its other best-selling products, including its free-range egg mayo sandwich and pole and line caught tuna baguette.