Boots cut loyalty card points as retail shifts to ‘instant’ discounts

Boots

Caoimhe Gordon

March 14 2023 02:26 PM

Boots will cut the number of points earned per euro spent in a shakeup of its Advantage Card loyalty scheme.

From May, Irish holders of the Advantage Card will earn 3c worth of points for every €1 spent at Boots, down from 4c currently.

The decision from Boots follows a challenging period for the industry as retailers battle rising costs, including soaring energy bills and increases in staff pay.

In an email to customers, Boots said customers will keep the number of points already collected. These points will also retain their current value following the changes in May.

The retailer said it will also expand its Price Advantage offering, a range where loyalty card holders benefit from lower prices.

This range is set to rise to more than 1,000 items from around 400 currently on offer for Irish shoppers.

On its website, Boots Ireland said that the changes were driven by customers who said they would prefer more instant savings when shopping at Boots.

The retailer has introduced the same changes in the UK, with Advantage Card members there also set to receive an extra 10pc off own-brand products.

First launched in 1997, Boots’ loyalty card scheme has 17 million active members across Ireland and the UK.

Boots is now the latest retailer to make changes to its loyalty programme in recent years.

Last year, SuperValu scrapped the collection of points from its Real Rewards programme, offering a money-off voucher for members each week instead.

Tesco also introduced Clubcard Prices in 2019, reducing the costs of certain items for members of the programme. The Clubcard scheme has around 1 million members in Ireland, with customers also earning 1 point for every €1 spent in-store or online.