Starbucks Adding Prepaid To Boost Loyalty

Starbucks isn’t quite done tinkering with its rewards program.

Following the news last month that the coffee giant will, beginning in April, revamp its loyalty program so that it rewards customers with “stars” (AKA points) based on dollar amount spent rather than per transaction (a change that was met with a mixed response from consumers), The New York Times reports that Starbucks is also going to offer a prepaid card that will provide customers with another way to earn stars.

The outlet notes that the Starbucks prepaid card — which is set to be released by the end of the year, offered through Chase and available for use wherever Visa is accepted — is the beverage retailer’s latest move to drive interest in its reconfigured rewards program, having recently announced deals with Spotify, Lyft and The New York Times itself, whereby it would sell its stars to those companies, which, in turn, would offer them as incentives to their respective customers.

While Starbucks has not yet announced what the specific rate of rewards will be on the prepaid card, the company’s COO, Kevin Johnson, did tell NYT that it would not be the same one at which customers currently earn stars for purchases made at Starbucks locations.

A representative for Chase, meanwhile, shared with the outlet that there will not be monthly service or reloading fees associated with the Starbucks prepaid card. The three fees that will be applied are for rush card replacements ($5.00), foreign transactions (at a rate of 3 percent) and — in the event that Chase is required to hold or pay out funds from a cardholder’s account due to a legal action — a legal processing fee of $75.00.