New initiative enables customers to give the gift of free coffee.
Since news of Pret A Manger’s “alternative loyalty programme” made headlines last April, delighted customers around the world have taken to social media to share their free coffee experiences.*
Today the company is launching a new initiative to “Make Someone Smile” and spread that joy even further.
As always, the fun begins with Pret’s baristas, who will be choosing 120,000 customers at random to put a special sleeve on their takeaway coffee cup.
The chosen customers are in turn encouraged to pass the sleeve onto somebody else – a friend, a colleague, or even a complete stranger – who can redeem it for a free coffee or tea.
Pret’s CEO, Clive Schlee, said, “We often get feedback from customers about how our shop teams have brightened up their day. Our teams love being able to make customers smile, and we hope the recipients of our special coffee sleeves enjoy being able to pass that joy onto somebody else themselves.”
London-based psychologist, Dr George Fieldman, has spent time researching altruism at Oxford and is interested in the effects of random acts of kindness. He isn’t surprised at how positively Pret customers react to receiving an unexpected free coffee.
Dr Fieldman explains, “Altruism – or the act of doing something for somebody else at a cost to yourself – has a fascinating effect on us. It can help us feel better about ourselves, and a simple act of kindness can create authentic feelings of joy; not just for the person on the receiving end, but also for the person doing the giving.”**
Lucky Pret customers have until the end of February to use their “Make Someone Smile” sleeve, and full details of the giveaways can be found here.
All that’s left to decide now is who you’d give your special coffee sleeve to?
