Pret axes ‘too good to be true’ coffee and food subscription

Pret A Manger has announced a major shake-up of its subscription scheme that will end its offer of “free drinks” for members.

The coffee chain launched its Club Pret offer four years ago in a bid to lure back customers after the coronavirus pandemic.

It currently offers five free hot or iced barista-made drinks a day and a 20% discount on food for members paying £30 a month.

But in an announcement on Thursday, Pret said the offer had seemed “too good to be true” and it was time to “rethink how it works”.

The current subscription scheme will end in September and be replaced by a “simpler” deal. Club Pret subscribers will instead get 50% off up to five barista-made drinks a day for a reduced monthly fee of £10, or £5 for new subscribers until 31 March 2025.

Pret will also axe the 20% discount on food, which its UK and Ireland managing director Clare Clough admitted the chain had “never really got comfortable with”.

“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,” said Clough.

She said that as the majority of Pret customers were not subscribers, it was focused on providing “better value for everyone”.

This will see Pret’s 100% organic Arabica Filter Coffee sold for 99p while its All Butter Croissant will drop in price to £1.99.

The move has faced backlash on social media, with one X user calling it a “bad business decision”.

Another wrote: “Without the subscription discount their food is horrifically overvalued. This program will now wither and most of us will feel free to shop around once more.”

Pret has seen a shake-up of its operations this year with co-founder Sinclair Beecham returning to the fold as part of a senior team reshuffle. The chain also closed the last of its once-hyped vegetarian-only stores and launched its first children’s menu in a bid to attract more families into its cafes.

Leon mounted a challenge to Pret in May by launching its own rival coffee subscription, offering users up to five barista-made drinks a day for £25 a month.

Pret launched in London in 1986 and operates nearly 700 shops worldwide.

Image: Shutterstock