LONDON (Reuters) – British sandwich and coffee chain Pret A Manger said on Thursday a subscription service it dubbed “too good to be true”, offering up to five barista-prepared drinks per day, will be scrapped in September.
The retailer, commonly referred to as Pret, launched the drinks subscription service in September 2020, trying out a new business model to get it through the COVID-19 pandemic which hammered its sales.
It initially charged 20 pounds ($26) a month. It currently charges 30 pounds a month and also offers a 20% reduction on all other items.
From September, “Club Pret” subscribers will instead get 50% off up to five barista-made drinks a day for 5 pounds a month until March 31, 2025 and 10 pounds a month thereafter. The 20% reduction on other items will also be scrapped.
“Four years and over a quarter of a billion coffees later, we have decided that it’s time to rethink how it works,” said Clare Clough, Pret’s UK and Ireland managing director.
She said Pret “never really got comfortable with” dual pricing across its food products.
In 2021, Pret, owned by investment firm JAB and founder Sinclair Beecham, set out a plan to double the size of its business by 2026. It currently trades from over 650 shops in 18 markets.
($1 = 0.7702 pounds)
(Reporting by James Davey; Editing by Susan Fenton)
