Waitrose makes major change in stores as customers given freebie
The supermarket chain has confirmed a change that is taking place from January.
Waitrose is making a major change in stores by bringing back its free tea and coffee for loyalty card customers - even if they don’t buy anything.
Under previous rules, the supermarket required myWaitrose members to buy something before they could claim their free drink - but this has changed as of January 27.
Now, all customers signed up to its loyalty scheme can enjoy a free hot drink without having to make a purchase in stores.
Waitrose first began offering free teas and coffees without a purchase in 2013 but later clamped down on the scheme in 2017, requiring loyalty card members to make a purchase to get the freebie.
When the scheme began it made the supermarket the second-largest provider of coffee in the UK, sparking concerns about its effect on smaller, independent coffee shops.
A complaint by the Gelateria Gazzeria - a cafe 20 yards from the Waitrose in Buckingham - was filed later that year with the Office of Fair Trading, but the regulator said it wouldn’t be taking any action.
A year later, then shadow communities minister Andy Sawford claimed it would “further destroy the British high street”.
Waitrose dismissed the claim as “nonsense” but it changed its policy following long queues and complaints from regular shoppers who claimed that it was attracting freeloaders rather than genuine customers.
This saw the free hot drinks limited only to loyal customers and soon after, in 2018, the supermarket stopped providing disposable cups, instead requiring customers to bring in their own reusable ones. This rule is still in place but changes this month mean shoppers don’t have to buy anything to get their free drink.
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In an email to customers informing them of the change from January 27, Waitrose said: “You’ll be able to get your free hot drink without buying anything in store first. Don’t forget your reusable cup!”
The change comes after its market share was overtaken by Marks & Spencer for the first time outside Christmas trading.
Analysts Kantar reported that M&S won a 4.03% share of the grocery market for the four weeks to November 3, compared with 3.76% a year earlier.
Waitrose’s share, by comparison, dropped to 3.91%, down from 4.02% in the same period in 2023.
