Most cafes have their own cool promotions to keep customers coming back, and Starbucks is no different with its starry reward program. In Korea, the current program lets you earn a star for every visit when you spend a certain amount. Collect 12 stars, and voilà, a free drink is yours! 🌟
In the U.S., Starbucks initially ran their reward program similarly to Korea’s current style—with slight differences—until 2016. That’s when they suddenly shifted to a ‘spend more, earn more stars’ model. The old system had a playful charm, like grabbing a free Peppermint Mocha after a morning Americano. But the new one? It felt like a stubborn old professor’s math formula—clear but not so fun.
Back in 2016, Howard Schultz (then Starbucks chairman) might have seen someone using their stars for a free Venti Frappuccino after sipping daily coffee and thought,
Does it make sense to drink regular coffee and then snag a free Venti Frappuccino?!
Even if that’s not exactly what happened, the policy change definitely showed someone cared! I came back to Korea, so I’m not sure how it’s going now in the U.S., but thankfully, Korea still keeps the old style. 🙌
Of course, this is just my solo perspective. If you’re always with a crew, you might prefer getting stars proportional to your spending. But hey, it’s impossible to please everyone, and realizing that makes things a bit easier to handle. 💭
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