By the end of 2022, 73% of South Africans were using reward schemes across dozens of retail stores – with favourites such as Pick n Pay Smart Shopper, Checkers Xtra Savings, Woolworths WRwards, and Spar Rewards among them.
This is according to BrandMapp’s latest South African Loyalty Landscape whitepaper, showing which loyalty programmes in the country are the most popular.
The report highlighted that South Africans now subscribe to 9.2 programmes on average – up from 3.6 in 2014.
The infographic below shows the top 25 most used reward schemes in South Africa, according to the report.
Amid the cost of living crisis plaguing the world – including South Africa – these rewards programmes are more attractive than ever, especially when you consider the current trend of food inflation in the country.
The latest CPI data from Stats SA (for January 2023) showed that food price inflation hit a 14-year high at 13.4%, despite headline inflation easing to 6.9% in the same month.
This resulted in all classes across South Africa spending more on groceries than ever before – especially the mass market, which is spending almost 50% more on groceries than they did in 2019.
Given this current trend, BusinessTech looked at the most popular loyalty programmes across the country’s most prominent food retailers and what they offer.
The loyalty schemes and their benefits for Woolworths, Pick n Pay, Checkers and Spar are outlined below.
Woolworths WRwards
It is free to sign up for a WRewards account, with shoppers able to access a number of discounts, deals and vouchers.
Woolworths said that it reviews its records daily, automatically upgrading customers as they qualify for a higher tier status.
Members get:
- Save up to 20% on selected items;
- Get an extra 5% off when paying with your Woolies card;
- Exclusive information about sales and special events;
- Exclusive vouchers throughout the year;
VIP members (spend more than R30,000 a year)
- Save up to 20% on selected items;
- Get an extra 5% off when paying with your Woolies card;
- Exclusive information about sales and special events;
- Exclusive vouchers throughout the year;
- Welcome-to-tier voucher;
- Birthday voucher.
In addition to in-store offerings, Woolworths also has a dedicated mobile app displaying deals for WReward members.
Pick n Pay Smart Shopper
It is also free to sign up for a Pick n Pay Smart Shopper account which customers can use to earn and spend points on a variety of deals.
Customers earn points when they swipe their Smart Shopper card at a Pick n Pay till point – earning 1 point for every R2 spent.
Pick n Pay allows users to spend these points on any item in-store, swap them out for other partner rewards and even donate them to charity.
Some of the partner rewards available through Smart Shopper include:
- Earn 10 Smart Shopper points per litre of fuel and BP’s nationwide, or use your points to fill up with your Smart Shopper card (must have more than R20 worth of points on your card);
- Earn up to 15,000 Smart Shopper points when you book a car rental through Europcar. The bigger the vehicle, the more points you earn;
- Switch R50 worth of Smart Shopper points for a R100 Intercape voucher;
- Earn 3X Smart Shopper points on LIFT when you book in-store;
- Switch R50 in Smart Shopper points for a R100 Netflorist voucher, and earn 5x points;
- Earn 1,000 points for signing up at a Planet Fitness of your choice. Members also get 100 Smart Shopper points per visit;
- Switch R40 worth of Smart Shopper points for a R50 Spur e-Gift voucher; and
- Switch R40 in Smart Shopper points for a 2D movie ticket valued at R84.
Checkers Xtra Savings
Signing up for the Checkers Xtra Savings card, which customers can use for a variety of deals is free.
Customers can sign up in-store via the Checkers website, the Xtra Savings Support Centre, or the Checkers WhatsApp channel.
Checkers loyalty programme allows you to save up to 25% on selected groceries instantly at the till by simply swiping. No points. No levels.
Other benefits include:
- Get Xtra cash savings instantly on your groceries.
- Swipe your Xtra Savings card, explore the SpinXWin feature on the Checkers app and stand to win instant prizes.
- The more you swipe, the better Checkers understands your habits, and it will share deals on products you love.
- VIP access to promotions, events and birthday surprises.
- Swipe for good to alleviate hunger in communities.
- Track your savings on every till slip.
- Get double your Green Rewards with reusable shopping bags – get R1 back every time you use a reusable shopping bag.
Spar Rewards
It is free to sign up for Spar Rewards, which customers can use for a variety of deals every month.
Customers can sign up in-store or Register an account on the SPAR Rewards website.
You can also use your cell number at the till if you don’t have your card on you, and you can browse your monthly deals via the Spar SA app.
Spar Rewards benefits include:
- 600 coupons when you first register
- Savings of up to R2,500 per month using the store’s monthly coupons.
- Any coupon that is available throughout the month will automatically be redeemed at the till if it relates to any of your shopping items.
- 1,000 Spar Rewards members win a full trolly of groceries for free at the end of every month.
Read: Why food prices are so high in South Africa right now
Artmotion S.Africa
