Whittard of Chelsea, founded by Walter Whittard in 1886, quickly became known for its exceptional products. Guided by Walter’s principle of “buy the best,” the British heritage company – specializing in premium beverages, including tea, coffee, and hot chocolate – quickly gained widespread popularity. Whittard is now combining this prestigious history and long-term experience with modern customer engagement strategies in its Whittard Rewards loyalty program.
Empowered by Antavo’s innovative loyalty engine, including our first-class, API-centric Mobile Wallet solution, Whittard created a powerful omnichannel loyalty program, seamlessly engaging customers both online and in-store.
Ready to follow in Whittard’s footsteps by creating a truly well-thought-out loyalty program? Make sure to get the basics right with our practical and user-friendly Loyalty Program Concept Worksheet!
The Story Behind Whittard Rewards
Whittard’s loyalty program, Whittard Rewards, was developed with simplicity at its core. The name itself was chosen by the company’s staff through a poll, ensuring the branding felt familiar and relatable to customers. The loyalty program follows a straightforward earn-and-burn model, where customers accumulate points with purchases (for every £1 customers spend, they earn 1 point), and redeem them for rewards (every 1 point is worth £0.02).
However, the real innovation lies in its support for non-transactional engagement. After surveying its competitors during an extensive market research period, Whittard realized the opportunity to differentiate by rewarding behaviors such as referring friends and writing product reviews.
This non-transactional reward system not only enhances engagement (and pairs well with the program’s transactional side) but also deepens customer relationships in a way few competitors have attempted. In order to make this concept work, Whittard needed a loyalty engine powerful enough to support its next-level ideas, including a Wallet solution that ties back to wanting to provide a simple, user-friendly, and enjoyable experience to its customers.
The Whittard Rewards Loyalty Program in a Nutshell
A truly outstanding differentiator for Whittard has been the brand’s commitment to offering a loyalty experience as smooth as possible, both in-store and online, by introducing the Whittard Rewards Pass and allowing retroactive point claiming.
In physical stores, QR codes placed around the point of sale allow customers to easily join the program while waiting in line. Staff are trained to introduce the program during transactions, but crucially, a Digital Wallet Pass simplifies the process. Instead of requiring staff to capture email addresses—a difficult task in busy stores or with international visitors—the Wallet Pass lets customers identify themselves instantly by scanning their phone.
It displays:
- The customer’s name,
- Their points balance,
- Creating a frictionless and personalized in-store experience.
The Rewards Pass – empowered by Antavo’s built-in Mobile Wallet module and editor – enables the brand to build a real connection and stay in constant contact with its customers, keeping shoppers up-to-date on their membership progress, and Whittard’s current offerings with notifications.
Moreover, Antavo’s Mobile Wallet module offers the perfect solution for the company’s goal of data capturing, which has been a cornerstone of the Whittard Rewards omnichannel strategy. By capturing valuable data both online and in-store, Whittard can design more relevant experiences, supporting customer loyalty and satisfaction, fostering a personal, emotionally connected relationship between customers and the brand.
Our ultimate objective is to understand our customers better, so we can offer them hyper-personalized offerings. The more we know, the more customized we can be — offering the right product at the right time, at the right price. Customers now want a personal relationship with the brand, and that’s exactly where we’re heading.
Another USP, and immediate favorite feature among the brand’s clientele, is the way Whittard enables customers who purchase but don’t sign up immediately to retroactively claim points within 30 days by submitting their transaction ID—a feature that proved extremely popular during the launch phase.
Antavo’s Technology Behind The Whittard Rewards Loyalty Program
The early results from Whittard Rewards have been very encouraging. Within just the first month of the hard launch:
- Whittard achieved 25% of its annual target for loyalty member acquisition.
- Initial performance metrics show a positive influence on customer behavior.
- Specifically, the free product incentive for a second purchase has helped move customers from one-time transactions to repeat purchases—a critical shift in loyalty marketing.
- Increases in both units per transaction (UPT) and average order value (AOV) suggest that the loyalty program is beginning to drive higher engagement and spend, aligning with the company’s strategic goals.
Antavo comes across as an innovative, flexible, technical product. When I was shopping around for loyalty providers, Antavo really stood out — not just because of the technology, but because of the support. Other providers were more like ‘self-service,’ but Antavo had a dedicated team to help bring our proposition to life.
Conclusion
The Whittard Rewards loyalty program – powered by Antavo – is all about creating a streamlined, simple, yet very much refined and personalized experience for Whittard customers. Supported by Antavo’s powerful loyalty engine, the program is already (even just a few months after the initial launch) activating and engaging customers like never before, bringing with it a powerful connection that will last the test of time.
Ready to launch a winning concept, or to take your existing loyalty program to the next level? Get in touch with our experts by booking a demo to see our platform’s capabilities or sending us an RFP.
Make sure to download our worksheet on concept building, and kickstart your brainstorming the right way!
Zsuzsanna is a Loyalty Specialist with years of experience in digital marketing and e-commerce. Zsuzsanna is known for having an analytic approach and high-level communication skills, helping her deliver engaging content. In her free time, she enjoys watching Formula 1 and listening to endless Taylor Swift playlists.
