MARKS and Spencer is making a major change to its loyalty scheme to rival Tesco and Sainsbury’s and shoppers will love it.
M&S shoppers who use 49 of the chain’s food halls will be able to get cheaper prices as long as they’re a Sparks members.
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The new initiative follows in the footsteps of a raft of the industry’s biggest names including Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Co-op which already offer loyalty card members cheaper prices.
The new Sparks perk is being trialled in dozens of shops across the UK in South Wales, the West Midlands and the North East of England.
At the moment, deals are being offered on a number of food lines including seasonal favourites such as Barbecue Heroes and Chicken Delux Family Dine In.
Those with a Sparks card who visit participating stores can grab a Barbecue Heroes meal deal for £10 instead of £12.
And the Delux Family Dine In offer is reduced to £13 – down from £15.
The trial will run for the next two weeks, according to the high street retailer.
A spokesperson for M&S said: “In 2020 we relaunched Sparks as a digital-first loyalty scheme and in three years have almost doubled the number of Sparks members to more than 16 million – rewarding them with personalised offers, special treats, and thankyou.
“We’re always innovating and trialling different ways to reward members including Sparks Day Out, 12 Days of Sparks and our recent trial, Sparks Delivery Pass.
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“The trials that are currently underway give every Sparks customer who shops with us at stores in these regions access to a lower price on some customer favourites.”
Tesco was the first major supermarket to offer members only pricing when it launched Clubcard prices back in 2019.
Sainsbury‘s then launched its own version of the scheme dubbed Nectar Prices.
The Co-op soon followed by promoting members’ price special deals.
How does the Sparks card compare to other loyalty schemes?
Asda Rewards, which launched last summer, gives shoppers money back when they buy “star products” or complete spending missions.
These offers are personalised, but typically a new customer might be offered £1 back for spending £75.
The money earned goes into your “Cashpot”, which can then be exchanged into a voucher in the app, to be redeemed at the till or by entering the code at the online checkout.
Tesco Clubcard members get one point for every £1 spent in-store and online or two litres on fuel from supermarket’s petrol stations.
Each point is worth 1p in Tesco, but they are currently worth three times the amount when you convert them into vouchers for Tesco’s partners. However, this is changing to double the amount in June.
Clubcard shoppers also get cheaper prices on over 8,000 products thanks to Clubcard Prices.
Sainsbury’s Nectar customers can use their card to collect points, either on a smartphone app, or with a physical card to collect and spend points.
You get a minimum of one point per £1 in stores and online at Sainsbury’s, plus bonus points are available on the Nectar app, via paper coupons at checkouts, or sent in the post.
You can also get one point for every litre of fuel at Sainsbury’s petrol stations. One point is worth 0.5p when shopping with the retailer.
Sainsbury’s recently launched “Nectar Prices”, which gives members discounts on over 300 items in-store and online.
Morrisons has also announced a big change to its loyalty scheme in recent weeks.
