Loyalty schemes used for everything from paying for dates to buying vital meds
Millions of South Africans have come to depend heavily on loyalty programmes‚ many using their points to buy essentials — groceries‚ pre-paid electricity and fuel — while others save them for spoils such as a month-end bottle of whiskey or an overseas holiday.Angela Chandler of Milnerton saves all her loyalty points every year for a very specific purpose — attending the Up the Creek music festival on the Breede River in January with her husband."My Makro points buy the booze and any camping gear we need; our food is paid for with Smart Shopper and SuperSpar points‚ and my Clicks Clubcard points pay for the sunscreen and all the other cosmetics‚" she said."It’s hugely satisfying to get it all free‚" she said.As a nation South Africans are notoriously bad at saving‚ but many who lack the discipline or the means to save in the traditional way are managing to passively accumulate some spending power in the form of points‚ meaning they can fund the Christmas splurge or buy a longed-for a...
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