The Unlimited Coffee App
Ritual coffee drinkers in New York City will soon be able to get an unlimited supply of their daily caffeine fix thanks to the new mobile app Cups. The new subscription-based program allows users to pay a monthly fee for unlimited access to coffee from their favorite independent specialty coffee shops. The service plans to charge $85 dollars a month for unlimited espresso drinks and $45 a month for unlimited tea and filtered coffee. The only restriction is that customers can only purchase one drink every 30 minutes. Limited plans will also be available for denominations of 5, 10 or 20 cups per month. The idea is to introduce the kind of customer loyalty programs that large chains such as Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts run to smaller coffee producers.
Specialty coffee in NYC
There is certainly no shortage of specialty coffee shops throughout the New York metropolitan area. These shops thrive by providing a top-quality product at a higher price point. Signature blends, unique drinks and innovative methods of brewing give each of these individual shops its own style. The demand for such innovative coffee purveyors has risen dramatically in the past years. However, it is often difficult for smaller coffee shops to compete with the rewards programs of giant corporate chains such as Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts. Cups is meant to provide a big-brand style rewards program to customers of smaller shops to help them compete.
Coffee costs
It is estimated that the average American adult will drink around three cups of coffee a day. If you figure a cup of coffee will cost you around $2.50 at a coffee shop (and that is being generous), then monthly coffee consumption costs will be around $90 a month on average for just regular drip coffee. Considering a Cups subscription will cost you about half of that, the program could result in some serious savings. The program will not cost coffee shops anything to participate. All they have to do is register as an approved vendor and Cups will pay the shops directly for any purchases that subscribers make. With the monetary savings for consumers and the ease with which coffee shops can become part of the program, this could be a very successful and profitable program. The app has already gained traction in the Israeli cities of Tel Aviv and Jaffa and will soon be making the move to New York City.
