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Starbucks claims $181M in revenue from unused gift cards (2022)

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Re: Starbucks claims $181M in revenue from unused gift cards (2022)

#91

Post by NoZebra120vClip »

mrguyorama wrote: post #9
nly wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So how is it revenue? Sounds like a liability

Companies bet on something like 2-5% of "breakage". That is the main profit motive behind gift cards. There are various claims of using them as marketing and a system to refund people without letting them out of your loop, but the major reason anyone pays what they do to a certain company to sell gift cards (almost nobody does it themselves anymore) is to get that breakage profit. Gift cards are a subsidy from forget…

I'm sort of offended by this because I do actually think about gift cards when I give them. I deeply consider the value and likelihood that the recipient will patronize the business and appreciate the card. If I do not know their preferences, then I will instead obtain a Visa gift card that spends anywhere, like cash.

I don't think it's a crime to give a gas-station card to someone who drives a lot, or a popular restaurant to someone who enjoys eating out, or a Google Play card to someone who owns an Android phone.

Re: Starbucks claims $181M in revenue from unused gift cards (2022)

#92

Post by SketchySeaBeast »

xwdv wrote: post #85
SketchySeaBeast wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you're watching your credit card to know how much money you have left won't the Uber rides not reflect until they do a mass bill?

That’s not how credit cards work. A credit line isn’t “money you have left”, it’s the max you can borrow.

I'm not confused how credit cards how work. If someone was checking their balance so that they can properly budget a company delaying the charge would deprive them of that insight.

Re: Starbucks claims $181M in revenue from unused gift cards (2022)

#93

Post by inyourtenement »

SketchySeaBeast wrote: post #92
xwdv wrote: post #85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That’s not how credit cards work. A credit line isn’t “money you have left”, it’s the max you can borrow.

I'm not confused how credit cards how work. If someone was checking their balance so that they can properly budget a company delaying the charge would deprive them of that insight.

I don’t think they wait very long. I used Lyft recently and they only combined charges within a single day.

Re: Starbucks claims $181M in revenue from unused gift cards (2022)

#94

Post by cuteboy19 »

Loic wrote: post #21
ZooCow wrote: post #19

It's also a way for them to save on credit card processing fees by trading the fees of multiple (relatively) small drink purchases for one fee for the gift card purchase. An often overlooked innovation of iTunes was delayed billing, which converted multiple separate song transactions into one bundled transaction to save on credit card transaction fees.

Highway tolls in France have been doing it for something like 20 years.

The concept of weekly monthly settlement is ancient. Banks have been doing it for centuries

Re: Starbucks claims $181M in revenue from unused gift cards (2022)

#95

Post by nicenewtemp84 »

el_benhameen wrote: post #59
nicenewtemp84 wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is it really illegal that for a discounted fee you get access to a hotel room during the next year? If that's the agreement you make? If I could pay $100 now to get my whole family into Disney land any weekday in 2024, I'd pay for that. That's not the same as putting $100 on a hotel gift card which you can use anywhere anytime at the hotels many properties, maybe to cover a pet fee or cleaning fee or parking, or to r…

I’m not really clear on what you’re saying, but it seems like you may have misunderstood the original post. In any case, the illegal part, at least in CA, is having an expiry date on most types of gift certificates/gift cards.

My point is you are not buying a gift card. You are buying a hotel room stay during the next year.

Re: Starbucks claims $181M in revenue from unused gift cards (2022)

#96

Post by SketchySeaBeast »

inyourtenement wrote: post #93
SketchySeaBeast wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not confused how credit cards how work. If someone was checking their balance so that they can properly budget a company delaying the charge would deprive them of that insight.

I don’t think they wait very long. I used Lyft recently and they only combined charges within a single day.

If that's the case I can't see it being an issue, but I could see it being one if the timeline was stretched to something like a week.

Re: Starbucks claims $181M in revenue from unused gift cards (2022)

#97

Post by osigurdson »

NoZebra120vClip wrote: post #90
osigurdson wrote: post #73

Gift cards are such an odd concept. Here is my gift: expiring cash that can only be used at one place.

Think about it this way: many people derive peace-of-mind from giving a gift whose purpose is known. Now, I can hand someone $20 and hope they don't spend it on booze, drugs, or prostitutes. Or I can hand someone a gift card, knowing they will spend it on Starbucks (not that expensive coffee isn't on a spectrum of vices anyway.) I can't put my finger on it, but as someone who has wholeheartedly embraced a "cashless s…

>> I don't drive

Suggest learning how to drive if you can. Being dependent on others isn't great.

Re: Starbucks claims $181M in revenue from unused gift cards (2022)

#98

Post by triceratops »

ProAm wrote: post #41
triceratops wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you're throwing them in the trash, why not give them out whenever you're expected to tip?

Its just convenience. Its not worth it to lug them around and try to remember you have one.

"Lug them around" they're not lead bricks. Put them in your wallet. When you pay at a restaurant or coffee shop, they're right there next to your cash or credit card, ready to be used.

Throwing out literal money is just absurd elitism and waste.

Re: Starbucks claims $181M in revenue from unused gift cards (2022)

#99

Post by ProAm »

triceratops wrote: post #98
ProAm wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Its just convenience. Its not worth it to lug them around and try to remember you have one.

"Lug them around" they're not lead bricks. Put them in your wallet. When you pay at a restaurant or coffee shop, they're right there next to your cash or credit card, ready to be used. Throwing out literal money is just absurd elitism and waste.

My wallet has spots for a total of 5 cards. Between ID, bank card, credit, medical and building I literally dont have space for it. (Im not buying a new wallet to lug around gift cards). But even historically when I had a bigger wallet that could carry more card I would never remember the off chance I went to one of these stores that I had a card. I go to starbucks maybe once a year (its just not my coffee place).

> Throwing out literal money is just absurd elitism and waste.

Its not wasted, Starbucks still gets the money, I just don't get anything in return.

Gift cards are just thoughtless and pointless in my personal opinion. Give people money.

Re: Starbucks claims $181M in revenue from unused gift cards (2022)

#100

Post by JohnFen »

triceratops wrote: post #98
ProAm wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Its just convenience. Its not worth it to lug them around and try to remember you have one.

"Lug them around" they're not lead bricks. Put them in your wallet. When you pay at a restaurant or coffee shop, they're right there next to your cash or credit card, ready to be used. Throwing out literal money is just absurd elitism and waste.

> Put them in your wallet.

I don't have space in my wallet for them, personally. By design. It improved my daily life more than I expected when I stopped using my wallet to carry more than the absolute essentials.

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