Gloucester Business Improvement District (Gloucester BID) is partnering with Miconex to launch the Gloucester Gift Card and Mi Rewards programme on Thursday 21 November when the Small Business Saturday Bus Tour stops at Gloucester Cathedral.
Mi Rewards allows local businesses to build a relationship with customers who actually spend money with them, through the Mi Rewards communication channels and importantly to understand who is not spending with them. Mi Rewards is a revolutionary, place-centred loyalty programme that rewards customers for spending money locally in registered businesses and on public transport. Using payment-linked technology to automatically generate data every time a customer spends with a linked card, this eliminates the need for consumers to use loyalty cards or apps, reducing barriers to participation.
As customers spend using Mi Rewards, they earn loyalty points which can be exchanged for a Gloucester Gift Card that can be redeemed at any of the participating businesses. Twenty-one Gloucester businesses have signed up to the Mi Rewards scheme already:
Food and Drink
Aroma Indian Restaurant
Cafe Rene
The Clean Plate
The Comfy Pew
The Fountain Inn
The Gallery Tea Room
The Tigers Eye
Knobbly Cob
Yanto’s
Entertainment & Leisure
Museum of Gloucester
Gloucester Guildhall
GL1 Leisure Centre
Shopping & Beauty
Bizarre
14 Gifts
C14
The Candle Tree
Chez Rose
Norville Opticians
Gloucester Framing & Art
The Grooms Room
Miju Wool
Travel
Stagecoach West
With the UK Digital Retail Innovation Centre (UKDRIC) officially launching in Gloucester earlier this year, the team at Gloucester BID were keen to explore how the Mi Rewards data and digital channels would be able to support their local businesses. Meetings with key stakeholders and travel partners took place over the last few months to ensure that data from the programme is available to help shape local decision making as quickly as possible.
Emily Knight, Director of UKDRIC comments, “Gloucester is delighted to be taking part in this smart city rewards scheme. This new loyalty programme and gift card allows us to build on the digital ecosystem that we have developed in Gloucester with the UK Digital Retail Innovation Centre. By rewarding and building relationships with consumers, businesses will be better able to respond to the changing face of the high street.”
Colin Munro, Managing Director of Miconex, is keen to see what data will be gathered from the partnerships in Gloucester. “Each town and city we have worked with is very distinct and Gloucester will be no different. The data we gather will allow us to determine if patterns emerge in consumer behaviour across different locations. As more places become part of the Mi Rewards programme the data will become richer and will allow us to work with place managers to understand how best to support the local communities and businesses that are vital for healthy high streets and our economy.”
Since launching the UK’s first gift card programme for towns and cities in 2015, Miconex have been working with place managers and high street businesses to develop a way to reward local residents for supporting their High Streets. Mi Rewards use the data to build a picture of how these residents use their town or city and develop new communication channels for the participating places and individual businesses. Better understanding of how places are used by local residents helps to prioritise how capital investment and business support can be best targeted to develop vibrant places.
For more information visit the website https://mi-rewards.com/, or contact .
