Flybuys has been running for 28 years, but is now winding up. Photo: Facebook / Flybuys
Thursday marks the end of an era for one of the country's longest-running loyalty schemes, because it will be the last day that customers can collect points on Flybuys.
The scheme - which started in 1996 - is being wound up and customers have until the end of the year to use their points.
Flybuys chief executive Lizzy Ryley said the market had evolved "significantly" since Flybuys launched and businesses now had greater access to technology and capabilities that allowed them to create their own "highly tailored" programmes and customer engagement offerings.
"The market has moved on and the Flybuys model of a services and retailer alliance has run its course.
"We are committed to doing right by our members through this process, by giving them lots of notice and every opportunity to spend or donate their remaining points."
Marketing expert Bodo Lang of Massey University said Flybuys had been a "trailblazer" when it launched.
"I don't think we had seen anything of that type and scale in New Zealand before, having that industry spanning multiple brands in it, a really far ranging reward catalogue with all sorts of rewards in it... I think it was a real first for New Zealand."
But he said that model eventually became a problem as retailers wanted their own more focused programmes.
"Retailers have probably come to realise they might be better off running their own loyalty schemes exclusive to them rather than to Flybuys.
"Individual retailers or brands don't really care whether people are loyal to other brands, they care whether they are loyal to their own brands."
He said loyalty schemes were likely to persist, because data was so powerful for retailers.
"If you as a retailer have transactional data, what's bought at what price at what point of time that's one thing, what's really powerful is if you can link it to demographics, psychographics - individual customers.
"If you know this customer has been to the store 12 times in the last 12 months and bought this much it allows you to do some exciting and insightful data analysis. You can segment the market and target your customer base with different kinds of direct marketing."
When Flybuys went through a revamp four years ago to try to shake a perception of being a "toaster scheme", Ryley said it wanted to broaden its appeal and challenge a perception that it took a long time to earn rewards.
One customer Helen, who did not want her last name used, said she had had no trouble earning rewards in the 28 years she had a card.
"I haven't bought any electric appliances for probably 20-something years. All our toasters, our jugs, toothbrushes, flossers, toastie pie machines.... We've utilised it so much. One year my husband said 'I could do with some new socks' and I said 'hang on a minute', next minute there were possum socks arriving in the mail."
