Retail and loyalty summary

• Devaluation trend: Changes at Boots and Tesco in 2023 reflected a broader shift among retailers away from higher points accumulation rates.

• Loyalty evolution: Major UK loyalty schemes including Tesco's and Sainsbury's have moved toward member pricing — offering immediate lower prices in-store — rather than relying solely on long-term point accumulation.

• Pricing competition: Supermarket price competition intensified through 2025, with Asda's return to Rollback pricing coinciding with share price falls across several major rivals.

What changed at Boots

In May 2023, the pharmacy and beauty retailer reduced its rewards from four points per pound spent to three. Since each point collected equals one penny to spend in-store, this change meant shoppers earned 25 percent less on their purchases from that date forward.

At the same time, Boots introduced a 10 percent discount on over 6,000 of its own-brand products for Advantage Card holders. Eligible products are highlighted in store and online.

Boots said the changes were made in response to customer feedback, and that offering 10 percent off its own-brand range would give customers "even more opportunities to save."

Boots' chief marketing officer, Pete Markey, said: "Customers want to be rewarded with on-the-spot lower prices and instant value. We've also noticed that Advantage Card members are now more frequently using their points to buy essentials instead of saving them up. We've listened and have expanded the scheme to give more instant reward, immediate value and lower prices."

Points already collected retained their value, so anyone holding £3.50 on their card could still use that £3.50 after the change took effect. Students also continued to receive their 10 percent storewide discount.

Changes at other retailers

Other stores have also adjusted their loyalty schemes in recent years. In June 2023, Tesco implemented a Clubcard devaluation, reducing the value of points when redeemed with Reward Partners (such as restaurants or days out) from three times their in-store value to twice their value, effective 14 June. Tesco also changed how Clubcard points are earned on fuel, moving from one point per £2 spent to one point per two litres purchased.

Supermarket price competition

Supermarket price competition intensified through 2025. In March 2025, Asda announced that nearly 10,000 products — around a third of its range — had been reduced in price since it relaunched its Rollback campaign at the end of January that year, with some products cut by up to 45 percent. (This is a cumulative figure covering products rolled back at any point since January, rather than a count of items on Rollback at one time.)

Asda's executive chairman Allan Leighton said: "By rolling back prices on thousands more products we're making it even easier for our customers to save. Nearly 10,000 products have now been rolled back and we will continue to invest in lowering prices across the rest of the year and beyond."

Shares in Tesco, Sainsbury's and M&S fell in the period that followed, as concerns about a grocery price war mounted.

Sainsbury's has also expanded member pricing through Nectar Prices, which gives Nectar members access to lower prices on selected products in-store and online, in a similar model to Tesco's Clubcard Prices.

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