And Myer’s loyalty program might have the upper hand here as it’s bigger and older: established in 2004, Myer One is three times larger at roughly 4.7 million members, compared to David Jones’ 1.5 million.
But David Jones has made its tie-up with Qantas the key selling point of its scheme – and it arguably has broader appeal. By piggybacking on the dominant carrier’s highly profitable loyalty program (the largest in the country, with about 17 million members), customers can choose to bank up, or spend either David Jones or Qantas points when they check out in store or online.
“It does feel like David Jones rewards partnership is almost being sold as ‘join David Jones to get Qantas [points]’,” said frequent flyer guide Points Hack spokesperson Daniel Sciberras.
In the past three weeks, David Jones’ loyalty scheme has gained more than 50,000 members.
“We haven’t seen these new customers before,” said Fyfe, who is aiming for 5 million members in five years. “Qantas is already bringing us new customers in.”
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Points Hack’s comparative analysis of the Myer-Velocity and David Jones-Qantas programs concluded that the value of each was very similar, said Sciberras.
Myer attempted to counter its rival’s move by expanding its partnership with Virgin Australia: members can now use Virgin points on a Myer purchase in store as well as online, but not earn Velocity points.
Wirth insists that Myer is running its own race.
“We’re very focused on what our customer wants. We understand what their needs are. We’re very clear about their pain points. We’re very clear on what they like, and that’s what we’re going to be focused on delivering,” she said.
“What you need to look at is level of engagement, the level of depth in a [loyalty] program and I think that this is what Myer One has.”
Where David Jones rewards the Qantas passenger, Myer’s enhanced suite of freebies targets the frequent department store shopper through ‘reward days’ where customers can earn double points.
Myer’s complimentary beauty treatments also give customers a very tangible reward experience. “It will be anything from facials, to makeup, to brows,” said Wirth. The ‘MY Edition Beauty Boxes’ are reminiscent of Mecca’s highly successful Beauty Loop boxes, which members will have to go in store to collect.
“It is a sense of immediacy … This actually helps make sure that they feel recognised and rewarded for being the members that they are.”
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