Scarves up! Starbucks will soon be offering a limited Sounders FC card just in time for the start of major league soccer. The Sounders card will be available at company-operated Starbucks locations in King, Pierce, and Snohomish counties of Western Washington beginning March 4, 2014. As always, you can load money onto the card and use it for your MyStarbucksRewards perks.
As I have mentioned before on this site, you are not tied to using your gold card (or any other Starbucks card) for your rewards benefits. You can register many cards to your profile, and all your rewards are associated with your profile at Starbucks.com/card not the physical card itself.
This Sounders card is great! If you’re a card collector or a soccer fan, I think you’ll like this card.
Starbucks has offered so many interesting cards over the years. About one year ago, there was a birch wood card. I’ve always thought it fun when Starbucks bases cards on real stores, as was the case with the City Nights Starbucks card, based on First and Pike Starbucks. I still use my Evolution Fresh Starbucks card often too (the only Starbucks card that does not actually say Starbucks anywhere on it.) There is also a Teavana Starbucks card too. And years ago, there was a Starbucks card based upon the First and Battery Starbucks store. In September 2013, Starbucks offered its first Seahawks card:
What’s your favorite Starbucks card in your wallet? 😉
17 Comments
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Socialize
Great post Melody! I find it so interesting that SB issues cards for specific regions although I can understand there would be some cards customers would have no use for, however, I can also see some cards being of value to go national. BTW around here the gold star card that was supposed to be issued Feb. 15 still has not arrived at my local store but I did see it at another regional store. My favorite card- I think my most recent purchase of the Feb. 15 gold star card and then second perhaps the Evolution Fresh. I suggest SB look at issuing more regional cards relevant to other areas besides Seattle.
You can’t beat the Starbucks (RED) Card that partners with Bono and his ONE Campaign to purchase AIDS meds for people with AIDS/HIV in Africa. Every swipe buys a day’s supply of meds.
When my kids tease me about my Starbucks habit, I tell them that I am buying lots of AIDS meds! It’s true – I am! More than 40 days in January alone! 40 more days of life for someone who is dependent on me buying a cup of Joe so they can breathe one more day.
This card came out 4 years ago and the program is still active, but it is near impossible to find the cards unless you get them used on eBay. But if you do see one, buy it! If you don’t plan on using yours anymore, sell it on eBay so others can participate in the program.
I wish that Starbucks would expand these types of programs or connect a program to all of their cards. For example, these are the charitable community partners that the Seattle Sounder’s give money too throughout the year. http://www.soundersfc.com/outreach/community-partners.aspx
Just like the (RED) Card, Starbucks could donate $0.10 or even 1% of every swipe.
Personally, I think that Starbucks could lead the way in this type of giving back to the community.
Melody, how about online petition that asks Starbucks to partner with charities when they offer a designer card. How about a percentage of every Gold Card going to Starbucks program that supports its farmers reach sustainability and our swipes would assure that all of the children of Starbuck’s farmers are able to go to school and on to college!
There should be no problem in accomplishing these goals. A cup of Joe can change the world! Let’s get started…
If anyone likes this idea and would like to comment on it on the Starbucks website – “MY STARBUCKS IDEA” page, here is the link.
http://mystarbucksidea.force.com/ideaview?id=08750000000Jec2AAC
With a post from everyone this could become OUR StarbucksMelody.com idea for changing the world – one swipe at a time.
Thanks!
I love this card! I think it’s so fun when Starbucks does special cards like this, or like the city or state cards! I would love to see some collegiate ones, too. 🙂 I always switch which card I use, especially for different holidays. Right now I’m using the new white and gold one. Fun!
I still have the Braille card you sent… thanks!! But I’m currently using the limited white n gold card…
Very disappointed that you can’t get the Sounders card down here in Thurston County. We seem to get left out of these kind of things, despite the fact that there are many folks like me who support the Sounders and Seahawks, and are season ticket holders. Honestly bums me out.
I LOVE my Chicago (theater) card. It’s the only other card registered to my account 🙂
Penney – are you sure using a Red Card still makes a donation? From what I can find on-line, that ended in December 2011 (see: http://shopwithmeaning.org/2012/03/starbucks-quietly-ends-its-product-red-card-contributions/ ) I’d love to be wrong if someone can verify otherwise.
YES Jo, I can verify that the (RED) Card is still valid. In fact, the article that you have posted on your reply post a link has an update written after the publication, which clearly states that (RED) cards are still good for AIDS/HIV meds through 2015!
Click on the link, the update to verify that (RED) cards are still active is right at the top of the article that you have posted in the article entitled, “Starbucks Quietly Ends It Red Card Contributions.”
I have also called Starbucks every January to make sure it that the card is still valid. Last month was no exception and was assured that Starbucks is still making donations to (RED) for the meds.
This woman did not tell me that the partnership would end in 2015 like this article.
Let’s work together to make sure that it doesn’t! But is only expanded to include a host of Starbucks cards!
Reread Jo’s article to confirm (RED) card is still active:
http://shopwithmeaning.org/2012/03/starbucks-quietly-ends-its-product-red-card-contributions/
Kristen, imagine if the Starbuck’s Chicago Theater card actually supported the theater in Chicago in some way! Perhaps, the
theater programs in the public schools?
http://www.cpsarts.org/arts-education-plan/
What a difference a swipe could make in Chicago!
I am going to call Starbucks again today to ask if the (RED) Card is still valid and I am going to bring up Jo’s article. I will post later today what I found out. When I have called in January, the person on the other end left the line to look it up and came back and told me that Starbucks was still honoring the card and paying for AIDS/HIV meds with every swipe. I understand that Jo’s article brings up the question as to if the swipe really does anything at all, but Starbucks is still making donations to (RED). Thanks for the article, Jo.
It would be nice if Starbucks would do the sports related cards for every state that has a pro team of some sort. I like the idea of cards to help the arts too. That is great news about the Red card though and I think I’ll go look for mine and start using it again.
@Penney & all – Sorry I’ve been absent from this thread. Just a busy work week. I admit that I too thought that the (Red) card was no longer donating to Product (Red). I will have to follow up on this. I have (Red) card deep in my card collection (I think I unregistered it?) and so I might have to pull it out, re-register it, load it and use it.
I do think it’s hard to figure out what kind of companies would be great to partner with. Since Starbucks is so extremely global (coffee sourcing operations are throughout Latin America, Africa, Indonesia, and even in China) and everything they do has a world wide effect, it makes sense to give to companies that have some global purpose rather than a hyper-local one.
Whole Foods is fund raising for http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/blog/invest-future-without-poverty Whole Planet Foundation. Obviously I’m not saying Starbucks should do the exact same, but I like Whole Food’s global approach.
Anyways, I’m going to try and follow up about the (Red) card. I’ll keep you posted.
Penney I did vote your idea up on MSI. Whether or not I agree with all the exact specifics, I’m easily persuaded that Starbucks should do more donation cards.
Penney – if you re-read the update at the top of that article, the first line states Starbucks(Red) promotions will go until 2015. But the following line says “However, Starbucks has stopped making contributions to the Global Fund if a customer pays with a STARBUCKSRED Card after December 31st 2011.”
I’m pretty sure seeing a similar statement on the Starbucks site is the only reason I stopped using mine. I would fully support Starbucks re-booting this program though.
@Jo – You’re right. It does say that, and the (Red) Starbucks card no longer does its five cent donation to product (Red). I was momentarily happy to think it continued!
Anyways, I used Customer Service (haven’t done that in ages!) and here’s what they emailed me (which appears to be largely copy – paste from Starbucks.com).
Here it is:
Dear Melody,
I appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts with us.
As of January 1, 2012 Starbucks stopped contributing $0.05 per transaction if you used the RED Starbucks Card. But you still can reload it and make purchases on the card.
Starbucks continues to support the Global Fund through (RED)â„¢. We’ve partnered with (RED)â„¢ to raise awareness through in store promotions on days like World AIDS Day on December 1. Since its launch in 2006, (RED)â„¢ and its partners have generated more than $215 million for the Global Fund which in turn has assisted more than 14 million people impacted by HIV and AIDS programs.
Starbucks believes that any effort to fight AIDS, such as the grants the Global Fund makes in Africa, benefits many members of our global community, including those here at home in the U.S. While we do not have a corporate-level program in the area of AIDS in the U.S., Starbucks supports our many partners (employees) here who have chosen to volunteer their time and money to HIV/AIDS-related nonprofits.
To find out more, please visit http://www.starbucks.com/responsibility/community/starbucks-red.
If you ever have any questions or concerns in the future, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
@Melody, you are so lucky to be where the heart of Starbucks is.
I regret not getting more, like the birch wood and city cards, when I had the chance. Also missed out on mini heart Valentine gift cards. I didn’t know there were three different ones, until I read the 2/10 MSI blog.
I’m looking forward to see what cards are next!
one of our favorites is the mariners ichiro card! that is pretty old, but still nice to have! 🙂
my mom collected several oldies, she has a pikeplace and paul mccartney
my daily drive thru card is a seahawks… my purse card is the gold member card and I still need to register the gold and white card! I never got in the habit of using my iphone as a gc. it isn’t as fun whipping that out as a pretty card 🙂
I also have the new siren logo one… I think I got it on my bday that year (march 8th) so it’s special in that geeky addicted to sbux kind of way. HA!