Loyalty Management UK launched Nectar in September 2002 with founding partners Sainsbury's, Debenhams, BP and Barclaycard. All:Sport follows Vodafone, Ford, Thresher Group and Adams, which have all joined since launch.
The sports retailer joins the scheme as its exclusive sport partner. Later this year, All:Sports' 4.9m customers will be able to collect two Nectar points for every pound they spend on sports goods in its 280 stores across the UK. Nectar will replace All:Sports' existing Smart:Card reward scheme, which it has been running since 1992.
Jeremy Bradburn, managing director of All:Sports, said: "All:Sports was a pioneer of loyalty schemes in the UK, and joining the Nectar coalition demonstrates our ongoing commitment to deliver greater choice, value and flexibility to our customers. We are extremely confident that the synergies between Nectar and ourselves will further enhance the reputation of All:Sports as the place to fulfil all our customers' sporting needs."
LMUK, which operates the Nectar card, is claiming that 12.8m people have so far signed up in the first year. It said that 10m of the accounts have been active in the last 13 weeks, with as many as 74bn points accumulated by card holders, who can rack up points at more than 5,300 outlets. Collectors are also rewarded for using their Barclaycards and for using a Vodafone mobile.
Rob Gierkink, CEO of Loyalty Management UK, said: "When we launched the Nectar programme we knew the target we set ourselves was ambitious, so we are thrilled to announce that we have reached this substantial goal. UK shoppers immediately realised the benefits of collecting points from a variety of companies into one account. They understood that they could accumulate points more quickly and get rewards sooner -- and not just money off shopping but rewards everyone can enjoy."
The Nectar scheme has shaken up the UK loyalty card market and prompted new alliances from rivals. Allders for instance has teamed up with Tesco to compete against LMUK, while Boots is revamping its reward card, making it easier for customers to use.
"By continuing to add new sponsors in the coming year, we believe our base of collectors will become even more engaged with Nectar as they take advantage of these additional new opportunities to quickly add points to their Nectar balance," Gierkink said.
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