The Loyalty Newswire April 6, 2026

The Loyalty Newswire from The Wise Marketer

From the Editor

Lots of news from notable brands around the world this week:

Abercrombie & Fitch is using geofencing to close intelligence gaps in customer identification and understanding.
Lowe’s launches its HomeCare+ subscription program.
Marriott Bonvoy continues to expand its footprint, with over 210 million active members, while contributing to a 12% rise in loyalty revenue in Q1 2026.
Papa John’s is now rewarding carry out customers with gas reimbursement.
Royal Caribbean announces new cobrand payment cards issued by Bank of America to cover all of its cruise brands.

Need more news? Then dig in and read the entire Newswire this week. And don’t forget to apply to attend the Loyalty Leaders Summit coming up on April 29.

If you are searching for a new opportunity, check availability below. If you have a job to post, send us your information.

We are here to help you succeed. Let us know how we can help.

Bill Hanifin, Managing Editor, The Wise Marketer

Short Takes

Update and Summary Stats for Marriott Bonvoy

Marriott Bonvoy continues to expand its footprint, with membership surpassing 210 million active members as of early 2026. This growth stems from aggressive marketing, app enhancements, and integrations with over 30 airline partners, driving a 15% year-over-year increase in enrollments.

The program’s focus on personalized offers via AI-driven recommendations has boosted redemption rates, contributing to a 12% rise in loyalty revenue for Marriott’s Q1 2026 earnings. Key to this momentum is Bonvoy’s expansion into non-hotel experiences, including cruises with Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection and residential offerings. These diversifications not only lock in high-value customers but also create new revenue streams, with co-branded credit cards from Chase and Amex generating over $1 billion annually in fees and interest. Read the summary.

Papa Johns Launches “Pizza Miles,” Reimbursing Customers for Gas When They Drive for Carryout

Papa Johns is turning a routine drive into a reason to celebrate with Pizza Miles, a limited‑time Papa Rewards® promotion that gives customers Papa Dough back when they choose carryout.

Whether it’s a quick run for a pizza or a Friday night dinner mission, Pizza Miles transforms the drive into instant value for loyalty members. Read the full press release here.

Apply to Attend the Loyalty Leaders Summit 2026

In an age defined by data, automation and elevated expectations, brands are reimagining how they connect with their customers. The theme of this year’s Leaders in Loyalty 2026 is Precision Loyalty: The Era of Intelligent Engagement.

Hear from Keynote speaker Kelly Mahoney, CMO Ulta Beauty, Loyalty Science Lab executives and more while networking with your fellow loyalty, marketing, and customer experience leaders during an immersive day exploring the future of intelligent customer engagement. Apply now.

International Loyalty Awards Update

The excitement for the International Loyalty Awards is building and you are invited to join the festivities in Atlanta on April 29-30, 2026. There has been an incredible range of submissions, showcasing loyalty programs and initiatives from across every continent.

2026 promises to be a landmark year for the loyalty community as Loyalty Connect Global expands to bring the world’s loyalty leaders together at major global hubs: Dubai and the United States.

Lowe’s Launches HomeCare+ Subscription Service to Enhance Customer Loyalty

Lowe’s recently launched HomeCare+, an annual subscription service priced at $99, which offers two home visits covering essential maintenance tasks. This initiative aims to simplify home management for customers and enhance loyalty, with the service expected to be available in over 75% of households nationwide.

The new service is part of Lowe’s strategy to improve customer experience and retention, particularly benefiting new homeowners and seniors. Read about it here.

Royal Caribbean Group Partners with Bank of America to Launch Royal ONE™ and Royal ONE Plus™ Credit Cards

Royal Caribbean Group (NYSE: RCL) and Bank of America announced the upcoming launch of the Royal ONE™ Visa Signature® and Royal ONE Plus™ Visa Signature® credit cards — the industry’s first tri-branded cards that simplify how travelers earn and redeem rewards across the company’s brands: Royal Caribbean, Celebrity Cruises, and Silversea.

The Royal ONE cards continue Royal Caribbean Group’s multi‑year journey to reimagine loyalty and unlock more value for guests to maximize their vacation experiences.

Albert Heijn Bonuskaart: Netherlands’ Leading Loyalty Program

The Albert Heijn Bonuskaart stands as a cornerstone of customer loyalty in the Netherlands’ grocery retail landscape. Launched decades ago, this card-based program rewards frequent shoppers with personalized discounts, points accumulation, and exclusive offers. Full summary here.

The card leverages RFID and barcode tech for swift checkouts, compatible with self-scan kiosks that speed up transactions by up to 40%. Backend systems employ AI for offer personalization, drawing from millions of daily transactions to predict demand shifts, such as surges in organic products.

How Abercrombie & Fitch Uses Geofencing for Customer Feedback

Abercrombie & Fitch’s team deployed geofencing — often used as a type of location-based marketing and advertising — to track in-store visits and request feedback from those customers who did not purchase an item.

“Geolocation isn’t new. Many companies use this to detect what a customer is near entering one of their stores, but what’s different about our approach is how we use that signal to capture feedback,” said Madison Blair, senior research analyst on Abercrombie & Fitch’s voice of customer team.

Understanding the Next Decade of Disruption in Fintech

The real story in Fintech is no longer about competition. It is about convergence—and the profound challenges that come with it.

This article shares how, over the next ten years, banks and fintechs will not merely compete. They will collide, collaborate, and, in many cases, become indistinguishable from one another. And in that transformation lies both opportunity and risk.

Unbounce Releases New Report: “The Anatomy of Aligned Go-To-Market Teams”

The new report from Unbounce shows just 56% of GTM professionals consider their organizations highly aligned, lacking shared goals, shared data and a unified system. Another 36% say they’re only partially aligned, and 8% remain largely siloed. Read the report.

The root cause is the marketing stack. More than half of GTM teams (53%) say technology is the biggest barrier to alignment, and only 30% believe their stack actually enables it.

Everything You Need to Know About Chipotle in This Short History

Chipotle began as a means to an end: a small burrito shop built to fund an upscale restaurant. But the concept resonated immediately, and the economics proved both strong and repeatable. Gradually, local success grew into a nationwide chain.

Three decades later, Chipotle remains true to what worked in that first restaurant in Denver, with a story shaped by fresh ingredients, a food safety crisis, and one of the most remarkable turnarounds in the restaurant industry. Read the full history here.

Cannabis: Marketing Strategies that Will Win on 420 this year

In 2026, dispensaries are competing not just on price or product selection, but on visibility across search engines, media platforms, and AI-driven discovery systems. The stores that win are the ones that show up first when consumers are actively searching.

Here are seven strategies to turn content into foot traffic.

Elevate’26 Convenes CX Leaders to Chart the Future of Agentic AI and Mobile-First Innovation

Elevate’26, the premier Customer Experience Summit, will take place April 13–14, 2026, at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress in Orlando. Airship, the mobile-first customer experience platform provider, is the lead event sponsor and is joined by Gummicube, Branch, Jacquard, Twilio, Merkle, VML and Infillion.

Attendees will hear from industry leaders at Forrester, Google Cloud, Airship, and top brands applying agentic AI technologies to remove friction, increase customer lifetime value, and drive measurable conversion and revenue growth. Register: https://www.elevatesummit.info/elevate26-orlando/.

New Loyalty Roles Available

Comarch is seeking a Global Loyalty Consultant (pre-sales), with loyalty experience, an ease of building relations, and to fill the difficult role of linking technical and business teams in the context of Loyalty.

Engage People has an opening for a Client Director, Client Success. Please visit this link to learn more and apply if interested.

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