Opening a second outlet: what changes for your loyalty program
By Alva Chew · Updated
In short When you open a second outlet, your loyalty program needs one points balance that works at both, rewards both can serve, and a plan that allows more than one outlet. On Gimify the free plan covers one outlet, so the second outlet moves you to the unlimited plan at US$99 a month. Settle the balance, the rewards list and the counter routine before the doors open.
What changes when you open a second outlet?
Five things change. Most of the program stays exactly as it is.
| Part of the program | Changes at outlet two? | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Points balance | Yes | Keep one balance per member, usable at both outlets |
| Plan and pricing | Often | Check whether your plan covers more than one outlet |
| Rewards list | Yes | Keep only rewards both outlets can serve |
| Counter routine | No, but it must be taught again | Same steps at both tills, a printed guide at the new one |
| Earn rate | No | Keep one rate across both outlets |
If you have not set your earn rate yet, our guide to setting a points earn rate comes first. This page assumes you run a working program at one outlet and are about to add another.
The wider question of running many outlets, including franchise funding and outlet reports, is covered in loyalty programs for multiple outlets. This page covers only the step from one outlet to two.
Should the second outlet share the first outlet’s points balance?
Yes, if both outlets carry the same name. A member who earns at your first outlet on Monday and visits the second on Friday expects the points to be there.
Take a simple example. Your reward costs 100 points and a typical visit earns 10. A member who visits each outlet five times has 100 points on a shared balance and a free reward. On two separate balances the same member holds 50 points in each place and has earned nothing they can use. Customers read that as a program that does not work, and they stop scanning.
Research on unused programs points the same way. A 2019 KPMG survey of more than 18,000 consumers in 20 countries found that 60% agreed programs are too hard to join or to earn in. A separate study of one retailer’s program, by Stourm, Bradlow and Fader (2015), found redemptions in only 3% of purchases and 60% of customers who never redeemed in 43 months. A split balance adds a reason for a member to fall into that group.
| Finding | Scope | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 60% agree programs are too hard to join or earn in; 55% of members use them a few times a month or less | 18,000+ consumers, 20 countries | KPMG, 2019 |
| Redemptions in 3% of purchases, 60% of customers never redeemed in 43 months | One Latin American retailer | Stourm, Bradlow and Fader, Journal of Marketing Research, 2015 |
The only case for separate balances is two outlets under different brands with different owners. If you are opening a second outlet of the same business, share the balance.
Does your loyalty plan allow a second outlet?
Check this before you sign a lease, because plan limits are the one change that costs money. Plans differ in three ways: some cap the number of outlets, some charge per location, and some charge per staff login or per member.
On Gimify, the free plan covers one outlet with unlimited members, a Google Wallet card, QR sign-up, earning and redeeming. It has no time limit. The unlimited outlets plan costs US$99 a month and has no per-member or per-location fees. Points are unified across outlets.
| Free plan | Unlimited outlets plan | |
|---|---|---|
| Outlets | 1 | Unlimited |
| Members | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Points across outlets | Not applicable, one outlet | One shared balance |
| Price | Free | US$99 a month |
Source: Gimify pricing, as published on gimify.com in October 2026.
For one outlet the free plan is enough. Opening a second one is the point where the flat monthly price starts. Because the price does not rise with outlets or members, a third and fourth outlet add no fee. Our guide to loyalty software without per-location fees compares this with per-location pricing, and the loyalty program cost guide covers other costs.
Work out whether US$99 a month fits the second outlet’s budget before you plan the opening. Add it to the new outlet’s monthly costs, the same way you would add a card terminal fee.
What happens at the counter at the new outlet?
The routine is the same as at your first outlet:
- The customer shows the card on their phone, or scans the QR code to join.
- Staff scan the card and see the balance.
- Staff enter the bill amount and the points are added in proportion to the spend.
- If the customer redeems, staff deduct the points and hand over the reward.
Staff use any phone at the counter. No new hardware or terminal is needed, so the new outlet’s setup cost for the program is a printed QR code and a short briefing.
Print the QR code and put it where customers wait to pay. In a counter launch, staff asking each customer in person works better than a sign alone. Face-to-face requests succeeded about 70% of the time against about 10% for emailed requests in one exploratory study on students asking strangers to complete a survey (Experiment 1, 45 students, APS summary). The setting is a survey, not a café, so treat it as a reason to train staff to ask, not as a forecast.
Your first outlet’s team can help. Ask your best counter person to spend the first week at the new outlet, or to run the briefing. They know which sentence gets members to sign up.
Which rewards should work at both outlets?
A reward that one outlet cannot serve creates a complaint. List each reward and ask whether the new outlet can serve it on opening day, with its menu, stock and staff.
| Reward type | Works at both outlets? | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Fixed amount off the bill | Always | Same value anywhere, no stock to check |
| Free item both menus carry | Yes | Drop it if a shortage is likely at the new outlet |
| Free item only one outlet sells | No | Replace it with an amount off the bill |
| Item that needs a special machine or ingredient | Often not | Keep it off the list until both can serve it |
Rewards should also be ones members redeem. Our guide to loyalty rewards customers actually redeem covers how to choose them. A reward valued as an amount off the bill is the simplest option for two outlets, because the customer understands it immediately and neither outlet needs to stock anything special.
How do you open the second outlet without confusing members?
Follow this order:
- Before opening, upgrade the plan and confirm the second outlet is set up with staff access.
- Brief the new team on the four counter steps and give them a one-page guide at the till.
- Tell existing members that their points now work at the new address. Say it in person at the first outlet and on a sign at the counter.
- Open with the program live. Customers who see the QR code on day one treat it as part of the shop.
- Check after two weeks. Look at how many new members joined at the new outlet and how many existing members redeemed there.
- Fix the rewards list if staff report a reward they could not serve.
Keep the earn rate the same across both outlets. A promotion, if you run one, should run at both. Different rates make members ask why, and staff have to explain it.
For the wider questions that come with more outlets, such as who funds a reward redeemed elsewhere in a franchise, see loyalty programs for multiple outlets. To read the basics, see what a points-based loyalty program is.
How does Gimify handle a second outlet?
Gimify’s free plan covers your first outlet. When you open the second, the unlimited outlets plan at US$99 a month gives you one points balance across both, so a member earns at one and redeems at the other.
Questions owners ask
Do I need to change my loyalty program when I open a second outlet?
Yes, in a few places. Your points balance must work at both outlets, your rewards list must contain only things both can serve, and your plan must allow more than one outlet. The earn rate, the QR sign-up and the counter routine can stay as they are.
Should members keep separate balances at each outlet?
No. If both outlets share a name and a menu, one shared balance is simpler for customers and for staff. A member who splits visits across two separate balances reaches a reward later at both.
Is Gimify still free when I open a second outlet?
The free plan covers one outlet. A second outlet needs the unlimited outlets plan at US$99 a month, which has no per-member or per-location fees and keeps one points balance across outlets.
Do I need to relaunch the program at the new outlet?
No relaunch is needed. Existing members already hold a card and can earn and redeem at the new outlet from day one. The new team needs training on the same counter routine, and you need a QR code on the new counter for new sign-ups.
How long should I wait before adding the second outlet to the program?
Add it on opening day. A new outlet that opens without the program trains its first customers to ignore it, and you then have to introduce it a second time.
What if the second outlet has a different menu?
Choose rewards by value off the bill or by items both outlets serve. A reward that only one outlet can honour will disappoint members who earned their points at the other.
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