Starbucks Korea's NFT initiative saves 600,000 disposable cups

Consumer holds up the Starbucks Reward's app (Starbucks Korea)

Starbucks Korea announced on Thursday that its recent NFT eco-project, designed to promote reusable cup adoption, has led to saving approximately 600,000 disposable cups from use over a two-week period from Jan. 16.

The NFT eco-project at Starbucks Korea is the first of its kind in Asia and encourages Starbucks Rewards members to use personal cups when placing orders through the Starbucks app. Once individuals earn eco-stamps, with a limit of three per day, they can be exchanged for Starbucks NFTs.

With around 600,000 eco-stamps distributed among 260,000 active participants, orders for personal cups surged by 49 percent on the app, while overall usage increased by 32 percent.

Participants earning five eco-stamps are granted a "Basic NFT," while 15 and 20 eco-stamps unlock 20,000 "Creative NFTs" and 1,000 "Artist NFTs," respectively, enhancing their rarity.

Starbucks NFTs in Korea serve as digital art tokens, emphasizing customers' dedication to eco-friendly habits. Functions such as gifting, selling and trading are restricted, with only one NFT granted per account to enable broader customer engagement in sustainable initiatives, according to Starbucks Korea.

Until the end of February, Starbucks will showcase NFT artworks at its Jongno R branch in central Seoul.

"With our initiatives, the adoption of reusable cups has been steadily rising, with a record-breaking 29.4 million individual cups used in the past year," a Starbucks Korea official said.

By Kim Hae-yeon(hykim@heraldcorp.com)