Starbucks, whose Polygon-powered Odyssey loyalty program has been active in beta since December 2022, has announced that it will shutter the program on Mar. 31.
“The Starbucks Odyssey Beta must come to an end to prepare for what comes next as we continue to evolve the program,” they stated on their FAQ page and in their Discord, which will shut down on Mar. 18.
However, it’s not necessarily the end of the program, which has been one of the more popular Web3 activations for a traditional brand.
“While the Starbucks Odyssey Beta program is ending, we are excited for you to see what comes next and are grateful for your consistent engagement and feedback. We are thankful to have had this opportunity to test into these different ways of driving community and loyalty at Starbucks and we look forward to bringing these learnings to a broader audience,” they continued.
Odyssey participants were able to earn, buy, and swap tradable NFT stamps by completing themed “journeys,” which invited members to buy Starbucks products and engage on social media.
Users have until Mar. 25 to finish up any outstanding journeys—and while Starbucks’ own marketplace is shutting its doors, stamps will remain accessible on Nifty Gateway, where they can continue to be traded if you log in with your Starbucks Rewards-connected email address. The NFTs can also be withdrawn to an external wallet and traded on any Polygon-supporting marketplace.
Any points accrued in the program need to be used by the end of March when they will expire.
Users who have reached at least Level One in the program will also enjoy a final holder benefit, which hasn’t yet been specified but will reach participants via email by the end of the month.
Web3 aficionados are rolling their eyes at the closure, which seems, to many, to be oddly timed at the beginning of a crypto bull market.
“Did we really get rugged by @Starbucks Odyssey!?? 😂😫😭😭,” asked one user on X.
“The journey continues or closes…
Starbucks abruptly cancels Odyssey and their holders’ assets “stamps” tank.
Communication fail,” posted Michael Rippe.