Pret-a-Manger has announced it will stop making smoothies, frappes and milkshakes in a bid to deal another blow to its customers and beverage subscribers.
The chain had previously received thousands of complaints that not all of the drinks included in its £25-a-month subscription service were available.
Now the mixed drinks, which can be more expensive and take longer, are being phased out altogether.
Pret said they would be replaced with ice drinks by the summer.
Blenders were removed to make way for new ice machines, in what Pret called “the biggest beverage innovation in more than five years.”
Smoothies and frappes are still available in selected stores until May 29, it said.
- Pret has been inundated with complaints about drink offerings
Launched in summer 2020, the chain’s subscription service promises five drinks a day — with 30 minutes between each order.
The drinks available included all coffees, teas, hot chocolate, fruit smoothies, milkshakes and frappes including all the extras like syrup, cream and extra caffeine shots.
But as the BBC reported last year, the Advertising Standards Authority received thousands of complaints about the lack of cold mixed drinks.
We spoke to staff who admitted to shutting down machines due to the sheer pressure of serving huge queues of subscribers. Staff said they told customers the machines were “broken” or “we ran out” or “there were no deliveries”.
Employees have long complained that smoothies take far too long to prepare, and many stores have been slowly removing the blended cold drinks from menus.
A worker told the BBC: “It’s a lot more expensive for the company to offer smoothies – fruit juice, fruit – and they take time to make. There is far too much demand from subscribers. The company will replace them with iced drinks — not mixed — that take far less time to make and are cheaper.”
Customers have flooded social media with complaints about the availability of the subscription’s cold drink element. Charlotte, from Brighton, said she noticed that many local shops had told her “the cold drinks are going to come back there in the summer” and Thomas, from London, said he “wouldn’t actually mind a smoothie supplement for my Pay subscription when availability would be better guaranteed”.
He said: “When I complained to the Great Peter Street branch they mumbled some nonsense about ‘there’s no demand for them’ even though they admitted they were serving 600 stories a day”.
Fiona, from Reading, tweeted Pret about the lack of mixed drinks and received the reply: “We change our menu from time to time and to make room for new things we sometimes have to say goodbye to others. There’s always a chance we might bring it back (especially if people ask for it), so we’ll certainly put in a good word with our team.”
Pret had suggested frappés and smoothies be removed from the subscription in 2021, but told the BBC: “There was a public outcry so Pret listened and kept them as part of the subscription.”
But it seems that despite popular demand, Pret has finally decided to drop all smoothies, frappes, and milkshakes from its subscription model.
The company told the BBC: “To prepare stores for the new range, Pret is beginning to install new ice machines in its UK stores, removing mixers to make way for them. Smoothies and Frappes will be available in select stores until May 29.”
Add Comment