Costa Coffee is to introduce a loyalty card scheme at its UK stores.

The Whitbread-owned café chain said the card would be a combination of loyalty and credit card.

Its introduction follows a trial at 22 sites in Birmingham and Glasgow.

Each Costa card can be charged up with between £5 and £75.

Mike Lawless, head of retail marketing at Costa, said: "As the coffee shop sector becomes increasingly competitive, improving customer loyalty and retention will be fundamental." 

The news comes after US coffee bar giant Starbucks announced it would be introducing a cashless payment system into its UK stores in November.

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By Tom Bill

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