Calgary-based Canada Safeway was quick to see the potential of the coalition concept. The grocer had been a western Canadian institution since the 1920s, but by the early 1990s competition was growing. Determined to head off these new challenges, Safeway joined the original group of 13 AIR MILES Sponsors in 1992.

“We want our customers to collect a lot of reward miles because the more engaged they are in the program, the better it is for us,” says Pierce. “In a competitive world like grocery retailing, you’re looking for a clear point of difference. And that’s what the AIR MILES program provides”.