Costa Coffee customers have reacted furiously to a second steep price rise in just six months, threatening a boycott of the chain in protest.
Fans of the coffee giant used social media to complain that, among other rises, a flat white had increased overnight from £2.95 to £3.30, reports The Mirror. Others said their medium skinny lattes had gone up from £3.10 to £3.35 and small cappuccinos from £3.15 to £3.50. Complaining to Costa on Twitter, one customer said: “Another sneaky price rise of 30p on my large latte. Would be good if you had notified us on social media.”
Another tweeted: “Yesterday I was charged £2.40 for my normal drink, large skinny cappuccino. Today I was charged £2.70, an increase of 30p overnight!! Any reasons for this ridiculous price increase??!” A third said: “Had coffee nearly every day for past two & a half years just jumped up from £2.80 to £2.95. I’m going to use my Waitrose Loyalty card for a FREE coffee.” A fourth commented: "Well I’ll be cutting back on Costa. £3.15 for a flat white now with no pre-warning of increase. Nah. Sorry £2.90 was pushing it."
Costa confirmed it put up prices on June 1 and said the increase varied depending on what beverage you ordered. Prices also varied between branches around the country. It added that the average increase in the price of a drink was 14p. It had already put up prices at the end of last year, in a blow for loyal customers.
Costa told The Mirror that the price rises were down to “unprecedented inflationary pressures resulting in increased costs”. It comes as inflation in the UK soared to 9% in April, with experts predicting that it will reach 10% later this year.
A Costa Coffee spokesperson said: “Like all retailers, Costa Coffee is facing unprecedented inflationary pressures resulting in increased costs. We know this is a challenging time for our customers as well, which is why we are absorbing costs wherever we can. Despite this we’ve had to make the difficult decision to increase the prices of our drinks. We are always thinking of new ways to offer great value across our range, including our £1 and £2 breakfast deal, available every day.
“We also have additional exclusive offers for our Costa Club members, where customers can earn a free drink after buying eight drinks, or just four drinks when using a reusable cup. Currently they also have the chance to win millions of prizes through a special scan to win Coffee Shot competition.”
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