AlmaWine Single Malt Club: How to Turn a Loyalty Program into a Collectible Experience

In premium retail, loyalty has long moved beyond discounts. For brands with heritage, reputation, and strong product value, short-term sales growth is less important than building long-term relationships with customers. With this goal in mind, the AlmaWine chain approached us to implement a joint project with the brands Glenfiddich and The Balvenie.

This led to the creation of AlmaWine Single Malt Club — a loyalty program built not around bonuses as currency, but around the idea of time, aging, and collecting.

The Program Concept

At the heart of Single Malt Club is a simple yet powerful concept: every whisky purchase turns into accumulated years of aging. Customers purchasing Glenfiddich and The Balvenie in AlmaWine stores, online, or via delivery receive points that symbolize the years invested in the product. In this way, loyalty becomes an extension of the brand philosophy. Customers do not simply collect points — they collect history, value, and time embodied in every bottle.

The Objective

The project had several key objectives:

• create a long-term loyalty program for premium alcohol without using discounts;
• unify offline retail, online sales, and delivery into a single mechanic;
• offer customers value based on emotion and status rather than price;
• implement the solution in compliance with alcohol category regulations in the Republic of Kazakhstan.

It was important to build a program that works continuously and organically, rather than as a temporary promotional activation.

The Implemented Solution

We developed AlmaWine Single Malt Club as a full-scale loyalty program, not a promotional activation or advertising campaign. Customers accumulate points for purchasing Glenfiddich and The Balvenie, where each point represents years of whisky aging, and redeem them for branded gifts and exclusive experiences — including the grand prize: a trip to Scotland with visits to the brands’ distilleries. This approach transformed the standard “buy and get” mechanic into a collectible experience that motivates customers to return again and again, strengthening their connection with the brand.

How the Program Works

All processes within the program are fully automated. Points are accrued and tracked based on receipts transmitted from AlmaWine’s accounting system. Customers can always view their balance and participation terms in a digital card stored in Apple Wallet and Google Wallet — without installing a mobile application. Points can be redeemed for branded Glenfiddich glasses, tasting accessories, gift sets, backpacks, travel bags and suitcases, as well as AlmaWine gift certificates. The grand prize of the program is a trip to Scotland with visits to the Glenfiddich and The Balvenie distilleries and the opportunity to meet the masters who preserve centuries-old production traditions.

Why This Type of Loyalty Works

The key difference of Single Malt Club is its product-driven concept. Points here are not an abstract unit, but a reflection of the value of aging and time. This approach allows the brand to:

• move away from price competition and discounts;
• increase repeat purchases through deeper engagement;
• create status-driven and collectible motivation;
• build an emotional connection between the customer and the brand. Loyalty ceases to be just a marketing tool and becomes part of the overall brand experience.

Technology Platform

The project was implemented on the Loyallyst platform using digital cards in Apple Wallet and Google Wallet, with full integration into the accounting system and support for all sales channels. Program management, accrual rules, and the rewards catalog are handled through a single administrative panel, making it easy to scale the solution and adapt mechanics to new objectives.

What This Means for Other Businesses

The AlmaWine Single Malt Club case demonstrates that an effective loyalty program starts not with a cashback percentage, but with an idea. Collecting, status levels, tiers, access to exclusive events, unique rewards, or experiences — all of these can form the foundation of a loyalty strategy for retail, HoReCa, FMCG, and service brands. The Loyallyst platform makes it possible to implement such scenarios without complex development, mobile applications, or manual processes — turning an idea into a fully functioning product.