Wagamama has created its first ever loyalty programme entitled “soul club”, which allows guests to receive a stamp in their digital stamp book each time they visit.

Inspired by the Japanese tradition of hanko stamps, when collected the stamps can be used to redeem free menu items and exclusive content in a user-centric app which has been created in partnership with AND Digital.

AND digital club executive Zoe Kelleher said: “We are incredibly excited to have partnered with Wagamama on the creation of the soul club loyalty app, which is the perfect blend of digital innovation and customer centric design”.

The nationwide launch of the soul club mobile app saw three times the projected sign-ups and was rated number one on the iOS app store for Food&Drink.

Subscribe to Marketing Beat for free

Sign up here to get the latest marketing news sent straight to your inbox each morning

Wagamama worked successfully side by side with AND Digital to build the concept into reality using a CMS stack.

“Our teams worked closely to transform a vision of loyalty into an engaging and seamless digital experience that not only rewards loyal customers but enriches their experience with exclusive content and interactive features, using the power of technology to elevate brand loyalty,” added Kelleher.

Wagamama chief marketing officer Kay Barlett said: “Launching soul club is an opportunity to thank our guests through wagamama’s ultimate love language, food. We are enamoured by the love and support we receive from guests and relish the chance to reward our benches’ biggest fans, as well as connecting with guests in a totally new and more personal way.”