Everything You Need to Know About More Rewards

More Rewards is a loyalty rewards program that caters primarily to residents of Western Canada, B.C. in particular. That’s because the program’s primary retail partner is Save-On-Foods, the 170-store grocery chain based in British Columbia. The retail giant is a subsidiary of the Jim Pattison Group, which is owned by its 91-year old namesake and happens to be B.C.’s largest private company.

Just last week, the company announced that it’s making changes within its executive group. Perhaps the biggest news was the decision to spin off Save-On More Rewards, to be managed separately from Save-On-Foods. The program is now called More Rewards, although Save-On-Foods president Darrell Jones will continue to have oversight over the new business unit.

You may be wondering, why does any of this matter? Well, the More Rewards realignment is likely to lead to a significant expansion of the loyalty program, although there have been no changes announced as of yet. In this article, I’ll review More Rewards in its current state, and let you know how I think it stacks up with other popular loyalty rewards programs. If and when changes are made to More Rewards, I’ll be sure to circle back with an update. So, without further ado, let’s take a closer look at More Rewards.

How Does More Rewards Work?

More Rewards allows you to earn points when you shop at your favourite retail stores, and then redeem those points for groceries, travel, and gift cards and more. You can even use your points to get free Vancouver Canucks tickets or to make a charitable donation.

Unfortunately, there is no longer a More Rewards affiliated credit card (perhaps we’ll see that return in the future), but there is always the option of using a cashback credit card when you spend, as a way to increase the value of the program. More on the credit card side of things later.

How Do I Earn More Rewards Points?

You earn More Rewards points when you present your rewards card when you make purchases at Save-On-Foods, Price Smart, or Urban Fare stores. You can also earn points at a number of other merchants. Here’s a full list of More Rewards partners:

• Accent Inns
• Coast Hotels
• More Rewards Insurance
• More Rewards Travel
• Oxygen Yoga & Fitness
• Panago
• Petro-Canada
• Price Smart Foods
• Save-On-Foods
• Speedy Auto Glass
• The Jim Pattison Auto Group
• Urban Fare
• com
• Vancouver Hino Truck Sales

When you shop at the grocery stores, as well as at most partner locations, you earn 1 point for every dollar spent. There are several ways you can earn bonus points, however, so you want to pay attention to those. For example, Save-On-Foods has a weekly VIP coupon which is worth lots of points, and they offer bonus points on loads of items throughout the store.

More Rewards Travel is a full-service travel booking agency, which allows you to earn 1 point for every dollar you spend on travel. And when you link your Petro-Points card with your More Rewards card, you’ll earn points on both programs whenever you fill up at Petro-Canada.

Earn More With VIP Coupons

Each week, you can increase your earnings with a More Rewards VIP coupon. I checked the More Rewards website for the most recent weekly coupon, which offered 300 More Rewards points for any purchase of $50 or more, at Save-On-Foods, Price Smart, or Urban Fare locations. It seems like an easy way to maximize your earning potential.

Can I Earn More Rewards Points With a Credit Card?

Scotiabank recently discontinued their More Rewards Visa card, leaving the loyalty program without a direct credit card affiliation. This is unfortunate, as credit card rewards tend to make loyalty programs like More Rewards, more lucrative.

We may see another credit card relationship in the future, but in the meantime, my recommendation would be to use your favourite rewards credit card when you shop at Save-On-Foods, and other More Rewards partner stores. This way, you’re at least getting the extra benefit of travel points, or cash back, whenever you spend.

If you don’t have a rewards credit card, feel free to check out my article on Canada’s Best Cash Back Credit Cards for 2019. For example, the Scotia Momentum Visa Infinite Card offers 4% cashback on grocery store purchases, while Tangerine Money Back cardholders can earn up to 2% on 3 spending categories of their choice. The points from either one of these cards would enhance the return you’re already getting through More Rewards.

How to Redeem More Rewards

There are several ways to redeem your More Rewards points. You’ll get the most bang for your buck when you redeem points towards travel, using the More Rewards full-service travel portal. This way, you’ll earn .42 cents per point (CPP). The only option that’s more lucrative than travel, is redeeming your points for Vancouver Canucks tickets, which will net you .58 cents for every point redeemed. It’s a solid option for diehard Canucks fans who can make it to a game. I’ve included a list of the various redemption options below, along with their respective More Rewards Points values.

More Rewards Redemption Options (CPP)

• .58 CPP – Vancouver Canucks tickets
• .42 CPP – More Rewards Travel
• .23 CPP – Travel on BC Ferries
• .16-.45 CPP – Gift Cards (Various retailers)
• .20 CPP – Save-On-Foods discounts
• .20 Charitable donations

As you can see, most people will get the best value when they redeem points towards More Rewards travel. Let’s take a closer look at each one of the options.

Vancouver Canucks Tickets

More Rewards offers tickets to select number of Vancouver Canucks regular-season games, at .58 CCP when you redeem your points. This is ideal for anyone who lived in B.C.’s lower mainland. Make sure you check the list to see which games are included, as it’s not open to the full schedule.

More Rewards Travel

More Rewards has a full-service travel agency, where you can use your points towards just about anything travel-related: flights, hotels, vacation packages etc. You can book travel online, or by calling their 1-800 number, to speak with an agent.

Travel on BC Ferries

Frequent travellers between Vancouver Island and the lower mainland will appreciate redeeming More Rewards towards travel vouchers on BC Ferries. You have the choice of redeeming 7,200 points for a voucher which is equal to 1 Adult, one-way fare, 7,500 points + $45 for a vehicle and passenger one-way fare (partial redemption), and lastly, 30,000 points for the same fare.

Gift Cards (various retailers)

More Rewards allows you to redeem your points to purchase gift cards at a number of retailers. The point value varies depending on the type of gift card you choose, however. For example, an $85 gift card to Big White ski resort is worth .20 cents per point ($85 value @ 43,000 MR points), while a ride on the Sea-To-Sky Gondola is worth almost .45 CPP, a much better value ($44 value @ 9,800 MR points). I should point out that you can also redeem More Rewards towards travel-related gift cards. A $50 gift card for Best Western Hotels will set you back 27,000 points, or approximately .19 CPP.

Save-on-Foods Discounts

One of the most popular More Rewards redemption options, though far from the most lucrative, is to redeem your points towards discounts when you buy groceries at Save-On-Foods. It’s easy, and after all, we can all use some quick wins against the grocery budget.

Make a Charitable Donation With More Rewards

You can redeem your More Rewards points to a number of Children’s Hospital Charitable organizations located across Western Canada. All you need to do is let the cashier at your Save-On-Foods location know how many points you wish to donate, in increments of 1000. Save-On-Foods will contribute $2 for every 1000 points. The following charities are supported:

• BC Children’s Hospital Foundation
• Stollery Children’s Hospital Foundation
• Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation
• The Children’s Hospital Foundation of Manitoba
• Children’s Hospital Foundation of Saskatchewan

Making the Most of More Rewards

It’s pretty clear who the More Rewards program is geared towards. Save-On-Foods shoppers, who want to maximize their Save-On points. And if you spend a lot of money at Save-On-Foods or any of the other partner retailers, then it would make sense to take advantage of the More Rewards program. If you don’t frequent Save-On-Foods or live in B.C., it’s going to be difficult to make the most of this rewards program.

It’s too bad that they no longer have a credit card affiliation, but with the recent changes to the executive structure, you never know, perhaps another credit card deal is in the plans. That is just speculation on my part, of course. Either way, stay tuned, as it will be interesting to see what enhancements might be coming down the pipe.