Surely, you’ve heard: The folks at Zippy’s will terminate the restaurant’s popular Zippy’s Senior Card, effective Aug. 22, 2022.
It was an unexpected surprise that the treasured membership Senior Card would no longer be a valid in another month, since it provided a nifty 10 per cent discount at the restaurant, with the same discount for Napoleon Bakery purchases.
The announcement to terminate didn’t mention why, but it appears to be a program that became too popular. Meaning members like me regularly use the card, a benefit for being a senior, several times a month … well worth the $20 annual fee to renew.
As a thank-you for ongoing participation, Zippy’s is offering two options:
- A $100 food credit card, as part of a new Zipster program, an online process to monitor spending. It involves earning Zipcoins with purchases, useable for purchases, with details forthcoming in August, and likely will require an iPhone and/or a computer to monitor, options not user-friendly among the very senior folks.
- A $20 check suitable for spending at Zippy’s to those who bypass the Zipster. Easier to adopt, and once the funds go, you’re on your own. No more card needed, no calculation required.
The reality is, inflation has been a challenge for retailers, including the restaurant-food industry. Zippy’s – home of the Zipmin, fried chicken, chili and Napples – is a local business and not a Mainland chain (though Zippy’s is building Las Vegas outpost). Sustaining discounts eat into profits; I’d have joined the plan, even if it continued with a costly renewal every year.
The only other frequent-dining card I hold is courtesy AARP, where seniors join and have a beneficial partner since Outback Steakhouse welcomes the AARP card which provides a 10 per cent discount on food (alcohol not included).
Senior-targeted non-food discount programs include Ross, the clothing/houseware outfit; Consolidated and Regal Theatre cards, which offer free popcorn, a single admission, or other perks without the patron needing to keep monitoring spending; the CVS/Longs and Walgreen cards, which enable you to buy advertised sales items at sale prices. Oh, I also buy into the Ben Franklin yearly membership card, which offers 10 per cent off all purchases, year-round. These are local merchants with ties to larger corporations on the mainland.
So stand-alone Zippy’s is to be applauded, for the duration of its Senior Card following. It allowed all of us who had the card to make “next stop Zippy’s” a truism … you go after or before a nighttime function/event or that regular breakfast or lunch stop.
The future issue to consider: without the senior discount, will many seniors curtail their Zippy’s visit? The card – well, discount – surely was appreciated but one’s got to wonder: will patronage go down among oldsters, who may simply cut out one visit a month, or more, with a made-at-home peanut butter and jelly sandwich, or a homemade breakfast with eggs and bacon. Or with Spam.
You gotta know that prices will go higher yet, before tumbling down. So it’s somewhat astonishing to know that a side-order of Spam at Zippy’s now costs $8.10 (for three slices) and CVS Longs this week has Spam on sale for $1.99 a tin, a stupendous bargain since many retailers now charge up to $3.98 a can. …
‘Hamilton’ single ticket sales Thursday
Single ticket sales for “Hamilton,” Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Tony Award-winning blockbuster musical, will begin at 10 a.m. Thursday (July 21) at the Blaisdell Center box office and at www.ticketmaster.com.
The show premieres at Blaisdell Concert Hall at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 7, and will run for an unprecedented eight-week residency through Jan. 29, 2023.
The show’s producer, Jeffrey Seller, and two actors in the cast to appear here — Morgan Anita Wood (as Angelica Schuyler) and DeAundré Woods (as Alexander Hamilton) – are in town for a press conference today. …
New playdates for postponed ‘Edwina’
The I’m a Bright Kid Foundation, the organization formed to perpetuate and preserve the legacy of the late director-teacher Ron Bright, has announced rescheduled playdates for three remaining performances at Paliku Theatre, Windward Community College.
After last Friday’s (July 15) opening night, the other weekend shows were canceled.
The new playdates are at:
— 7 p.m. Friday (July 22).
— 2 and 4:30 p.m. Saturday (July 23).
If tickets need to be adjusted, contact IABK, not Paliku Theatre, for help. If you cannot attend and hold tickets, you may request a refund. For information, email: info@imabrightkid.org
Cleo (full name, Cleonice) Hamm portrays Edwina; Drew Bright, a grandson of the late Ron Bright and Mo Bright, and son of Clarke and Lynell Bright, plays Scott Kunkle, a neighbor boy, who is Edwina’s love interest.
Tickets are $23 for adults 21 or older, $18 for seniors 65 and older plus students and active-duty military, and $13 for children 3-12. Tickets for video element are available online www.imabrightkid.org/tickets
And that’s Show Biz. …
