Get Disloyal with These Indie Coffee Shops

Forget a loyalty card — how about a Disloyalty Card? That's what Peregrine barista Dawn Shanks and her collaborator Christy Pelton are bringing to Washington.

The deal: Six different independent coffee shops have joined together to create a single rewards card. Customer can visit the shops, get a stamp with a purchase, and get a free coffee beverage when they've hit up all the places. Shanks has been working since the summer drumming up participation in the project, after seeing it work successfully in other cities.

"I think for baristas, one of the things we want to do well is connect with customers over coffee in a way that makes customers excited, and that makes them feel good about going into coffee shops," she said. "I hope the card is a fun way for D.C. coffee lovers to sort of explore different shops and engage with the people making coffee."

The initial participants are Blind Dog, The Coffee Bar, Peregrine Espresso, Chinatown Coffee, Filter and La Mano. There are 500 cards available in the initial printing (coffee shops are distributing them however they like), with the option for shops to go for a second printing (apparently The Coffee Bar is already out of cards, so she's headed there today to bring them more). Eventually, Shanks would like to do another round featuring shops from Virginia and Maryland.
· DC Disloyal [Official Site]