PALMYRA’S Cafe 58 Espresso Bar has been offering steep discounts for coffees purchased in a reusable cup for close to a year but the incentive did not really catch on until Craig Reucassel’s shocking documentary War on Waste aired in May.
Reucassel pulled back the curtain on the 52 mega tonnes of waste generated by Australians each year and his message seemed to resonate according to Cafe 58 manager Tara Ravaei.
“We had a few regular customers that knew about our discount for reusable cups but since the War on Waste aired it’s just gone crazy,” she said.
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READ NOW“I’d say about 60 per cent of our regular morning takeaway customers now bring their own cup compared to less than 20 per cent before.”
Cafe 58 charges a flat $3 for any coffee purchased in a reusable cup, a discount of up to 50 per cent on some of the more creative orders and milk and flavour alternatives available.
“Even if you are ordering something like a soy decaf double shot latte that would normally cost around $5.60 you are still only going to be charged $3,” Mrs Ravaei said.
“We see it as a win-win situation, we hopefully get more customers because they’re getting rewarded for using a reusable cup and at the same time we’re making an impact and helping the environment.”
Cafe 58 is one of four City of Melville coffee shops listed on website responsiblecafes.org, which contains information on cafes that offer discounts for customers bringing reusable cups.
“We are definitely getting more customers in general – people that have never been here before have commented they saw us on the Responsible Cafes websites and chose us specifically because they get the discount,” Mrs Ravaei said.
Reusable coffee cups are purchasable at Cafe 58 for between $7 and $30.
The cafe also donates all of its leftover food to Street Friends, a charity that distributes the goods to the homeless in Fremantle.
Cafes offering a bring-your-own-cup discount
Cafe 58 Espresso Bar, Palmyra Little Horn Espresson, Applecross Coffea Fine Espresson, Garden City Charisma Cafe, Attadale Cleaner Communities: full list of Perth cafes offering a discount for reusable coffee cups
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