How To Start a Mug Club in 2024

We can’t say it enough — starting a mug club can help boost your bottom line with consistent cash flow.

As bars and restaurants across the country recover from the business losses of the COVID-19 pandemic, one way to draw in repeat business is with a mug club.

Most mug clubs are hard to join — and that’s intentional.

By making the mug club feel exclusive, it not only makes the current members feel important, it also generates interest for new people to join.

Top tips to start your own mug club

We love helping bars and restaurants with their mug club design. A solid glass mug and a sandblasting system gives us lots of creative license to help your logo really pop. The preciseness of sandblasting allows us to engrave text, logos and graphics to make the item more outstanding.

Here are our top tips as you look to start your own mug club. For more in-depth info, check out this blog.

1. Make sure you know all the costs upfront.

There’s nothing worse than starting a promo and losing money on it. Ask yourself some of the following questions: How much will each mug cost? How many will you order to begin? What will the annual membership cost? How much will you need to make in order to be profitable?

2. Detail all the perks.

Knowing all of your benefits ahead of time is critical. Think about what other bars are doing, take the best parts and decide what you want to do to be unique. What is going to lure in new members? Consider a monthly promo to entice members to come often, alongside your weekly mug club specials.

3. Plan your marketing early.

How will you generate buzz? Do you already have a large following on social media to cater toward, or are most of your regulars local? Use a multi-level marketing plan, and make sure all of your staff are aware of the plans as you go forward. Keep a detailed schedule and stick to it.

4. Lock down the enrollment process.

Are you going to do online or in-person enrollment? What is the cutoff date or number of members you will allow? Make sure to have an online form that captures all of the contact information for those who apply, so you can use that for future marketing opportunities.