The archive · Business Models · Product decision · 2024–2025
Poker turns beer loyalty points into shopkeepers' retirement savings — Cannes Silver 2025
AB InBev's Poker let corner shops convert idle BEES beer-loyalty points into pension contributions via Colombia's Colpensiones — 10,000 joined in four months.
Poker (AB InBev Colombia)
What it had to solve
Colombia's informal economy leaves only 18% of citizens with access to a full pension, and the corner shops that sell over 40% of the country's beer have no long-term savings. Poker, AB InBev's second-largest Colombian brand, already paid these shops loyalty points through the BEES B2B platform — but 70% of those points expired unused.
How it works
Only 18% of Colombians have access to a full pension because most work informally, and the corner shops — tenderos — that sell over 40% of the country's beer tend to live on immediate needs. Poker, AB InBev's second-largest Colombian brand, had been paying these shops loyalty points through BEES, its global B2B platform — but 70% of those points went unused and expired.
Monks Bogotá's idea was to change what a point means: instead of redeeming points for goods, shopkeepers would convert them into money deposited directly into a retirement savings account, arranged through Colombia's national pension fund Colpensiones. The execution was a simple adaptation of the existing BEES platform, with push notifications inviting each owner to transfer their points to their pension account.
The program targeted shopkeepers aged 40 to 60 from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. In its first four months, more than 10,000 shopkeepers started saving; 271.4 million BEES points were redeemed; Poker's order volume grew 12.5% nationally and 16% in big cities; and BEES adoption among shopkeepers rose 21%. It won a Silver Lion in Innovation at Cannes 2025.
Why it lands
- The insight was behavioral and quantitative: 70% of loyalty points expired unused, so the program surfaced money that was already owed to shopkeepers.
- Pension savings gave an everyday transaction long-term emotional meaning — every beer sold became an investment in the seller's own future.
- The partnership with Colpensiones and the government made the promise real and trustworthy rather than a marketing slogan.
- It used the existing BEES platform instead of building a new system, so adoption was frictionless for shopkeepers.
What it did
In four months over 10,000 shopkeepers started saving; 271.4 million BEES points were redeemed into pension savings; Poker's order volume rose 12.5% nationally (16% in big cities) and BEES adoption rose 21%. It won a Silver Lion in Innovation at Cannes 2025.
What you can take
A rewards program can be redesigned as an act of care: converting points that would expire into a customer's pension turns every purchase into long-term loyalty.
Since then
The Beer Retirement Account kept running on the BEES platform after launch and kept collecting awards — a Silver Lion in Innovation at Cannes 2025 (part of three Cannes Lions for the campaign), seven London International Awards, six El Ojo awards and a Clio. It gave AB InBev a loyalty mechanic it could repeat in other markets where informal retail dominates beer distribution.
Sources
- Beer Retirement Account — case study
- Poker y Monks redefinen el retiro con una nueva forma de inversión: la cerveza
- Colombia destaca con Plata y Bronce en Innovation con propuestas de Monks y VML
- Poker Beer: Beer retirement account
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