As a college student, it’s clear that the easiest gift to receive and to give is a gift card. It’s nice to have a little extra money to spend at a favorite shop or restaurant. Many people at UGA receive Starbucks or Chick-fil-a giftcards, but find they’re unable to use them on campus. Indeed, hidden in the fine print of these gift cards, you will find that college campuses are not a “participating location” for gift card use.
This is unfortunate, because UGA has just opened up a Starbucks. I often find myself in line, paying cash or debit for a beverage, when I have Starbucks gift cards in my wallet. I have to wait until I go off-campus to use my gift cards, even though using them on campus would be a great benefit and a money saver. Many people like to give gift cards as gifts because that way, they guarantee the money they’re giving to you is used on something you enjoy, and that they want you to have. A relative feels better giving $15 to Chick-fil-a instead of $15 that could be used to buy 20 cups of Ramen Noodles.
So, the question becomes, why don’t college locations accept gift cards? It could possibly just have to do with the fact that the eateries are run by the school, and not the company itself, so there are computer software differences. Could it be possible that management is worried gift cards will be the only form of payment they receive, and thus, the location wouldn’t be profitable? No matter the real reason, it’s an inconvenience for college students everywhere.
An advantage to UGA’s campus is that we have not only one but two coffee chains on campus, and Jittery Joe’s in the MLC does, in fact, take gift cards. Their gift cards are available to purchase online or in-store and can be used at any of their locations in Athens.
Gifs from giphy.