Promote your business with STARCard, our free discount card for the local South Bank and Waterloo community run in partnership between South Bank and We Are Waterloo BIDs.
What is STARCard?
Designed to boost local business and attract loyal customers from within the neighbourhood, STAR CARD is the exclusive discount scheme for people who live, work or study in South Bank and Waterloo.
Operated in partnership between South Bank BID and We Are Waterloo BID, the card offers discounts across a variety of businesses in the area, from restaurants and bars to shops, boat trips and leisure activities.
All offers are listed on the website, starcard.london along with the details of how to register to use STARCard and how to redeem offers. The ‘card’ itself is a digital card which users can add to their smartphone wallet.
Who are the users of STARCard?
STARCard is designed for people who live, work or study in South Bank and Waterloo. The scheme now has 11,000+ registered users.
Approximately 55% of our users are people who work here – and of these 63% come into the area at least three days a week.
What kind of offers do STARCard users want?
In 2025 we sent a questionnaire to all our registered STARCard users to understand more about how they view the scheme.
Based on their feedback, we recommend offering a minimum discount of 20%. Even if it is only available on certain days, this is more of an incentive to attract custom than lower 'always-on' discounts. Special launch offers for new businesses, new menus or shows, work particularly well too – encouraging people to use an offer before it is gone.
What Ts & Cs do I need?
It’s up to you. You can specify that the offer is only available on certain days, or between certain hours. You might want customers to show their STARCard when ordering, or to enter a special discount code when booking online.
We’d just suggest trying to avoid it being overly complicated or restrictive. Remember to specify if the discount can be used alongside other offers or set menus.
How are the offers promoted?
We send a monthly email to all cardholders highlighting a selection of new and older offers from across both BIDs, encouraging users to look at the website for the full list.
Can I turn my offer on and off throughout the year?
Absolutely. Any time you want to turn the offer off, just let us know. Or you can specify set exclusions from the start so that it can’t be used in your busy periods - eg,not valid in December, or excluding Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day etc.
Can I just list my usual offers, such as my happy hour?
Absolutely. Users of the card are looking for discounts, so if you have a regular Happy Hour, we can list that for you. However, we can’t list things like set menus, or discounts redeemed through other schemes like NUS or Blue Light.
Can I do more than one offer?
Yes. But we recommend not too many, and again, keeping it simple.
Submit an offer to be included on STARCard
To submit a new offer to be included onto STARCard, please complete this form. A member of the team will then reach out to you to confirm inclusion of the offer on STARCard.
Please note that your offer must be redeemable at a levy-paying business within the South Bank and Waterloo neighbourhood. STARCard is a discount card exclusively for workers, students and residents of South Bank and Waterloo. We do not use our platforms to promote businesses in any other areas of London.
