Wow Bao Links Loyalty Program to New Roblox Experience

Asian fast-casual restaurant chain Wow Bao is continuing its Web3 push with a new Roblox experience that is integrated with its Hot Buns Club rewards program.

Since launching in 2003 in Chicago, Wow Bao has expanded to nearly 700 locations across the U.S. as well as to 6,000 grocery stores, and now Roblox.

Roblox players who enter the Wow Bao Dim Sum Palace are greeted by a DJ and dance floor. From there they can continue through a number of doors and hallways to enter areas like the Steam lounge, Momo’s restaurant and a hidden Hot Buns Club speakeasy. Hidden somewhere within the club is a free Bao-themed avatar head accessory. Once the hidden object has been located, users can head to hbc.wowbao.com, where they will be prompted to sign up (or sign in) to the Hot Buns Club rewards program and connect their Roblox account. They can then head back to Roblox to claim their digital item.

After Roblox players join the Hot Buns Club to claim the limited-supply avatar item, they will receive a link via email for a free box of Wow Bao at their local grocer and also be enrolled for a chance to win free bao for a year. Additionally, as newly minted VIP members of the Hot Buns Club, they will earn exclusive benefits and a one-of-a-kind digital “CollectaBao” NFT.

“Wow Bao has never shied away from being a trailblazer in technology and innovation,” said Geoff Alexander, President and CEO of Wow Bao in a statement. “By connecting gamers with our online ordering channels and rewards program, we are inviting new customers to experience our brand, rewarding our most frequent guests, and embarking on something that has never been done.”

This isn’t Wow Bao’s first foray into the world of Web3: The company introduced the Hot Buns Club in late 2022 as a tiered NFT membership program that operates as an extension of its Bao Bucks rewards program. In 2023, Wow Bao began minting its first NFTs (known as “CollectaBaos”), and fans who purchase the NFTs are automatically enrolled in the rewards club.

Wow Bao partnered with Flaunt and Paytronix to power the integration between the Hot Buns Club rewards program and its virtual experience on Roblox, which was developed by Sawhorse Productions.