Card briefs: National City, Grocer Launch Rebate Program

Indiana subsidiary launched the Marsh Fresh Idea Visa Card earlier this month. Cardholders will earn a 1% rebate on all card purchases, regardless of merchant, redeemable for free groceries at Marsh. Rebate checks will be issued quarterly in $5 increments. Any customer with at least $500 in total card charges during each calendar quarter will receive a rebate. The amount of the rebate will be deducted from their grocery bill at the point of sale. Marsh said the cobranded credit card combines the benefits of its existing Fresh Idea customer loyalty card with those of a general purpose bank card. The Fresh Idea program provides electronic discounts on varied products each week, and serves as a check approval card and video rental card. In addition, Fresh Idea marketing partners, including the Indianapolis Zoo, provide exclusive offers to cardholders. More than 400,000 Marsh customers are enrolled in the program throughout Marsh's 79 supermarkets in Indiana and western Ohio. The card has no annual fee and an introductory interest rate of 8.9% through April 30, 1996. The rate then will be prime plus 6.9% for gold cards and prime plus 8.9% for classic cards.