The previous one seems less deceptive - it makes the user check a box that mentions the VIP program.

Thank you for this.

I was going to say OP's (your) girlfriend went through this 8 months ago, which probably meant a completely different looking checkout page. We all know startups are constantly trying different things in their UI to increase conversion.

Thanks. For me - they are and were good enough. In particular you can get your shoes for past credits. This is far from scam.