Stores roll out mega-deals for Singles’ Day weekend

There is no better time to shop this year than from Singles’ Day on Nov 11 to Black Friday on Nov 25.

This is the rallying call from Mr Erwin Oei, Metro department stores’ head of marketing, merchandising control and e-commerce, responding to questions on the mood of shoppers during the current year-end sale season.

“As retailers, we are fully aware of macroeconomic uncertainties surrounding the global outlook,” says Mr Oei, referring to global inflation, rising electricity prices and uncertainty as a result of the prolonged war in Ukraine.

“On the domestic front, we are faced with high inflation and an upcoming increase next year in the goods and services tax (GST). For shoppers, there is no better time than during Singles’ Day and Black Friday this year to bag bargains.”

Singapore’s GST will go up from Jan 1, after Parliament passed the Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill on Monday. It will increase from 7 to 8 per cent from Jan 1 in 2023, and from 8 to 9 per cent from Jan 1, 2024.

Singapore’s year-end sales have enjoyed growth at a steady clip for the last two years. A number of retailers had previously told Last year, a number of retailers that The Straits Times spoke to said that sales had jumped by 50 per cent in 2020 from before the pandemic, and that they hoped to match, if not surpass those numbers for 2021.

A spokesman for electronics and electrical retail chain Gain City says that despite the pessimism hovering over the retail sector, footfall at its 12 stores has been consistent over the last three years.

It is Singapore’s largest air-conditioning retailer and provides installation of air-conditioners and also recycles older, worn-out units.

“Footfall at all our stores and showrooms has not been adversely affected,” says the spokesman. “We have found that when these big-ticket items for the home such as air-con units or home appliances like refrigerators break down, our customers prefer to upgrade to a newer model that offers better tech features than go for repairs.”

Here are some deals for the Singles’ Day weekend from Singapore’s retailers for shoppers looking to bag big bargains.

Metro

Metro has a range of Christmas trees priced from $89 to $299 and trimmings to suit different moods. The Sensational Red look is put together with festive embellishments that include a Christmas Cushion ($19.90), baubles (box of six for $19.90), a Christmas House ($9.90) and a Christmas wreath ($23.90). Also, check out Metro’s deals on home appliances and decor accessories, with discounts of up to 50 per cent on selected items.

Info: Available at Metro Paragon, 02-28 Paragon, 290 Orchard Road

OG Department Stores

Get up to 44 per cent off plus an additional 20 per cent discount on beauty products such as Estee Lauder, Lancome, Elizabeth Arden, Shiseido and Kose on Saturday either at OG stores or online. For instance, Shiseido’s Holiday Power Blockbuster Set, which contains 12 items, is now priced at $240 (usual price: $536).

Info: Available at OG Albert, 60 Albert Street; OG People’s Park, 100 Upper Cross Street; and at OG e-Shop (og.com.sg)

Takashimaya Department Store

Japanese retail giant Takashimaya Department Store rings in the festive season with new lines and special deals on a wide range of decorative homeware. One such item is the new Wedgwood three-tier cake stand called Wonderlust Waterlily, priced at $490. Fashioned from fine bone china, it features water lilies in yellow, white and green accented with delicate pink and finished with 22K gold.

Info: Available at Takashimaya Department Store, 391A Orchard Road. Go to takashimaya.com.sg

Gain City

​Gain City’s Singles’ Day sales are on till Sunday and feature storewide discounts on selected television sets, home appliances, IT products, bedding and furniture. One of its star buys is the Acer 15.6-inch FHD Laptop with 12th Generation Intel Processor (8GB RAM and with 256GB SSD), which is going for $711 (usual price: $898). Shoppers get an additional $11 discount during the sale period.

Info: Available at Gain City Megastore@Sungei Kadut, Gain City Ang Mo Kio, Gain City Marina Square, Gain City Tampines 1, Gain City Waterpoint Way and Gain City Funan showrooms. Go to www.gaincity.com for store locations and opening hours.

Harvey Norman

Home and lifestyle store Harvey Norman’s Emma leather sofa is upholstered with top grain cow leather, which has a high level of resistance to scrapes and scratches.

Info: The Emma full cow top grain leather four-seater sofa with adjustable headrests is now at $2,699 (usual price: $4,499). Available at Harvey Norman’s Millenia Walk Flagship Store and branches at Centrepoint, Parkway Parade, Northpoint Superstore and ESR BizPark. Go to www.harveynorman.com.sg for store locations.

Best Denki

For the Singles’ Day weekend until Monday, Best Denki is offering attractive deals and promotions on a wide range of electrical and electronic products in-store as well as online.

The Japanese electronics retailer is giving discounts of up to 70 per cent on deals priced from as low as $11. One must-buy deal is a 50-inch 4K UHD TV at $649 (usual price: $1,099) with only 10 sets a store. (The brand name will be revealed in-store.)

Info: Available at all Best Denki retail outlets. Go to www.bestdenki.com.sg/double-date-sale for more information.

BHG Singapore

Department store chain BHG has a catchy 11.11 buzzword for its in-store promotions: Its Single Jingle weekend sale period starts from Singles’ Day and ends on Sunday. After that, its BHG Christmas Jingle All The Way kicks off the festivities from Monday to Dec 25 with Black Friday sales from Nov 24 to 28.

There are currently storewide bargains featuring discounts of up to 60 per cent off beauty and wellness products, fashion, home appliances as well as bedding and children’s products.

Info: Available at BHG Bugis at Bugis Junction; BHG Bishan at Bishan Junction 8; BHG Choa Chu Kang at Lot One Mall; and BHG online at bhgsingapore.com.sg.

Courts Singapore

Electronics and furniture retailer Courts is gearing up for the year-end shopping season with specially crafted holiday deals.

The Courts Year-End sale started on Singles’ Day and goes on till Cyber Monday on Nov 28.

The first 500 people to shop in-store at Courts’ physical outlets get a chance to snag $111 in Courts Cash Vouchers when they spend a minimum of $1,111.

There will also be free upsizing on selected products and gifts such as Xiaomi robot vacuum cleaner, Nintendo Switch console, Samsung 50-inch LED TV and Samsung Galaxy Flip4 with purchases of bedding and furniture.

Info: Go to courts.com.sg for the full list of store locations and to shop online.