discounts Archives | MoneyDigest.sg

Awesome IKEA Hacks You Wouldn’t Want To Miss

Aside from Sephora, one of the beloved brands in Singapore and beyond is IKEA.

IKEA is the Swedish brainchild of Mr. Ingvar Kamprad. Well known for its modern architectural products that ooze simplicity, from furniture to plants and even Swedish meatballs, IKEA offers a wide range of items essential in your home. Most of their products are not only elegant but also affordable. That said, who would not fall in love with this brand?

From becoming a part of the IKEA family to following them on social media, these hacks could take your IKEA savings game to the next level:

1. BECOME A PART OF THE IKEA FAMILY

You would be surprise to know that IKEA offers a free discounts program with no strings attached! As an IKEA family member, you are entitled to several benefits such as special discounts, members-only savings events, monthly offers on the Swedish Food Market, and complimentary coffee or tea with each visit.

There are two kinds of membership called temporary and permanent. A temporary membership gets to enjoy the lower prices, discounted meals and complimentary drinks for a year while a permanent member who spent S$150 within a year will enjoy the full suite of benefits.

Becoming an IKEA family member is easy and quick. All you have to do is to sign up for their temporary membership at any IKEA Family kiosks located around their stores (i.e., IKEA Alexandra or IKEA Tampines) or online (i.e., here). These are the current product offers for members only are available here.

2. SHOP WITH A SATIATED STOMACH

Going inside an IKEA store may not be the best idea if you are hungry. It could lead you to splurging at the kitchenware section or at the restaurant itself. You mindlessly go to the products and the meals simply because you want to satisfy the hunger within. Personally, it is hard not to get tempted by the aroma and the looks of their food even when you are full. So, it is best to eat a large meal before heading into the store.

3. ASK FOR REPLACEMENTS

If there are missing parts or a part is defected, do not pay for extra parts. Instead, call or head to the nearest store to ask for replacements. Check the assembly manual for the name of the product and the “number” of the missing parts to communicate smoothly with the IKEA staff.

4. COME PREPARED

Before purchasing anything, it is good to read the reviews and to compare the prices so that your money would not go to waste. IKEA offers a smart way to help you save and it is called ELP. ELP stands for “Even Lower Price”.

As the name suggests, this means that the product is marked lower than before. Thus, you get more savings on various items from lighting to decorations, and so much more. Browse ELPs for yourself, here.

5. GIVE THE PERFECT PRESENT

I for one dislike it when I purchased something that is not fit to the person’s size or style because they will have to put an effort to returning and replacing it. The added effort defeats the purpose of giving the gift. And if you are planning to give a present for your friends’ housewarming then, the stakes are much higher! You must not only find an item that is suitable for the house’s look (which you might have not seen at this moment) but also for their daily needs.

Fortunately, IKEA offers Gift Cards ranging from S$20-1,000. By giving them dated gift cards, you can finally ease your worries, get the value of your money, and help them find the perfect present!

6. UPGRADE YOUR SMALL FLAT

It is no secret that most flats in Singapore are relatively small to ensure that the country’s land is maximized. That said, aside from the 5 Simple Ways To Maximize Your Small Flat Without Spending Too Much, there are other easy ways you can upgrade your flat with IKEA products.

a. Lighting

Aside from opening your blinds to let the natural light flow freely, you can add lamps and spotlight to make the interior appear larger. The adjustable JANSJÖ LED clamp spotlight is available for only $14.90 – SG50 Sale Price.

b. Mirrors

Mirrors can help open up the small space especially if it is placed behind a light source. Get a mirror that is water-resistant and adjustable by purchasing the FRÄCK for only S$19.90.

7. MAKE DIY IKEA PROJECTS

Another genius hack is to purchase cheap IKEA items that are multi-purpose. For example, you can use the DUNSÖN trolley (S$34.90) as a foldable drying rack for your socks or undergarments. All you have to do is to read the instructions – here.

Image Credits: ikeahackers.net

And, if you are a couch potato like most of us, you will never lose a remote again with this DIY project that transforms NJUTA slippers (S$1.90 – SG50 Sale Price) and TOGA place mat ($1.90) into a couch caddy.

Image Credits: instructables.com/id/IKEA-HACK-couch-caddy

You can also put magazines or beverages in these assorted colored slippers. 🙂

8. FOLLOW THE DEALS

Come prepared before you walk inside the store’s door by stalking them on social media. Get the inside scoop of their product launches, store activities, and latest deals on furniture, toys, kitchenware, plants, and so much more by following facebook.com/IKEASingapore.

Currently, the page shares that “SG50 Sale” is ongoing until August 23. With massive discounts of 50% off storewide, you can certainly make the most out of your dollars!

Sources: 1, 2 & 3

NOMNOM: Enjoy Cafe Perks and Privileges with NOM’S

One of the greatest thing about cafe is that they provide you with a haven to retreat from your fast-paced life.

Nothing beats having a cup of latte on one hand, and the latest magazine on another. And if you have companion, it is also a perfect way to chill out while talking about anything under the sun – from ranting about your boss to showing off the photos you took on your overseas trip.

There are many cafes around in Singapore, from the quirky ones to the ultra hip cafes such as Riders Cafe, Carpenter and Cook and Food For Thoughts — to name a few.

What if i tell you there is a way to enjoy perks at different cafes in Singapore? Imagine yourself whipping out a card that allows you to enjoy perks such as free coffee, ice cream, pastries and even discounts at the myriad of unique cafes in Singapore?

You heard it right.

NOMNOM has just unveiled an exclusive privilege card for cafe hoppers, called NOM’S.

The NOM’S card is a cafe-hopping membership card allows you to enjoy perks, exclusive birthday treats and discounts of up to 50% from its list of participating merchants.

Some of the notable ones include discounts and deals from Milk and Honey, Caffe Pralet and Ciel Patisserie.

See the full list here.

The membership card only costs $15 a year, and that works out to be as low as $1.25 a month. It can’t get any more affordable when the privileges you enjoy throughout the years can easily cover the cost!

Even better?

NOMNOM has offered Money Digest readers a special discount. Instead of paying $15, you can now grab hold of a one-year membership for just $9.90! (Unbelievable 80cents a month!)

Simply enter the promo code: MDXNOMS at checkout to enjoy the offer.

They are constantly expanding and looking to bring more unique cafes to hop onboard. And trust me, you wouldn’t be able to get such good price when that day arrives!

D’zerts Cafe (Image: NOMNOM)

Get yours today now, by signing up here.

5 Insider Tricks for Scoring Online Discounts

Katie Paterson from Flipit.com gives the inside scoop on how to get creative in ensuring you pay the lowest price online. Flipit.com is Singapore’s number one promo code portal and all round money-saving platform.

We all love the fun, flexibility and convenience of shopping online, but the biggest perk has got to be the fact you can pretty much guarantee you’ll always be paying the lowest price possible – that is, if you know how to shop online like a pro! Here are a few sneaky insider tips and tricks to help you score a discount each and every time you spend money online.

Bookmark a good coupon code provider – Discount codes almost always have a limited time span (which makes it all the more rewarding when you catch it in time!). The best way to ensure you keep up to date with all the best codes as soon as they’re available is by bookmarking the homepage of a reputable coupon code provider such as Flipit.com. Homepages are updated daily, so checking this page out regularly will ensure you never miss a beat!

Tease webstores by pretending to abandon your cart – Brands who notice and take offence to this kind of move are likely to get in touch and ask why you didn’t see your purchase through, offering a discount (usually around 10%) to encourage you back and make the final payment. Similarly, brands who are being particularly innovative with understanding customer behaviour have been known to install cursor movement detectors which are triggered when you swipe upwards to close the window, revealing a ‘leaving so soon?’ pop-up window. Give it a try!

Sign up to webstore newsletters – Signing up to newsletters can be really useful for online stores. Of course, some can end up bombarding you with emails on a daily basis, but unsubscribing in these situations is simply a matter of clicking a button. It’s worth signing up to newsletters of brands that you love, as those on the mail list are considered a priority, and are always first to be notified of sales, special events or exclusive discounts.

Use a price comparison site – Price comparison sites are the epitome of everything that’s great about shopping online. Shopping around various stores in person to find the cheapest price is an exhausting and time-consuming task, but with price comparison sites such as Priceme.com.sg you can guarantee you’re always paying the lowest possible price available.

Never pay shipping – Shipping costs are a nuisance. Hopefully soon enough they will become a thing of the past, as more brands begin to realise that making the sale and gaining loyal customers is way more important than covering a few dollars postage cost. Unless you’re seeking certain shipping privileges such as same- or next-day delivery, there are a number of ways that you can avoid paying for the delivery of your purchase. For example, some stores offer free shipping if you reach beyond a certain purchase total, so it might be worth buying more (perhaps two of the same item but in different sizes to ensure a perfect fit) and returning whatever isn’t suitable, free of charge. Alternatively, many stores offer shipping voucher codes, and you can always try chancing your luck and reaching out to the brand to ask for free shipping – sometimes being bold pays off, and what have you got to lose?

(This article is brought to you by Flipit.com)

How To Shop On Groupon Like A Pro

Call me a penny pincher.

I love to shop and i do so almost every day – that, however, doesn’t seems synonymous with my attitude towards saving money.

How would a stingy person (if you’d like to call it) like myself still have the tenacity to do shopping everyday? And I don’t mean buying groceries but rather spending on a “want” that is not what you deemed as daily necessities. I do my shopping from the brick and mortar shops to online shopping and i never fail to keep my credit card away for a day.

Here’s the secret: I achieved a sense of satisfaction for being able to spot deals and maximize the utility value of my money. I often make advance purchase, say a voucher on Groupon that would allow me to redeem the offer within a stipulated period.

Being a frequent shopper, i would need to make sure i don’t pay more for what is required right? Every dollar saved is a dollar earned.

How does the idea of saving up to 70% or more on a deal sounds? Too good to be true?

Here’s how:

1. Every month, Groupon will usually (well, at least for the past few months) conduct a 3 hour sale where you can enjoy additional discounts of 10 to 20% if you enter an exclusive promo code.

That’s usually the time i spend a few hours on my computer searching Groupon for items that i need.

Wait. Pause and rewind.

(Skip this if you want to buy the CEO of Groupon a cup of Starbucks’s Caffè Latte)

2. Before you even go directly to the Groupon’s website, first create an account on ShopBack. (a website that provide you with cashbacks) Shopback provides you with cashbacks for over 100 online retailers and for Groupon, you have a neat 4 per cent cashback that you can enjoy. All you need to do is to launch the Groupon’s page from Shopback’s website before doing your shopping.

3. That is not all. You can save even further by using a credit card that provides you with rebates on your purchase. A good one you can consider using is the OCBC Frank Card which allows you to earn a 6 per cent rebate on Groupon. (There is a $60 cap and you need to make a $500 min spend a month)

How much have you saved? Now do your maths.

Using the $49.90 for $100 Cash Voucher for Dim Sum at Wo Peng Cuisine as an example:

To summarise:

Shop during Groupon’s 3 hour sale and get 18% additional discount. ($49.90 * 18% = $9.00 discount)
Use ShopBack to earn cashback of 4%. (4% * ($49.90 * 0.82) = $1.60 cashback)
Use OCBC Frank Card to make payment (6% * ($49.90 * 0.82) = $2.50 cashback)

Instead of paying $100 to dine at Wo Peng Cuisine, i paid only $36.80 after taking into account of the discounts and cashbacks. That is a whopping 73.2% of savings.

I have already accumulated a few hundred dollars in cashbacks without much effort.

For now, sign up for an account on ShopBack and make use of Groupon’s 3 hour sale from 7 – 8 July 2015 and save up to 18% on Dining, Beauty and Leisure Deals with the promo code: “PROMO18“. Arm yourself with a credit card that gives you the best benefits.

(This article is contributed by Jenny, a reader of Money Digest)

Search the site