So Australia has been hit by a massive wave of cheap deals from online "coupon" websites. Local news promotes these cheaper deals almost every week I swear! You can find anything on the internet from cheap cosmetics, fashion, ,shoes, accessories and beauty deals. Although Ebay is still a top place to find almost anything and everything, I find that there are so many online alternatives that can do even better!
Catch of the Day will routinely have their Glamathon, selling beauty products with up to 90% off savings. They even offer GHD hair straighteners at the fraction of the price. You will find great savings from Perfume sets, make-up and beauty products. I like when they have $10 day which I think happens every month. There is sometimes some really random items but pretty cheap offers.
The shopspot actually promoted the fact that they sold cosmetics as low as $2.50 each. Total bargain! A Maybelline/Covergirl/Revlon lipstick normal retails at $15-$25 so it's definitely a considerable saving! They also do sell other accessories, such as designer glasses, clothing, fragrances and costume jewellery.
Ozsale, buyinvite and modnique is similar to The shop spot, in selling a lot of cheaper designer men and women's clothing, kids clothing, homewares, cosmetics as well as food and wine.
Styletread is all about SHOES!! Nothing more said :P
Scoopon, Jump on it, Spreets, Ourdeal and Living social will advertise local businesses and products for the fraction of the price. It's based on how many people purchase the product and money is made back before you actually "win" the item. Most of the time you have a time restriction before the coupon purchased expires.
You do have to sign up to all these websites but the great thing is, you can get a daily email with the specials. This is great, because you can buy items that you actually are interested in.
I also threw in shopfree.com.au. Shopfree provides free offers or cheap deals for all sorts of businesses. It's based on the community sharing deals they may see on the website. It is routinely updated and for the "free" offers, you do have to sign over some personal information to receive the product. If you are one of those people who doesn't like handing over your info, then Shopfree is probably not the best place for you.
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Although, shopping online will find you saving a lot of dollars, you may find it to be a little impersonal because you don't have the luxury of trying on clothes and shoes, testing the make-up counter or smelling those fragrances . That's not to say you can't go to the shops and test everything, then come back online to make all your purchases but sometimes you just need to get out of the house and gain some social interaction :)
The outlet mall we have in Perth is Harbour Town. It's a fantastic place where you know you can find a good bargain. I personally now go there for:
The best thing about Diva is the fact that costume jewellery that used to be $39.95 is now down to $3-$5. Nothing in that store is over $5. So if you wanted to spend $50 in that store, you potentially have a minimum of 10 items. It's Fabulous!
My boyfriend bought a pair of converse shoes for $80, down from $150 from an Converse outlet. Thought this was a good deal because whilst he got the black pair, he bought me a pair of Marimekko converse shoes for $100 down from $180. Absolutely Love them!
The stores I usually check out are:-
I have always loved Valley Girl and Temt because they routinely have nothing over $9.95 days. So dresses, cotton tops, skirts, pants, work clothes and accessories are all under $9.95. The other day I bought about 7 different cardigans because they cost $7.95 each. You can't go wrong when these cardigans used to cost $29.95-$49.95 and you are then paying $7.95.
I'm really into ally and Chica booti at the moment, because although they are similar to Valley Girl and Temt, they are more funkier in style. If you want to look different but not going over the top, then these stores are great to check out.
The only problem, I find is that none of these stores in normal retail shopping centres offer loyalty programs. I think if they had loyalty programs, I'd be all over it!
I suggest signing up to any loyalty programs you can find. I think this is a nifty way of saving just a few more dollars. I find you can have more loyalty to your local coffee shop then anything substantial you could use in day to day life.
My current loyalty cards include:-
Flybuys is good for any purchases in stores like Kmart and Target. So clothing, homewares, make-up, electronics and furniture can all go towards your point storage. I like that you can use Flybuys at you local Caltex petrol station to accumulate points.
I signed up to Hoyts for $10 per year, and get emails with latest competitions and offers. Hoyts offers it members $10 movie weeks in which they choose a movie currently released and you'll pay $10 for a ticket if purchased during that week.
Mybeautyspot was a free signup and they offer discounts on perfume. On your birthday they also send you a voucher to get a discount in there store. I am a perfume nut and have over 50 bottles (I think) and collect them like crazy. It's worse now that every celebrity have to come out with their own designs.
Priceline I feel is so obvious to sign up for. Every girl (or guys?) needs to buy beauty products including facial cream, make-up, shower gel, hair products and then your essentials such as soap, handwash, tooth paste and facial tissues. With Priceline, every purchase stores points and at the end of the quarter, they will send you a voucher for how many dollars you have discounted on your next purchase.
With Boost, you get emails to new offers and competitions and for every 10 drinks you purchase, the next one is free. Plus they offer so many healthy drink options too, that you feel better about yourself at the same time.
The Gold Entertainment card. You can purchase every year an entertainment book which offers a bunch of vouchers for popular restaurants and social activities. They do also offer a section which leads to their website that includes discounts on accommodation, perfumes, magazine subscriptions and gifts. It costs roughly $65 for the book but at least you know you can make the money back with all the discounts you can get. Plus it's an excuse to go out and catch up with people.
And finally, the last loyalty program I am with is with my Credit Card. Every purchase I make including pay bills will go towards my "reward" points. Now in an electronic world, most things we pay are with our Credit Card. I figure, why not join a Credit Card that rewards you at the same time. I got a free ipod touch nano with my reward points. I was so excited when they first released these ipods that I couldn't wait to get one. When I saw my bank offering it as a reward item, I fully snapped up the pink one! I thought it was well worth the years of loyalty to get such a cool item.
So in conclusion, online stores will mark down almost anything you need just to cut the big guys. I think with more coupon websites coming out, it seriously gives anyone the opportunity to save. I do prefer in-store shopping because you can see the items close up and have fun while you're out. I go online when I know that I can find a price that knocks out the in-store price. I believe it's all about researching and finding what fits in your budget at the same time. Happy shopping!
~~**0o0 Lush LiLi 0o0**~~
This skirt currently retails at AU$35. Following supre.com.au, they are now permanently offering free shipping worldwide for all orders over AU$80. I think that's fantabulous!! Also, Supre routinely have sales, so I wouldn't be surprised in the upcoming weeks that this skirt will sell for less. Follow this link: http://www.supre.com.au/Sale.aspx?f1202 to check out the current sale items.
