1. Client : PayPal Country : Singapore
Publication : The Straits Times
Date : 9 November 2012
Topic : Shop on Black Friday at home
URL : http://www.straitstimes.com/premium/life/story/shop-black-friday
http://www.straitstimes.com/premium/life/story/shop friday-home-
20121109?rm=1
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Shop on Black Friday at home
With a little online savvy, Singaporeans can enjoy discounts during the biggest sale event in the US
Beat the crowds and queues in the United States such as those that form outside retailers such as
J.C. Penney by shopping online with help from online shopping concierges. -- PHOTOS: BLOOMBERG,
COMGATEWAY
By Rachel Chan
Singapore shoppers, get set for the most highly anticipated sales event of the year in the United
States: Black Friday on Nov 23. But far from being unlucky, it means even buyers here can get lucky
and enjoy the huge discounts on offer.
The "black" refers not to doom, but boom, as profits pour in for retailers, putting them "in the
black".
Although Singaporeans cannot visit the bricks-and-mortar outlets of famous American clothing
chains such as Macy's or Old Navy when they open their doors to eager spenders camped outside,
they can still shop online.

2. No need to be put off by the fact that some US merchants do not accept international customers or
deliver outside the country - just use a PayPal account and a US address provided by an online
concierge such as Borderlinx or VPost (see story below).
PayPal is an electronic payment method, while an online shopping concierge receives your parcels
and forwards them to you in Singapore for a fee.
And even though merchandise is priced in US dollars and shipping costs extra, the massive discounts
make it worthwhile. In fact, shopping online is better - you can avoid the crowd-crush and visit more
than one store at a time.
Hundreds of merchants give discounts of up to 70 per cent off everything from apparel and
electronics to toys and toiletries.
Black Friday is always the Friday right after Thanksgiving and is on Nov 23 this year.
It is when most of the US does its Christmas shopping. Around 20 per cent of the year's sales happen
between Black Friday and Christmas. According to news articles on About.com, Black Friday has
been the unofficial opening of the Christmas shopping season since the 1930s.
And when Cyber Monday - the Monday after Black Friday - rolls around, prices on items that are not
already sold out are likely to be further reduced online.
A spokesman for HopShopGo, an online shopping concierge which enables users from selected
countries outside the US including Singapore to shop at sites which do not accept payment from or
deliver outside the country, said that there was a 50 per cent year-on-year increase in the number of
transactions from 2010 to 2011 during the Black Friday and Cyber Monday period.
"We expect 2012 to be bullish, especially with the increased awareness of US online shopping in
Singapore," he added.
Online shoppers here who Life!Weekend spoke to said that they counted Drugstore.com and
websites by Macy's, Nordstrom, Gap and Banana Republic among their favourite go-tos for Black
Friday sales.
Ms Chan Limei, 27, a teacher who has been an avid Black Friday shopper for four years, says: "Some
of these brands are available in Singapore but their merchandise is better-priced online.
Plus, the range is more varied. She adds: "This year, I'm planning to get a nice set of Calvin Klein
pyjamas for my mother for Christmas. I bought a pair before for about US$30 (S$36.60) when it was
on discount; a similar set in Singapore might go for up to $90."
She recommends finding friends with whom you can consolidate your purchases to maximise
shipping, she recommends. Shipping multiple parcels together means you pay only one base charge.
Here are some tips from four seasoned Black Friday shoppers.