DESIGNER labels have never been short of their fans all year round, and shoppers who covet these labels but want them at slashed prices are going wild during the Great Singapore Sale.
Ms Sally Seah, 35, an office manager, buys her designer togs almost exclusively during the sale period.
"The savings are very substantial," she says. "For example, for a Prada bag priced at $1,600, a 20 per cent discount means savings of $400."
Mr Jake Beh, 20, a freelance graphic and web designer, got in on the action too.
TOP-END BRANDS, ROCK-BOTTOM PRICES
WHICH high-end stores are offering sales and further reductions? my paper made the necessary calls to find out.
Blackjack, Forum The Shopping Mall #01-10 (Tel: 6735-0975): Up to 50 per cent off
Diesel, VivoCity #01-204/5 (Tel: 6376-9007) and Paragon #02-17/8 (Tel: 6732-3525): Up to 50 per cent off
Bebe, VivoCity #01-120 (Tel: 6376-9486) and Wisma Atria #02-28/32 (Tel: 6738-9889): Up to 40 per cent off
Etro, Paragon #01-30 (Tel: 6737-5108): Up to 50 per cent off
Giuseppe Zanotti, Palais Renaissance #01-09 (Tel: 6836-4021): Up to 35 per cent off
Aldo, VivoCity #01-192 (Tel: 6376-9775), Wisma Atria #03-24 (6836-4919), Raffles City #01-07 (Tel: 6336-2533): Up to 70 per cent off
Aigner, Paragon #01-39 (Tel: 6738-4039): Up to 70 per cent off
alldressedup, Paragon #02-37 (Tel: 6836-3238): Up to 50 per cent off
The Link, 1 Nassim Road #02-00 (Tel: 6733-7185): Up to 50 per cent off
He bought a Gucci waist pouch with 20 per cent shaved off its original price of $520 and a pair of Armani spectacles at 15 per cent off. They would have cost him $480 without the discount.
"I buy designer products at least once every two months," he says. "During a sale, I'm more tempted to spend."
While most big-name brands like Hermes and Louis Vuitton do not have sales because they do not want the perceived value of their brand to go down, upmarket brands like Hugo Boss, Prada and Gucci are happy to put their items on sale.
A spokesman for Hugo Boss explained: "We only have two sales a year. The reason for the sale is to clear the items of that season to make way for new stocks."
Cult labels such as Anteprima, Grey Ant and Alexander Wang, which can carry price tags that run into the thousands, can be found at marked-down prices, too.
Savvy shoppers also know that brands are smart enough to put older inventory on sale during GSS in a bid to clear their stocks.
Ms Vicky Tan, 27, who works in the banking sector, added: "I won't wait for a sale to buy designer goods as not only are sale items older stocks, but usually, only seasonal ranges go on sale."
Seasonal items refer to products and ranges that belong exclusively to a brand's spring/summer or autumn/ winter collection. Such items are taken off the shelves once the season is over.
According to Hugo Boss, Ms Tan's experience is par for the course.
Its spokesman said: "Seasonal items are phased out after the season is over, so naturally brands mark the prices down as the season approaches its end."
He added: "Classic ranges will not be phased out, and demand for them is higher, so they never go on sale."
"If you don't mind the older stock, it's more sensible to wait for them to be on sale," says Ms Seah.
