5 Local Brands You Never Knew Were Online

Think your neighbourhood mom and pop stalls are still setting up shop the old-fashioned way? You may be pleasantly surprised to find out that many of your friendly neighbourhood stores have already gone digital.

That’s right, many small and medium businesses have an online presence and are selling their products on 99%SME, a dedicated eMarketplace for SMEs.

Here are 5 local brands you probably never knew were online:

1.      Thye Shan Medical Hall

Thye Shan Medical Hall (泰山药行) is a well-established brand of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) products and services. With more than 60 years of history, the first Thye San outlet was opened in Chinatown in 1955 by Mr Chan Chak Poey.

Rather than make a trip down to one of their three retail outlets, you can buy premium bird’s nest, abalone, tonics and powder blends from their online store.

Visit their online store here: https://www.99sme.sg/thye-shan-medical-hall-pte-ltd/

2.      Yikowei

Established in 1983, Yikowei (一口味) has been serving up homemade traditional Chinese pastries lovingly made with the best ingredients. Get their traditional pineapple tarts freshly baked from the oven and delivered to your doorstep.

Visit their online store here: https://www.99sme.sg/yikowei/

3.      Nam Shiang & Co

Established in 1942, Nam Shiang & Co has grown to become a leading exporter and distributor of housewares in East Asia. They carry a wide range of quality household products and housewares from established brands all over the world, catering to individual home users, F&B businesses, and other corporations.

Visit their online store here: https://www.99sme.sg/stores/nam-shiang-and-co./

4.      Coffeehock

Coffeehock has established itself as a household name in local coffee and tea manufacturing, ever since it started its business in 1997. Known for its great taste and quality, you can find Coffeehock products being retailed in local supermarkets, convenience stores and minimarts.

Craving for a taste of local kopi or teh from the coffeeshop? You can now easily purchase Coffeehock coffee and tea beverages, such as the Signature Coffeehock Coffee-O Kosong, 2898 Coffee Powder and 2 in 1 Teh-O Ceylon teabag from its online store.

Visit their online store here: https://www.99sme.sg/coffeehock/

5.      Fu Wah Department Store

Having been in Bedok for the past 30 years, Fu Wah Department Store is a well-known household name in the neighbourhood. Like a typical neighbourhood mama shop, the store sells anything and everything that you can think of, ranging from cosmetics, beauty, hair, fragrance, healthcare, to slimming products.

Visit their online store here: https://www.99sme.sg/fu-wah-department-store/

99%SME for Small and Medium Businesses

Are you a local Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) like some of the businesses featured above? Jump on the bandwagon now and reach a wider audience effortlessly by selling online with 99%SME. 99%SME is a campaign started by DBS and Singtel in 2015 to help small and medium businesses to go digital. It has since gained tremendous traction and helping Singapore SMEs go places.

Here are some of the fantastic benefits of joining 99%SME:

Benefits of Going Digital With 99%SME

Get started effortlessly with online sales

99%SME is a comprehensive ecommerce platform that allows you to get started with selling online in 3 easy steps. All you have to do is to register for an account, upload your products, select your payment and shipping options, and you are set!

Reach a wider audience with the 99%SME platform

With a common platform to showcase products and services, customers browsing through the eMarketplace for great deals can discover your business. Customers can also use the location-based feature to search for SMEs near them, making your business discoverable to people around you.

Get 90% subsidy and extensive support

If you are ready to bring your business further into the online space, you can get 90% subsidy when you hire a digital professional matched to your business. As a 99%SME participant, you will also get to be invited to free training and seminars offered by DBS Academy and various partners.

99%SME is completely free to join

99%SME is completely free to join – there are no strings attached!

Join as a seller on 99%SME now!

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The Chinese New Year VPN Deal You Shouldn’t Miss – PureVPN for 76% OFF!

The Year of the Rat is set to start, and we can’t wait to begin with the celebrations ?

Since we’re talking about celebrations, there is one VPN brand that wants to celebrate the New Year by offering an exclusive new deal. PureVPN, the Hong Kong-based VPN brand, is launching a massive deal to celebrate the Chinese New Year!

Now You can grab Annual Plan of PureVPN premium features for just $31.92

This is enticing, isn’t it?

Considering that PureVPN’s monthly plan usually costs around $10.95/month, the annual plan is worth about $131.4. But if you get the latest Chinese New Year deal, then you can use the feature-filled VPN service for a whole year after paying just $31.92! This makes for just $2.66/month only.

That’s not all! Once you’ve subscribed to PureVPN, you can also gift 12 free PureVPN monthly accounts to your loved ones! And if you’re not satisfied with the overall service, you can always go back and ask for a refund, to which you shall be eligible to for 31-days.

GET THIS DEAL!

*It’s a limited time offer!

What do you get from this deal?

PureVPN is not just light on the pocket. It offers loads of amazing privacy and security features to its users.

In countries like Singapore, where government-sponsored online surveillance is pervasive, PureVPN can offer complete online security and anonymity.

With PureVPN, users can enjoy complete end-to-end encryption that safeguards their online traffic. Even the most talented hacker or the most notorious surveillance agency cannot bypass the encrypted security on offer by PureVPN.

PureVPN is renowned for offering complete online anonymity to its users. It is one of the few VPN brands that is no-log certified by a reputable auditing company. The service stores no logs of its user’s online activities, guaranteeing their privacy on the web.

And if that isn’t enough, then users would be delighted to know that PureVPN also offers complete internet freedom to its users. The service runs a network of over 2,000 servers in 140 countries. This means that users can access websites in any of these countries with ease.

PureVPN offers access to multiple versions of Netflix from anywhere. These include the US and the UK version of Netflix, which are said to contain the largest Netflix libraries.

PureVPN is also one of the few VPN brands that offer complete access to Disney+ from anywhere. PureVPN offers access to multiple regions of Disney+, guaranteeing access to numerous libraries.

PureVPN keeps its servers optimized at all times so that users enjoy the fastest VPN speeds. It is the best VPN for streaming because of its fantastic VPN speeds and its unlimited bandwidth policy.

So now that you know all about PureVPN’s Chinese Year Deal, we suggest that you grab it today before it expires!

 

 

 

 

 

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Siloso Beach transforms into a magical shore with stunning light and sound display at Sentosa

Immerse yourself in a multi-sensory experience at Siloso Beach in Sentosa

Witness a magical shore like never before, Siloso Beach has come alive with magnificent sight of light and sound displays. Starting 23 January 2020, guests can be dazzled by the interactive beach light art that spans across the 400-metre stretch of Siloso Beach.

It will commence from 7.30pm to 10.30pm daily all year round.

There will be four key acts to look out for:

1. Nocturnal Awakening:

  • Experience the “awakening” of Siloso Beach with magical movements on sand.
  • Interactive art, inspired by diverse elements ranging from water flow tomarine creatures, are projected onto the beach at two areas where they will interact with guests.

2. Islet Whispers

  • Marvel as a mysterious cloud of fog and lights emerge from over the islets, flowing over the waters and merging with the projections on the beach, amid the soothing sounds of Sentosa.

3. Force of Nature

  • Watch the trees come alive as a relaxing light and sound symphony accentuate the raw beauty of the natural landscape.
  • Lights from the islets will change colours and intensity, as they track movements on the beach and reflect off the waters

4. New Peaks

  • In a spellbinding flourish of colour, multi-coloured projections will light up the night sky.
  • New Peaks lasts three minutes, and takes place every 15 minutes.

Here’s what you can expect:

How to get there:

  1. From Sentosa Boardwalk: You can stroll in for free and enjoy free shuttles via Sentosa Express and Sentosa’s Beach Shuttles
  2. From VivoCity Level 3: Take Sentosa Express that takes you directly into Sentosa Beach Station. Selected TransitLink concession card
    holders enjoy 50% off the transport fare.
  3. SBS Transit Service 123: Take the bus and alight at Beach Station.
  4. Drive in via Sentosa Gateway for $2 after 5pm and park at Beach Station
  5. Grab ride: Visitors can use the promo code “SentosaSpring” to enjoy $5 off Grab rides. Valid until 8pm daily and limited redemptions available. Pick-up and Drop-off point must be “Beach Station”

All images and videos from Sentosa Development Corporation.

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CNY SURVIVAL KIT: $8,888 Prize Pot, $8 Collectible Hongbaos and $5 Grab Vouchers

Happy Chinese New Year! Enjoy this holiday even more with these 3 hacks that will maximise the HUAT as you welcome the Lunar New Year with your family and friends! Time to roll in prosperity and abundance, are you ready?  

Grab $5 Voucher Codes

Arrive comfortably in style to all your steamboats and reunion gatherings this Chinese New Year. If you are new to ShopBack, there are $5 Grab Voucher on top of Cashback on any spend

How this works:

  1. Go to ShopBack App and tap on any store
  2. Purchase as usual
  3. Get CashBack + $5 Grab Voucher Code

SHARE THE HUAT – Prize Pot of $8,888

Winning the TOTO is every Singaporean’s dream. But we all know how likely that will happen. ShopBack has a MUCH easier plan for you to win some extra angbao money. 

Make a lucky guess of 6 numbers (in any order) and you might just win up to $8,888. Those with 3 correct numbers will share the $2,020 prize pot. 

Increase your chance of winning by making an order from 20th – 25th January 2020 and get a guaranteed number. 

Need some ideas on what to shop for? Check out these amazing upsizes: 

  • Nike 15% Upsized Cashback (was 2%) from 21 – 24 Jan
  • Agoda 12% Upsized Cashback (was 6%) from 21 – 22 Jan 
  • Amazon Up to 20% Upsized Cashback (was <6%) from 9 Jan – 1 Feb
  • Irvins 8% Upsized Cashback (was 4.5%) on 21 Jan
  • iHerb 14% Upsized Cashback (was 3%) from 21 – 22 Jan

Click here for more CNY deals.

FIND THE HUAT

Surviving Chinese New Year would be a lot easier if you actually enjoy it. Go on a virtual scavenger hunt and win $8 collectible hongbaos if you’re the first lucky 88 to find the “Huat” on the ShopBack App! 

How It Works

  1. Download the ShopBack App
  2. Follow the ShopBack IG Story 
  3. Individual clues will be released on our IG Story at these 8 auspicious hours to hint where the voucher is hidden.
  4. Go to the ShopBack App and find the “Huat” icon below to retrieve code
  5. Go to the rewards page on the App and enter the code to redeem your prize!

Find The Huat is on ShopBack app only*

DBS EXCLUSIVE

Own a DBS/POSB card? Enjoy up to an additional 20% Cashback* for your Travel, Fashion and Grocery spend from now till 31st Jan. Participating brands include ASOS, Nike, Guardian, Cold Storage & more! *T&Cs apply.

How ShopBack Works

ShopBack is a platform that allows users to earn up to 30% cashback every time they make an online purchase from 500+ stores like Lazada, Qoo10, Shopee, Foodpanda, Agoda & more. ShopBack is free to join and is available on desktop, app store, play store and on browser extension. Learn more here.

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Stocks 101: A Guide For Newbies

Original investments for the next 10 years

Tackle your busy life while earning money on the side by investing your money. Let your money work for you to achieve the future you have always dreamed of. Renowned investor Warren Buffett defines investing as the “the process of laying out money now to receive more money in the future.”

Investing Like Warren Buffett

(Image credit: Fortune Live Media, via Flickr)

To start investing, you must know what is a stock is first.

WHAT IS A STOCK?

Whether you call it security or equity, a share of stock is a legal ownership in a business. Businesses or corporations issue stocks to gain money. It comes in two varieties – preferred and common. Preferred stock comes with a predetermined dividend payment. While, the common stock allows the stockholder an access to a proportionate share of a company’a profits or losses. It is to you to choose whichever suits you best.

HOW DO YOU MAKE MONEY WITH STOCKS?

There are two ways to make money from owning and investing in stocks. You can make money by reaping the increase in stock price or dividends. Because these two accumulate over time, just one year’s investment in a premium can yield a solid return in the next couple of decades. You can look up blue chip companies such as Coca-Cola and Disney.

The Father of Value Investing, Benjamin Graham, once said:

“The real money in investing will have to be made—as most of it has been in the past—not out of buying and selling, but out of owning and holding securities, receiving interest and dividends, and benefiting from their long-term increase in value.”

WHY SHOULD YOU INVEST?

The stock market provides high returns. You should invest to grow your wealth. However, I cannot guarantee how your stocks will perform. You need to understand that strategy application and diversification aids in growing your wealth. Diversifying your investments by including stocks along with your bonds and assets can help protect you from the inherent volatility of the financial markets.

WHAT IS DIVERSIFICATION?

To provide cushion from the risks that come with the stock market, one can apply diversification. Think of it as not putting all your eggs in one basket. In order to diversify your stocks portfolio, you may need a significant amount of money to invest. It is nearly impossible to create a well-diversified portfolio with S$1,000 alone.

This is where mutual funds come into play. Mutual funds tend to have a large number of stocks and other investments whereby it is controlled by a portfolio manager. It is more diversified than a single stock in one company. This is something that you must think about.

Sources: 1 & 2

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