01
Dec
December 2016 Issue
23
Mar
Sassy Hong Kong
Over 35% off a Smart Mama Discount Card
Be a Smart Mama and grab those discounts!
You Pay
$
$
100% Discount
We’re letting you in on a little secret, mamas and papas. We’ve recently come across theSmart Mama Insider card which scores you fab discounts at the coolest hangouts in the city for both you and the fam. Whether you’re grabbing Sunday lunch at Grano Italianothen picking up furniture at Home Essentials, bouncing with the kiddos at Ryze, getting your beauty on at Sassy Mama approved spas like Spa L’Occitane or even heading over to Creature Comforts for the family pet, there’s something for every member of the troop – see who else is involved here. In fact, we’re so in love that we’ve managed to score you over 35% off of these cards; meaning that you only have to pay $180 for discounts galore.
Did we mention that if you get it through us, you’ll get a load of free perks? We’re talking a $400 facial voucher for LUXUS Beauty, a $50 Mothercare voucher, a $50 ELC coupon and finally a free photo shoot session with Mosaic Studio (which comes with its own mini-frame). To make this most of this deal, simply purchase this sale and shoot the lovely Pinky an email at contact@smarterconcepts.com.hk along with your coupon codeand delivery address. Here’s to a savvier Hong Kong experience!
Smarter Concepts, Smarter Concepts Limited, 809-810, 8/F Beverley Commercial Centre, 87-105 Chatham Road South, Kowloon, Hong Kong, Tel: 3543 5388, email:contact@smarterconcepts.com.hk, www.smarterconcepts.com.hk
Got Questions?
Questions for Smarter Concepts: contact@smarterconcepts.com.hk
Questions about your Sassy Sale order: deals@sassymediagroup.com
THE DEAL
Score a Smart Mama Insider card for just $180, which will nab you a number of awesome discounts across Hong Kong.
WHAT SASSY LOVES
This card is basically a cheat sheet to the best mama discounts in the 852 – can you say amazing?
HOW TO REDEEM
Simply shoot Pinky an email with your Sassy coupon code and postal address at contact@smarterconcepts.com.hk.
The Fine Print
1. The coupon must be used to redeem one Smart Mama Insider Card with complementary vouchers (including delivery), which include:
• HKD400 Facial Voucher from LUXUS Beauty (Can be used by both new and existing customers.)
• HKD50 Mothercare Voucher
• HKD50 ELC Voucher
• A Voucher for a photo shoot session from Mosaic Studio, includes a desktop mini-frame
2. Email Smarter Concepts at contact@smarterconcepts.com.hk after the deal has closed (26 March 2015), with Sassy coupon code, name, phone number and postal address.
3. The coupon is valid for 3 months, starting 26 March 2015 – 26 June 2015
4. All coupon sales are final and non-refundable.
5. Coupons cannot be exchanged for cash.
6. The coupon cannot be used in conjunction with other promotions or discounts.
7. In case of any dispute, Sassy Media Group and the Merchant reserve the right of final decision.
10
Mar
HK Yan To Yan
Guide: How to be a Smart Mama in Hong Kong
It almost seems like a superhuman feat for the modern mother in Hong Kong to manage her kids, her thriving career, charity lunches and her hairdressing appointments, all while swigging cups of coffee to stay vigilant. It can seem like a never-ending revolution of things to do and places to be. It is important to take the SuperMom Cape off at timeouts to retain your sanity. We’ve picked out five ways on how you can be a smart mama in Hong Kong:
1. Save a little dough on Kids’ Stuff
Get the Smart Mama Insider card! The pretty in pink card gives incredible discounts and special offers all year round for kids’ attractions, pet services, home essentials, restaurants, spas, fitness centers, retail outlets and a lot more! We’re jumping with joy thinking about the discounts at RYZEthe Ultimate Trampoline Park, Playhouse, Bookazine, My Gym, Magic Mirror Kids’ Hair Salon,iSight & more.
2. Indulge in Retail Therapy
Okay so it’s a fact – women LOVE to shop! Research indicates that it is healthy to splurge every now and then as long as we are smart about it. Whether it’s that stunning pair of earrings byShikha Lamba you have been dreaming about or some accessories to adorn your home with atHome Essentials, set out a budget and stick to the plan!
3. Look Good & Feel Fabulous
Take some time out to focus on yourself. Get fit and most certainly pamper yourself when you get the opportunity. Head out for a relaxing foot massage at the ZENturium Spa with the gals or sweat it out at Hypoxi’s effective training programs to cut short the distance to your journey to wearing that Lycra dress you have your eyes set on.
4. Let your hair down!
Whether it’s a gossip session with the gals over some Yuzu cocktails and delicate sushi rolls atKyoto Joe or a fun date night over a glass of vino and Butter Chicken at Ista, it is important to wear your best dress and have timeouts after the kids are tucked into bed.
5. Empower Yourself
It is very important to grow as people and develop new skills. Personal development is what makes us love who we are and maximize our full potential in every aspect of life. Delight in a new hobby such as a floral arrangement course at the Hong Kong Academy of Flower Arrangement or attend wellness workshops by Holistic Wellness by Rainbow Connections to make improvements to your lifestyle.
The Smart Mama Insider card is a must-have essential for every woman in Hong Kong. For more information on the Smart Mama card, click here.
Have anything to say? Leave a comment below.
09
Feb
Mom On The Move
Smart Mama Insider Card
All mamas love a bargain, so I was delighted to receive my Smart Mama Insider Card in the post recently, and I’m happy to share the tip with all you Hong Kong mums out there. The Insider Card replaces the previous Smart Mama voucher book, and is definitely a far more user-friendly approach, as not only can you slip it into your wallet, but it also allows unlimited uses at your favourite spa/shop/restaurant/kiddy entertainment zone.
You need to check the Smart Mama website for a full list of discounts available (they’re adding new partners all the time), but there are several spas on there to help get you bikini ready for your next holiday, as well as bookshops, toy stores, play gyms, fitness studios, restaurants and home stores – and there are even discounts at selected vet practices and a garage for a free oil change!
The cards are available at Bookazine stores. However, if you are quick and buy one online before February 15 you will also get a HKD500 Facial Treatment voucher from the Ainhoa Spa.
The card pack will therefore include:-
1) The Smart Mama Insider Card
2) HKD50 Mothercare voucher
3) HKD50 ELC voucher
4) HKD500 Ainhoa Spa voucher
And even better news – use the discount code ‘mumonthemove’ at checkout and the card will cost just HKD279 instead of HKD299. Bargain!
30
Jan
Sandra’s City
Feature – Smart Mama Insider Card
Do you enjoy dining out? Do you regularly go for beauty treatments? Do you have messy children and fluffy critters? If you answered yes to any of those questions – then this highlight item will definitely appeal to you! Without further ado, let’s round up the end of a great month with the most worthwhile item you should invest in for 2015 – the Smart Mama Insider Card! (Yes, the card is so pink, it’s definitely made for me!)
I was so excited to go through this year’s list of partners – and even more delighted when I realized that most on the list were places that I frequent anyway! From the amazing Victorian-style spa packages at Amrita Spa to the fast and efficient waxing over atHoneypot Wax Boutique to an afternoon bouncing around at the super-popular Ryze Trampoline Park, this card covers it all within its bubble-pink goodness!
Bookworms will be happy to know that Bookazine remains one of Smart Mama’s partners with 10% off all regular priced items! There’s even something for rubber-burning mamas at Driven Motorwerks with 20% off all services. Those looking to get back into shape can get a great discount over at Evolve Personal Training Studio or go for a spin in Pole Paradise Studio (my dance alma-mater!).
Still not convinced? Find the full list of partners here along with all the discounts and benefits you can get throughout the year. That’s not all! The Smart Mama team are a very hardworking bunch, and they’ll be continuously sourcing out more merchants every day to bring us more fabulous offers as the year goes on – so the deal really just gets sweeter with time!
DISCOUNT ALERT 🙂 the lovely ladies over at Smart Mama have been extremely generous! Although the Insider Card is now available online and at all Bookazine stores for $349, they’ve offered to give all my readers an exclusive price of just $279 if you enter the coupon code ‘sandrascity’ upon check-out when purchasing the card online before February 15th! If that’s not a steal, I don’t know what is…
Smart Mama
www.smartmama.com.hk
Tweet @smartmamahk
Instagram @smartmamahk
22
Jul
Accidental Tai Tai
Smart Mama Voucher Book: save money (and buy cocktails instead)…
… Ok, so I’m only half serious as fortunately, this rather cool voucher book has plenty of discounts on mum-friendly ‘activities’ (e.g. spas and booze), meaning no need to compromise the family funds for a good time to be had by all!
We’d used a similar book back in Shanghai and been surprised at how many discounts were available on stuff we actually wanted (as opposed to the shady “RMB3 off if you spend RMB10k on colonic irrigation” deals we’d come to know and hate), so when the lovely people at Smart Mama offered to send me a book of vouchers to review, I gladly took them up on the offer.
The idea is simple – buy the book for $488 here with the code ‘lovesmartmama’ and you’ll receive a whopping $250,000-worth of vouchers that last up until the end of the year. You can also pick it up at book shops around town, but this will set you back $788, which, frankly, seems at odds with the whole concept of using coupons to save dosh. (So just use the interweb, eh?).
The book is broadly categorised into “Kids” and “Women” sections, with sub-sections that include not immediately apparent headings like “Flourish” and “Smile”, but also, cheeringly, “Eat” and “Imbibe” (air-punch!). Of course, there will be some vouchers that don’t work for you, but there is plenty here to love, such as buy-one-get-one free deals on kids yoga classes, horse riding lessons, ice-skating and a whole shedload more cool stuff. If you prefer your kids classes to be strictly educational, rather than, y’know, plain old fun, then you’ve got Mandarin, Phonics, English and Music lessons to satisfy your inner Tiger Parent.
Aside from the classes, I was excited to spot soft play vouchers, art-jamming and kids’ haircuts at Magic Mirror (review coming up soon!). Mums also score highly, with loads of excellent pampering deals from known spas and salons, fitness studios, bars and restaurants, meaning my nails should remain flawlessly manicured and my nights out fully planned, right up until the New Year at this rate!
Another good thing about the Smart Mama book is the fact that it inspires you to try something a bit different, which can only be a good thing in my opinion, as we all know how easy it is to fall into the easy option when you’ve got kids. The range of activities is huge, and the discounts are, for the main, hefty enough to get you outside of your comfort zone and taking a chance on something new.
I’m looking forward to seeing the 2015 edition, and keeping everything crossed that Smart Mama will add Discoveryland and Ryze to the stable of discounts!
Available via www.smarterconcepts.com.hk
14
Jul
Baby Pak Choi – A semi chaotic account of pregnancy and parenting in Hong Kong
Extreme Couponing
I was sent the “Smart Mama” 2014 coupon book a little while back. If you’ve not heard of it before, the concept is really simple: it’s a hardcover book stuffed with more than 300 vouchers for family-friendly vendors throughout Hong Kong. All of the deals are valid for the whole of 2014 (with the exception of some fair-enough blackout dates—hope you weren’t hankering for a tennis lesson on Christmas Day), and offer either two-for-one or 50 percent off a particular product or service. You won’t find any bullshit “spend $1,000-get-$100-off” (aka a 10 percent discount) fake bargains here.
The book is divided roughly 50-50 into stuff for kids and stuff for mums. I technically don’t have a kid yet, and definitely I won’t have one that’s going to be old enough to take ice skating classes before the end of 2014. But if you do have older children—especially if you have more than one—you’ll probably find the many two-for-one classes and activities on offer something of a lifesaver on long afternoons that you need to fill up with an activity of some description.
So a quick rundown of the discounts you can expect:
Under Play, you’ve got bowling alleys, ice skating rinks, indoor play rooms, art camps, horse riding classes and birthday party entertainment to keep the young ones entertained. Weirdly, there’s also a deal for a Yangtze river cruise, which doesn’t really seem to fit with the rest of it. But hey, someone might find it useful. Smile is where you can get deals and discounts on family photography.
Flourishand Exercise is where you’ll find classes. The deals offer a great way to get a cheaper introduction to a certain activity before deciding whether you want to take the plunge and sign your kids up full time. Think ballet, phonics, scrapbooking, music, languages, science, art, basketball, boxing, kids’ yoga, rock-climbing, fencing and more.
The Shop section was always going to be a bit hit-or-miss—so much depends on your own personal tastes. And let’s face it—buy one pencil for $78 and get one free is not really a bargain whichever way you slice it. It also doesn’t have any photos of the products on offer, which is a shame.
Onto the mums section. You’ve got Pamper for hair and nail salons, spas, massage and other wellness vendors. 50 percent off a Brazilian blowout? Awesome. Under Eat there are deals on restaurants and cake shops (I already cut out the Sweet Secrets “buy one cupcake get one free” deal for safekeeping). It’s a little heavy on the Indian restaurants; a bit of variety wouldn’t go amiss for future editions—perhaps a few places that are known to be kid-friendly?
I also like how there’s an Imbibe section for mums on the razz—just because we’re (allegedly) responsible parents, it doesn’t mean we don’t like a night out once in a while—amirite? With that said, the “buy a round of shots and get another round free” at Chocolate bar, Ra and Zinc sounds like a recipe for trouble. One to save for the next hen night you’re invited on, perhaps?
Exercise is another worthy section, with yoga, dance classes (ballet, pole and everything in between) and more, from tennis to Thai boxing.
Same as in the kids’ half of the book, the Shop section isn’t quite so inspiring. There’s all this stuff on offer (Swarovski-studded pens, memo pads, men’s shirts) but we don’t know what any of it looks like! One coupon that does work is from an optical center, which has a voucher for a free eye test, plus 50 percent off if you spend $1,000 or more on glasses or frames—so you get the discount and a selection of products to choose from as well. For 2015, it’d be awesome to see more coupons like this, and perhaps more careful curation for this section in general. More homewares, kitchen shops and beauty products would definitely appeal to me.
Honestly, no one is ever going to able to use this entire book in a year, unless they have $250,000 going spare and a LOT of free time, but at $788 (or $488 if you buy it online using the coupon code “lovesmartmama”) it’s a nifty thing to have on your bookshelf, should you be stuck for inspiration when it comes to fun activities for your kids—or even yourself. Besides, any coupons you don’t find useful you can always share out among your friends. And if you’re looking for a gift, it comes in an attractive hot pink box, which is a nice touch.
Smart Mama 2014 is available at bookstores citywide, including Bookazine, Swindon and Kelly & Walsh. Alternatively buy online at www.smarterconcepts.com.hk.
12
Jul
HKELD.com
Super Saver Saturday 2: Smart Mama- Smart Concepts
12-7-14
By: Meaghan McGurgan
We had the pleasure of having a copy of the Smart Mama book delivered to the HKELD team a couple weeks ago. The people at Smart Concepts must know that the HKELD reader is always looking to save a dollar and loves a discount. It’s quite an interesting concept for a book. It’s essentially a very high-end coupon book. I’m a big fan of coupons, I grew up clipping them in the States and was a bit bummed to find out they don’t have the practice in HK. Who doesn’t love saving 75 cents on a bottle of laundry detergent? With this book you purchase it for 788HKD and it provides you with over 250,000HKD in savings from 300 various retailers. These retailers are anything from food and drink providers, to photographers, to spas and beauty salons and many other service providers.
There is a huge section of the book dedicated just to kids, which is great for moms. They have 50% off and buy one, get one free coupons for tons of kids activities, birthday parties, art jams and dance classes from reputable companies. I think if you are a mother, this book would be a great idea generator for Summer months when kids tend to get bored. “What can we do today? I know! We’ll try fencing… I have a coupon for that!” I think it’ll get moms and kids trying a bunch of new activities they wouldn’t have tried before.
The book also has value for people who are not moms, (like me.) I loved all the various dance classes they had available at 50% and buy one, get one free. It allows me to try out a bunch of new mediums of art at half the cost. There’s aerial dancing, ballet, latin ballroom, hip-hop and tons of yoga options in the book.
And every HKELD reader loves food and drink. There’s a decent selection of bars and restaurants that are offering 50% and buy one, get one free coupons in the book. Just a fair bit of warning though, your 50% off will always be on the full price, so don’t expect to take your coupons to Happy Hour and get a double bargain. (As I sadly found out…) Save your coupons for full price libations and get the best value out of them.
Overall, the Smart Mama book is a pretty beautiful coupon book. I love the color and it’s made out of high quality materials. It doesn’t feel cheap when you use it but it is heavy… So, it’s not something you can throw around in your purse, just in case you hit up Soiree for cocktails after work or decide to get your eyebrows waxed. I think using the book to its full advantages before the coupons expire on December 31, 2014 would take some planning but would ultimately be worth it.
12
Jul
Dayre
Two weeks ago, I was approached by Smart Mama to review their voucher book in Hong Kong. Never knew that my #Dayre blog will be found and will be interesting enough for them to want me to review their stuff. So yay, free stuff and loads of discounted stuff for me in #HongKong.
Apparently, they saw some of my reviews on restaurants in Hong Kong here.
Never really thought much about it till I finally received the book of vouchers.
Woo…don’t you just love receiving packages. It has been awhile.
This Smart Mama voucher book cost HKD788 usually but of course now 2014 is half gone, so is the price! With all the discounts on it, I actually think it is pretty worth it.
However, there are many vouchers suitable for moms and kids..so I guess it is not too useful for me. So I gave them away to some of my married colleagues.
But they do have quite a number of vouchers that are suitable for us.
I actually think this is a good opportunity and push for me to visit new restaurants and places. Since I still haven’t seen much of Hong Kong yet.
This voucher is perfect for J because he is planning to get new glasses.
Wah this hair spa damn cheap, even for Malaysian standards!
Woo..they even have Iyara for facial treatments. Who am I kidding, I will never travel to Central on weekends for facial since I already have my own regular but I knew Katie would love that. So this is for her.
And I also found some great coffee places to explore!
Okay, enough of showing you my vouchers!
So I show you my happy colleagues instead. I love to share. Especially because I don’t think I can fully utilize all the vouchers.
Some of my guys colleagues said that they are not the vouchers kinda guys..so more for the girls!!!
The book is called Smart Mama and it is pinky, so I guess they are targeting moms and ladies anyway!
This is Aleena and her huge ass ring. She loved herself some facials and massages.
Back to the point, this blog post is about my dining experience in Tamarind. We found a voucher in the book for the restaurant and was told that the food is pretty good. So, J and I gave it a shot last night.
The atmosphere is pretty good there, although it is awfully quiet. In all fairness, we were there for dinner at 6.30pm. I guess it is not the typical Hong Kong dinner time for locals. Most will still be working.
My date last night.
Hello!
These were pretty yummy whilst we waited for our food to be served.
These dips were so spicy!
Deep fried spring rolls. I’m not a fan of spring rolls but J wanted it. I had some and it is pretty good.
Sizzling spicy pork neck. This is kinda fatty. I would have preferred it to be leaner. But it is tasty.
Stir-fried glass noodles with crab meat. This one reminded me of char kuey teow. So I quite like it.
The service was slightly cold, maybe cos we were their first table. The waiting staff were chatting amongst themselves a lot and barely paid attention to us. But food was quite good so I’d still be back I guess.
The dinner was pretty cheap. With Smart Mama voucher, it was quite a good deal.
We then made our way to #TsimShaTsui for our horror movie date.
Our #Friday night was lovely ♥
15
Apr
Jetlag & Mayhem
HK ONLY – SMART MAMA BOOK
I recently won a competition (and I never win anything) and my prize was a SMART Mama book. What, you may ask makes this book so smart? The fact that it is filled to the brim with over 300 coupons to use on products from children’s activities to fitness and spas. It is for Hong Kong only so if you’re not living here, you might want to move on to the next post now!
I just wanted to give them a shout out as I’m all for supporting new businesses, especially ones that allow me to save money. This book would be a great gift if you’re in to pampering and spa treatments with masses of savings from things like pedicures to waxing (all pre-holiday essentials). One big ticket item is a voucher for 50% off designer sunglasses.
I love the fact that there are lots of vouchers for children’s activities, which we all know cost a fortune in Hong Kong. In fact if anyone is considering a pony party (sorry to my own kids – way too expensive) then get a hold of this book now as you can save a wopping HKD $7,000!
The vouchers are clear in what the discount is (there are also a few complimentary items in there) and don’t forget to mention it when you are making your booking and bring it with you. I think I’m most excited about the facial offers, a luxury I rarely indulge in but now feel is slightly more in my price bracket.
You can buy the book online here for HKD $788 or in several different retailers like Bookazine and Bumps To Babes.
Disclosure: I am not affiliated to the SMART Mama book, I just won a copy in a competition and happy to spread the word!