Discount gift cards
Why didn’t anybody tell me about this?
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Forgive me if I’m showing up way late to the party, but apparently there’s an aftermarket for gift cards that I’ve been oblivious to until today.
This morning I learned that Randy, a colleague of mine who is mainly known around here for having awesome hair, has a line on discount gift cards.
It seems there are scores of people out there who find themselves with gift cards they don’t want and are willing to settle for a percentage of the cash value.
So when he’s supposed to be doing stuff to make MoneySense.ca work properly, Randy scours Kijiji.ca and Cardswap.ca, looking for deals on golf, movies, restaurants and even groceries.
A quick perusal of both sites reveals available gift cards for almost anything you can think of. Spas, clothes, electronics, books — you name it — at discounts ranging from 10% to 50%.
Most sellers offer to give you the card’s verification number so you can check the balance on it before you buy.
The vast majority of the sellers on Kijiji.ca offer only a 10% discount, but a few stood out. Namely, a Rona gift card with a $1200 balance for $1000 and a $100 card for The Bay for $50.
Randy tells me he picked up a gift card today for $500 worth of golf. The price: $300. Not bad!
Again, I may be out to lunch in terms of timing, but I think this is a great idea. Everyone’s got stuff they need to buy, and if you’re flexible on time you could keep an eye out for a good deal and pounce on it when you see a price you like.
I can think of at least half a dozen things I need (as opposed to want) for my home, and this looks like a great way to salve the sting of necessary spending.
So hats off to Randy for introducing me to this wonderful world of discounts. Maybe next I’ll ask him where he gets his hair cut.
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