Estée Lauder Private Sale

Estée Lauder sales tend to generate a buzz, thanks to the testimonies of those who have attended one and come away waxing lyrical of the bargains and range of beauty products available.

1. What can be found at these sales?

Products from Estée Lauder’s stable of brands will be sold there. EL brands include Aramis, Bobbi Brown, Clinique, Estée Lauder, MAC, Missoni, Origins, Sean John and Tommy Hilfiger.

You will likely find:

• Seasonal items
• Discontinued items
• Soon-to-be-discontinued items
• Some regular counter items
• Regular counter items in older packaging
• Gift sets

Often, these items are more than 50% off their retail price.

You may also uncover some gems at these sales – rare and limited edition items have been known to make their way there.

2. When are they held?

These periodic sales seem to run on a schedule of their own, although I remember they used to be biannual. At times, the individual brands under the beauty stalwart also hold their own sales.

3. Who can attend them?

They are open only to employees of Estée Lauder (including its umbrella brands) and its network of associates. Such sale events are actually held to thank these people for their support.

Employees are usually given more than one ticket to share with their friends and family. If you are not already on their list of friends, the only way to obtain a ticket is to ask someone working in the company.

Bear in mind that not all employees are issued with tickets, so please do not harass the staff. However, if you are a regular patron of an EL-brand counter, you could try your luck and ask your sales assistant/beauty consultant nicely.

4. Are there any limitations to the purchase of items?

In an Estée Lauder sale, each person is limited to a maximum of three units per item and the total purchase cannot exceed S$1,500. If I recall correctly, a brand-specific sale will have its own rules.

5. What are the accepted payment methods?

Cash, NETS and credit cards are accepted. The cash queues are generally shorter than the card ones. If you do not want to wait in line for a long time, it is recommended that you pay using cash.