Ladies, forget the Big Bra Sale. Here comes the Big Spa Sale.
At least one salon is offering facials that give you more bang for your buck than a $10 haircut.
At three-month-old spa Sanctuary Beauty in Tanjong Pagar, you can get a one-hour treatment with a free eye mask and a face-to-shoulder massage thrown in - all for $9.90.
A check with 20 other spas showed that 16 of them have slashed prices of their facials by more than 70 per cent. Prices now range from $9.90 to $38.
Even long-time establishments like Expressions and Citispa are playing the price game too. An aromatherapy facial at Expressions, originally priced at $150, is now going for $28.
Spa owners engaged in this facial war say the price drops are inevitable due to the gloomy economic climate and heat from new players.
From 223 in 2004, the number of salons has jumped to more than 1,000 last year.
The marketing manager of Beyond Beauty spa, Ms Ann Kwan, said that it is 'pretty competitive'.
Her spa is offering a microdermabrasion facial at $28 to new customers at a two-day roadshow in Suntec City which ends today. The facial used to be $200.
'Everyone wants to offer an attractive price, especially during this sale season. People still want to take care of themselves in this recession so we hope this will encourage spending,' she said.
But rock-bottom facial prices can only go so far. Sanctuary Beauty says it may not be able to hold out on offering its $9.90 deal.
'This is a short-term boost to attract customers. It can't go on forever, but we'll try to maintain it for as long as possible,' said Ms Elle Poh, 35, its manager.
She admitted that while response has been satisfying, the deal has not turned a profit for the salon.
But some other spas have refused to join the price war, choosing to freeze their prices even during this sale season.
Sanctuary Beauty's neighbour, The Hidden Place spa, does not plan to slash prices of its facials any time soon.
Its co-director, Mr Shaund Soh, said: 'You get what you pay for. Over here, we use United States-imported products of the highest quality. We're not afraid of those who slash prices because we're very confident of our treatments and what we're doing.'
His facial treatments cost $78 and above.
Ms Laurel Wong, assistant marketing manager of The Ultimate spa, which has outlets in Orchard, Bukit Batok and Changi Airport Terminal 2, said: 'We do not believe in blind engagement of price wars. As long as the service is delivered and expectations are met, consumers will not mind paying a premium for it.'
The spa is offering $38 deals to MasterCard holders as part of its Great Singapore Sale promotion. The usual price of the facial is $180.
Not all are buying the cheap deals. Undergraduate Lim Yi Xuan will not go for a facial below $30.
'If it sounds good, it is probably too good to be true. There might be hidden costs, like extra charges for a mask or antiseptic cream for a pimple they popped,' said the 22-year-old, who was once pressured to top up more than $40 for an additional eye mask treatment during an $18 facial.
Last year, the Consumers Association of Singapore received 113 spa-related complaints, up from 33 in 2004.
The complaints include hard-sell tactics and inability to honour services.
This article was first published in The Straits Times.
