[Ki Ha-young's Everyday Card] How to Get Card Benefits for 'Korea Together Sale'

'Korea Together Sale' Until the 12th of Next Month
Credit Card Companies Offer Discounts, Interest-Free Installments, Cashback, etc.
A Total of 72 Events in Progress

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki Ha-young]Is there anyone these days without at least one credit card? In modern society, anyone can have a card if they want. Credit cards have brought unparalleled convenience to daily life. Now, wherever you go, you can easily see people paying with credit cards or smartphones. As demand has increased, cards with various benefits are being released almost daily. Accordingly, Asia Economy delivers various stories related to cards, which are inseparable from our consumer life, through the weekly 'Cards in Daily Life' corner, from introducing new cards to industry behind-the-scenes and guides for card beginners.

The 'Korea Together Sale' is ongoing until the 12th of next month. This is a temporary discount event held to alleviate consumption contraction caused by the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and the management difficulties of small and medium-sized merchants, offering discounts of 30-40%. A total of 633 traditional markets nationwide, about 5,000 neighborhood supermarkets, 35 companies including department stores, large marts, electronics, and automobiles are participating, and the card industry is also conducting a total of 72 events.

The representative events include discounts, cashback, and extended interest-free installment periods. According to the Credit Finance Association, nine card companies including Lotte, BC, Samsung, Shinhan, Woori, Hana, Hyundai, KB Kookmin, and NH Nonghyup provide such benefits when using cards in large marts, department stores, and electronics sectors. Also, reflecting the trend of increased online card usage due to practicing social distancing in daily life, additional point accumulation benefits will be provided for online sector card payments.

KB Kookmin Card offers cashback up to 800,000 KRW when purchasing event products at Hi-Mart until June 30. When purchasing event products worth over 2 million KRW, cashback up to 500,000 KRW is provided according to the payment amount bracket, and additional cashback benefits up to 300,000 KRW are available when purchasing specific products such as air conditioners. Also, when purchasing electronics worth over 1 million KRW at Samsung Digital Plaza, cashback up to 300,000 KRW is provided according to the payment amount bracket along with Samsung Electronics points, and when purchasing over 3 million KRW at LG Electronics Best Shop, cashback up to 500,000 KRW is given according to the payment amount bracket.

Hyundai Card offers 2 to 7 months interest-free installments when using department store sectors. Especially, at Lotte Department Store, when paying over 500,000 KRW, a 12-month interest-free installment benefit is provided, and when paying over 300,000 KRW, a gift certificate up to 50,000 KRW is given.

Lotte Card attracts attention by providing a special discount coupon book worth 47,000 KRW when purchasing over 30,000 KRW at Lotte Mart. This coupon book consists of four 8,000 KRW discount coupons usable on weekends and three 5,000 KRW discount coupons usable on weekdays.

To support the travel, accommodation, and dining sectors struggling due to COVID-19, prizes and discount coupons are also provided. Shinhan Card is conducting a 'Good Payment Event' where 3,000 people are selected by lottery to receive cashback up to 10,000 KRW when using Shinhan Card at restaurants, domestic accommodations and travel agencies, and hair salons.

Woori Card offers a 15% discount coupon when using cards at innovative growth companies invested in, supported, and nurtured by Woori Financial Group for Wibee Market members until the 12th of next month. The discount coupon applies up to 10,000 KRW for purchases over 10,000 KRW.

Additionally, for customers preparing for domestic travel, Shinhan Card will hold an event from July 1 to 3 offering up to 78% discount on room rates at Jeju Shinhwa World. Through All That Shopping, from July 1 to 19, 100 customers using Hongik Travel Agency’s travel products will receive up to 17% discount benefits. Samsung Card is conducting a 10,000 KRW discount event for customers who pay 50,000 KRW or more for domestic and international airline tickets at T'way Air.

Since this large-scale discount event involves about 6,000 places over approximately two weeks, the event benefits prepared by each card company differ. It is important to carefully check the sectors and benefit details you intend to use by visiting the card companies’ websites and make necessary purchases. Although the event is planned to stimulate consumption, it should not lead to spending that greatly exceeds your usual budget.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.