The transaction marks the biggest deal in the industry in 2022 and creates a European Champion with a global footprint. Together, GSG and Pepper will form a multinational tech company empowering shoppers in more than 20 markets to make more confident shopping decisions. GSG and Pepper will jointly operate the world’s largest shopping community, recommendation and rewards platform connecting brands and retailers with consumers across more than 2bn purchase journeys annually.
“We are incredibly excited about this industry-disrupting deal that reinforces our leading position in Europe. Together with Pepper, we will significantly enhance our ability to empower consumers and play an even more meaningful role in their daily lives which will open a wide field of development opportunities to shape the future of our industry together. Jointly, we will create a unique, impactful and even more comprehensive portfolio of shopping solutions with huge benefits for consumers, brands, retailers and publishers alike at a scale that's just not possible anywhere else. Together, we will increase our transformative impact and boost GSG’s growth”, states Dr. Gerhard Trautmann, CEO of GSG.
“Our primary focus has always been to offer the best and broadest of money saving solutions to our communities. Our collaboration with GSG will speed up this process significantly as it empowers us to branch out more. Combined, we have more than 20 years of experience in helping people to make smarter decisions and together we will provide even better and more rewarding shopping experiences. Our loyal customers and many more to come will benefit from our combined contents and technologies”, comments Fabian Spielberger, CEO of Pepper.
GSG and Pepper are both market leaders in their fields and have expanded their solutions and services through strategic acquisitions and organic growth. After the 2018 takeover of the UK loyalty specialist Pouch, GSG acquired iGraal and Shoop, the leading French and German cashback brands in 2020 and 2021 respectively, and just recently the US-based consumer brand and domain Coupons.com. Pepper has always shared GSG’s ambition to consolidate the fast-growing market in the sector and has expanded internationally since 2014. Today, Pepper operates market-leading social commerce platforms such as Dealabs, hotukdeals and mydealz. Together, GSG and Pepper will continue to develop and leverage technology to build the leading platform of shopping solutions and services to constantly drive future growth in current and new markets and verticals.
About GSG
GSG is Europe’s largest shopping rewards company with an international footprint across more than 20 markets. The company’s goal is to empower consumers to get more out of life by providing them access to best savings, cashback, deals, product inspiration, reviews and other digital shopping services. Founded in 2012 and headquartered in Munich, GSG employs more than 700 employees in 12 offices across the globe.
About Pepper
Pepper.com is the world's largest shopping community. From its headquarter in Berlin and offices in Guadalajara, London, Lyon and Winnipeg, the Pepper Media Holding operates market-leading social commerce platforms such as Dealabs, hotukdeals and mydealz.de which are used by 25 million consumers per month and influences 12,000 purchase decisions per minute. The company was founded in 2014 by Fabian Spielberger and Paul Nikkel.
Press contact
Peter Meyenburg, PR Director
+49 171 52 55 757
Advisors GSG
UBS, Taylor Wessing, Vogel Heerma Waitz aka V14, KMPG Law, KPMG Tax, KPMG Finance, Hogan Lovells, McDermott, CoInvest Corporate Finance
Advisors Pepper
YPOG, ROCAN, PWWL, Viguie Schmidt & Associes, Flichy, Fladgate, EY
Financing Partners
UniCredit Bank AG (as Mandated Lead Arranger, Original Lender, Bookrunner, Agent and Security Agent); Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft, Citibank Europe Plc. Germany Branch and KfW (all as Mandated Lead Arrangers and Original Lenders)
]]>Across the UK, savvy shoppers are taking advantage of non-essential shops opening following the lift in restrictions this week with retailers pushing promotions to get Brits back in store.
Data from hotukdeals, the UK’s biggest deal-sharing app, found that discounts have risen by 24% on day one of the shops reopening, and by 17% over the last 12 months, predicting a huge increase in offers throughout April.
Queues were seen outside stores including Primark, TK Maxx and JD Sports early on Monday morning as shoppers visited after months of closure.
However, consumer savings expert at hotukdeals, Dan Plant, warns that as retailers fight for shoppers' cash over the next few months, the huge amount of deals on offer means it's hard to tell which are worth parting with your cash for. He comments: “Since the pandemic hit, we have seen sales across the high street and online like never before. With a summer of celebration around the corner, retailers are offering shoppers discounts to get them spending, but it’s vital to fact check whether the deal is really worth it.”
Philip Graves, a leading experts on consumer behaviour, explains the retail strategies used to attract shoppers and what to look out for:
● ATTENTION SEEKING - Now stores are reopen retailers will be trying everything to get you back through the doors, with big flashy sales and limited offer promotions to get shoppers spending
● THRILLS AND SPILLS - They will build a lot of excitement about the great deals that are available, focusing on a few items that are heavily discounted. It’s easy for people to feel excited when they start looking at what’s available and sometimes, they end up buying because of this general ‘thrill’ not because the specific product they’ve bought is really that great
● FOMO - Retailers will tap into our fear of regretting a decision, this year more than ever before as we are allowed some normality back into our lives. Loss aversion makes shoppers believe that an item may sell out and switches our perspective from worrying about whether we’re getting the best deal, to the fear that if we don’t grab that deal right now then we will miss out altogether
The hotukdeals app saw 235,474 deals and vouchers posted from March 2020 to March 2021, over 600 per day, with more than 250,000 new members signing up for money saving deals. Londoners came out top when looking at who was grabbing the most bargains in lockdown, followed by Birmingham, Glasgow, Manchester and Leeds.
Dan Plant added, “Retailers have been trying everything they can to get customers spending over lockdown and now non-essential shops are open again we expect to see big discounts and sales for shoppers excited to browse the aisles in person and return to the high street.”
About hotukdeals:hotukdeals is the UK’s biggest deal-sharing community where two million members find, rate and share the best deals from on and off the high street every day. Members use the temperature gauge to vote on deals so other users know that the hotter the deal, the stronger the offer.
About Pepper:Pepper.com, the world's largest shopping community, was founded in 2014 by Fabian Spielberger and Paul Nikkel. Through international partnerships and conversations, Pepper.com gives smart shoppers around the world a voice to share deals, tips and ideas, connecting members in eleven countries on four continents. The Pepper.com group is headquartered in Berlin, Germany with offices in Belo Horizonte, Guadalajara, London, Lyon, Mumbai and Winnipeg and consists of market-leading platforms such as Dealabs (France), DesiDime (India), hotukdeals (United Kingdom), mydealz (Germany), Pelando.com.br (Brazil), Pepper.com (The Netherlands), Pepper.pl (Poland), Pepper.ru (Russia), Preisjaeger (Austria) and PromoDescuentos (Mexico). 25 million consumers use these platforms every month to make 12,000 purchasing decisions per minute.
]]>London - 30 November, 2020. As we come to the end of the second national lockdown, travel deals platform HolidayPirates, in conjunction with hotukdeals.com, surveyed over 5,500 of their customers across Europe to find out how the pandemic has affected our travel, leisure habits and attitudes to work.
MILLENNIALS PREFER HOLIDAYS TO HANGOVERSBeing restricted to our own homes has shown the importance of travel for so many of us. Of the British responders aged 18-35, 65% said they missed travelling, compared to 37% missing being able to eat and drink out.
Phil Salcedo, head of the UK market for HolidayPirates said, “These results give an interesting insight into what we’ve missed most during this enforced period at home. It comes as no surprise that so many of us have been dreaming of travelling again, but for British millennials it’s even more stark than that; the results suggest it’s more important than going to the pub or, maybe more understandably, the gym”.
WHILST BRITS HAVE BEEN DRINKING MORE, THE FRENCH HAVE BEEN EXERCISINGIt seems that Brits have a different attitude to diet and exercise than their European neighbours. Nearly a fifth of those surveyed in France have taken up online gym courses, compared to 6% of Brits but the numbers are reversed when it comes to take up of alcohol deliveries with 13% of Brits and just 3% of French. More French and Germans than Brits said an annoyance was not being able to go to the gym, with 27% and 23% respectively compared to 19%, whereas 30% of Brits also stated that eating too much was a concern but this was only noted by 20% of French and Germans.
Lockdown has seen us all spend longer at home, but the results of the survey show that us Brits have spent our time very differently to our European neighbours. Where Brits have increased their online presence through streaming films, tv and music (58%), this only accounts for 30% of French activity. 20% of the surveyed Brits have taken to downloading podcasts and audiobooks, but it was only 10% of French responders.
Across all three nations, on average 35% have spent their additional free time decorating or renovating and 60% watching more television. Nearly 70% of Brits and Germans have done more online shopping compared to only 42% of French. A third of the Brits surveyed have done their food shopping online, in contrast to only 10% of French and 20% of German responders.
BRITS HOLD ON TO CHOSEN CAREER PATHAs governments around the world urge us all to retrain, 94% of Brits are sticking to what they know and have responded that they are currently happy in their jobs. 65% of us have made no effort to further our careers through online training and webinars.
Dan Plant from hotukdeals says “Surprisingly, only 61% of respondents said their lives have changed during lockdown. But it seems that, whilst the world has been in turmoil over the past year, Brits are comfortable in the safety blanket of their current job and haven’t seen the need to do very much to future-proof themselves.”
-END-
Survey notesOf the 5,561 responders to the survey, 1,101 were from the UK. The survey was also carried out in Germany, France, Italy and Spain.
About: hotukdeals is the UK’s biggest deal-sharing community where two million members find, rate and share the best deals from on and off the high street every day. Members use the temperature gauge to vote on deals so other users know that the hotter the deal, the stronger the offer. hotukdeals is a founding member of Pepper.com, the world’s largest shopping community: Pepper.com was founded in 2014 by Fabian Spielberger (mydealz) and Paul Nikkel (hotukdeals). Through international partnerships and conversations, Pepper.com gives smart shoppers around the world a voice to share deals, tips and ideas, connecting members in twelve countries on four continents. The Pepper.com group is headquartered in Berlin, Germany with offices in Belo Horizonte, Guadalajara, London, Lyon, Mumbai and Winnipeg and consists of market-leading platforms such as Chollometro (Spain), Dealabs(France), DesiDime (India), hotukdeals (United Kingdom), mydealz (Germany), Pelando.com.br (Brazil), Pepper.com (The Netherlands), Pepper.pl (Poland), Pepper.ru (Russia), Preisjaeger (Austria) and PromoDescuentos (Mexico). 25 million consumers use these platforms every month to make 12,000 purchasing decisions per minute.
About: HolidayPirates is a leading travel deals platform and app, which curates and compiles the best travel deals from countless websites and travel partners for cheap flights, hotels, travel packages, vouchers, bus and train deals. The online portal is one of the fastest growing digital travel companies in Europe. Fans and followers stay up to date by setting custom alerts on apps; WhatsApp; following on social media; subscribing to newsletters or simply visiting one of the websites. HolidayPirates has websites in the UK, Austria, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Switzerland and the USA and each travel portal in the group operates fully independently of the operators and partners. The company has offices in nine countries. Igor Simonow founded HolidayPirates in 2011 in Berlin by sharing his knowledge of cheap travel deals on his blog. Today, the German edition Urlaubspiraten.de is among Germany’s largest travel portals. HolidayPirates receives +45 million page impressions a month and has +7 million Facebook fans.
]]>London, 23 November 2020. Research has revealed that despite an unprecedented retail environment and continuing economic uncertainty this Black Friday will be the biggest on record, with deals from the top five Black Friday retailers, Amazon, eBay, Argos, Currys and Tesco, already up by 68% this month.
A poll of 2000 Brits also found that shoppers are getting ready for a spending spree with nearly a quarter (21%) buying more Black Friday offers this year, as a third (27%) admit they are expecting better deals in 2020 whilst retailers try to get rid of stock after a tough year.
One in three (29%) will be buying more deals to save on Christmas presents this year with an unprecedented festive period ahead, and a further 20% will be buying more because they have saved money this year.
Data from hotukdeals, the biggest deal sharing community in the UK, compared 2019 and 2020 activity on the website, and found that the amount of deals shared so far this month is already up by 28%.
Deals across the top five categories have seen huge increases, including:
● Entertainment up by 51%
● Sports and Outdoors up by 41%
● Electronics up by 37%
● Gaming up by 35%
● Fashion up by 32%
However, skepticism of Black Friday deals is still high as two thirds (69%) said they didn't trust Black Friday offers because of tactics some retailers use - such as adding extra markup to the ‘standard’ price so the discount looks bigger, or having better deals at other times in the year.
Data from hotukdeals also found that two thirds of Black Friday deals were not what they seem, with more than 11,000 fake deals shared during the shopping event last year. Only 33% of the discounts shared with the 2 million users were voted ‘hot’ meaning those products could have been cheaper elsewhere or at another time in the year, had hidden catches or simply not worthwhile.
Dan Plant, consumer savings expert at hotukdeals, called for shoppers to stay alert and avoid fake deals this week as retailers will be fighting for shoppers’ cash more than ever before.
Dan Plant comments, “Since the pandemic hit, we have seen sales across the high street and online like never before. With Black November extending the discount frenzy across the whole month and lockdown giving people more time to get ahead of the Christmas season rush, shoppers will be feeling anxious they get the best deals - but the truth is not many reductions and sales are what they first appear. It’s vital to fact-check whether a deal is real or not, before diving in.”
Philip Graves, one of the world's leading experts on consumer behaviour, including the psychology behind Black Friday shopping and how we interpret deals, adds:
“Lockdown has changed our shopping behaviour in two significant ways - firstly pushing shoppers away from the high street and seeing less tech savvy shoppers now buying online. In turn, now that millions more are shopping online they will be receiving more marketing emails pushing them to make another purchase and presenting deals in a way designed to make them appear compelling.”
Dan Plant continues, “We want the hotukdeals community to be the best place for consumers to share their knowledge, learn from other experts, and make the right decisions this Black Friday. Our community is here for shoppers all year round - guiding shoppers through lockdown, 2020 and beyond.”
To find the best deals this Black Friday, with tips and advices from over 2 million savvy shoppers check out https://www.hotukdeals.com/black-friday.
***
Notes to Editors:
Data compiled by hotukdeals from Friday 22 November to Monday 1 December 2019.
Research compiled by Censuswide with 2000 UK residents in November 2020.
About hotukdeals:
hotukdeals is the UK’s biggest deal-sharing community where two million members find, rate and share the best deals from on and off the high street every day. Members use the temperature gauge to vote on deals so other users know that the hotter the deal, the stronger the offer. hotukdeals is a founding member of Pepper.com, the world’s largest shopping community:
Pepper.com was founded in 2014 by Fabian Spielberger (mydealz) and Paul Nikkel (hotukdeals). Through international partnerships and conversations, Pepper.com gives smart shoppers around the world a voice to share deals, tips and ideas, connecting members in twelve countries on four continents. The Pepper.com group is headquartered in Berlin, Germany with offices in Belo Horizonte, Guadalajara, London, Lyon, Mumbai and Winnipeg and consists of market-leading platforms such as Chollometro (Spain), Dealabs(France), DesiDime (India), hotukdeals (United Kingdom), mydealz (Germany), Pelando.com.br (Brazil), Pepper.com (The Netherlands), Pepper.pl (Poland), Pepper.ru (Russia), Preisjaeger (Austria) and PromoDescuentos (Mexico). 25 million consumers use these platforms every month to make 12,000 purchasing decisions per minute.
]]>hotukdeals, the UK’s largest deal-sharing community, with over two million registered members, has announced a new partnership with impartial price and product comparison service, PriceSpy.
PriceSpy will run as an integrated tool within the hotukdeals platform, further enabling UK consumers to compare and find the best prices. Shoppers searching for deals on specific items on the hotukdeals website can view the latest offers and comments shared by members of the community, alongside real-time price comparisons and stock availability through the PriceSpy tool.
hotukdeals and PriceSpy are both popular platforms for helping shoppers make smart purchasing decisions. The hotukdeals community share and discuss hundreds of deals every day and vote them hot or cold based on factors such as price, product quality and the retailer selling the item.
Founded in 2014, hotukdeals is part of Pepper.com, the world's largest shopping community that connects over 9 million registered members in 12 countries, across four continents and gives shoppers a platform to share deals, tips and ideas.
PriceSpy is an impartial price and product comparison service used by millions of consumers every month to find, discover, research and compare products. PriceSpy has 5,520,000 indexed prices alongside product and shop ratings. As well as providing a resource for consumers, PriceSpy offers retailers unique insights and real-time data on the UK retail industry.
Commenting on the partnership, Fabian Spielberger, CEO of Pepper.com, said: “Content is key when helping consumers shop smartly. The more tools and information our users have in one place, the easier it is to identify the best deals. We’re pleased to partner with a leading UK price comparison site in PriceSpy, to bring this tool to the hotukdeals community. The new comparison capability complements our existing deals, tips, comments and voucher codes, so we continue to be the best place for consumers to share their knowledge, learn from other experts and make the right purchasing decisions."
PriceSpy UK managing director, Olof Karp, comments: “We’re extremely proud to be announced as a partner to hotukdeals. The new price comparison feature allows the platform to go even further for shoppers. By integrating our rich pricing data, consumers will be even more empowered to get the best deal possible. This partnership will help Brits shop smarter and keep more of their hard-earned cash.”
ENDS
Media enquiries
Chloe Reeve / 07810884003 / hotukdeals_pr@pepper.com
About hotukdeals
hotukdeals is the UK’s biggest deal-sharing community where over two million registered members find, rate and share the best deals from on and off the high street every day. Members use the temperature gauge to vote on deals so other users know that the hotter the deal, the stronger the offer. hotukdeals is a founding member of Pepper.com, the world’s largest shopping community.
Pepper.com was founded in 2014 by Fabian Spielberger (mydealz) and Paul Nikkel (hotukdeals). Through international partnerships and conversations, Pepper.com gives smart shoppers around the world a voice to share deals, tips and ideas, connecting members in twelve countries on four continents. The Pepper.com group is headquartered in Berlin, Germany with offices in Belo Horizonte, Guadalajara, London, Lyon, Mumbai and Winnipeg and consists of market-leading platforms such as Chollometro (Spain), Dealabs (France), DesiDime (India), hotukdeals (United Kingdom), mydealz (Germany), Pelando.com.br (Brazil), Pepper.com (The Netherlands), Pepper.pl (Poland), Pepper.ru (Russia), Preisjaeger (Austria) and PromoDescuentos (Mexico). 25 million consumers use these platforms every month to make 12,000 purchasing decisions per minute.
About PriceSpy
PriceSpy is a comprehensive price and product comparison service used by millions of consumers every month. It helps consumers find, discover, research and compare products.
PriceSpy has 5,520,000 indexed prices, 829,000 products, 6,910,000 product properties, along with hundreds of thousands of product and shop ratings. Providing a fully impartial comparison service for consumers and a deep depository of price data for retailers.
Prisjakt launched in the year 2000 and is Sweden's largest price comparison service. The service is known in Sweden and Norway as Prisjakt, and in the UK and New Zealand as PriceSpy.
]]>Whilst many across the UK are entering the seventh week of lockdown, shopping habits and retail data is helping us understand what people are doing at home, and what shopping will look like after restrictions have been lifted.
Deal-sharing community, hotukdeals, studied data from the whole of April to see what deals their 2 million members were posting and found a 15% increase in the number of deals on the platform, compared to the same period last year. As UK consumers are looking to save money during lockdown, on everything from essential items to ways to stay entertained, they are using their extra time to search for the best prices and discounts during this time.
Some of the biggest changes in number of deals, compared to the same period last year are:
Freebies - up 152%
Culture and leisure - up 107%
Fashion - up 72%
Gaming - up 45%
Since launching in 2004, members of hotukdeals have shared over 2.2 million deals and voted them as hot (good) or cold (bad) based on factors such as price, quality of the product and experiences with the retailer selling the item.
The data shows a massive increase in deals posted to the freebies section and culture and leisure category, up 152% and 107% respectively compared to April 2019. These included free media streaming, game downloads and online courses; free items and services for key workers to give back to those looking after us, as well as deals on e-books, DVDs and Blu-Rays, e-cookbooks, and free virtual plays, tours and concerts.
Fashion deals have gone up by 72% during lockdown, as workout gear and comfy clothing is on the wishlist for people staying home, and with some retailers offering free delivery helping to justify lower priced impulse buys, it’s no surprise that shoppers are purchasing these items.
Gaming has seen a 45% increase in the number of deals posted, and some shoppers are so keen to get their hands on coveted items to stay entertained during lockdown, they are buying popular products including the Nintendo Switch and Oculus VR even at RRP.
Dan Plant, consumer savings expert at hotukdeals, commented: “The hotukdeals community has been working hard to find and share the best offers out there during this time - especially on essential items like groceries and toiletries such as hand wash and toilet roll, where there were initially some shortages and ensuing price hikes.
We are also seeing lots of people clicking out to potentially buy items even if the prices are higher than usual, as demand is so high, especially in areas such as gardening and DIY as people look to purchase items to keep themselves busy during lockdown. A note of caution though - we are expecting to see lots of great deals from retailers post lockdown, and it might be worth holding out for these sales if you can. If you do need to purchase items now, shop around to find the best prices available at the moment, so you can still save money.”
Retailers have started to talk about how they can open stores and follow safety and social distancing guidelines once the government has lifted certain restrictions, with stores such as Next talking about their plans for when this happens and hinting at sales when they do. As some popular stores, like Primark, lack online sales space, and consumers have been following guidelines to only buy what they need during lockdown, hotukdeals predicts seeing plenty of fashion deals when retailers re-open to a fuller capacity. Some merchants will need to clear excess stock, especially those such as Next and River Island who took the decision to reduce, or even halt, online orders due to temporary warehouse closures.
Dan Plant continues, “I think it’s safe to say that we will see plenty of fashion deals with big discounts after lockdown as merchants look to clear stock ready for new season arrivals. It’s possible we’ll also see deals and discounts on furniture as these retailers look to make way for new stock and boost their sales. Electronics remains a popular deal category on hotukdeals during lockdown, as consumers look for items for entertainment, but like furniture and fashion there will inevitably be stock to clear, and therefore discounts being offered, as technology companies look to remain on track with their release cycles.
If lockdown style restrictions continue through the summer, retailers will be planning for big retail sales events later in the year such as Black Friday, when some could be hoping to catch up on any lost sales.
Dan Plant shared his predictions,“If we’re through the worst of the coronavirus and we’re not expecting to see further waves and periods of lockdown, 2020 could see one of the biggest Black Fridays on record as retailers look to clear excess stock. However if we’re still seeing some restrictions then I think it could go the other way, with people potentially having more on their minds.”
-END-
Notes to Editors:
Data compiled by hotukdeals comparing 1-30th April 2019 vs 1-30th April 2020
About hotukdeals:
hotukdeals is the UK’s biggest deal-sharing community where two million members find, rate and share the best deals from on and off the high street every day. Members use the temperature gauge to vote on deals so other users know that the hotter the deal, the stronger the offer. hotukdeals is a founding member of Pepper.com, the world’s largest shopping community:
Pepper.com was founded in 2014 by Fabian Spielberger (mydealz) and Paul Nikkel (hotukdeals). Through international partnerships and conversations, Pepper.com gives smart shoppers around the world a voice to share deals, tips and ideas, connecting members in twelve countries on four continents. The Pepper.com group is headquartered in Berlin, Germany with offices in Belo Horizonte, Guadalajara, London, Lyon, Mumbai and Winnipeg and consists of market-leading platforms such as Chollometro (Spain), Dealabs (France), DesiDime (India), hotukdeals (United Kingdom), mydealz (Germany), Pelando.com.br (Brazil), Pepper.com (The Netherlands), Pepper.pl (Poland), Pepper.ru (Russia), Preisjaeger (Austria) and PromoDescuentos (Mexico). 25 million consumers use these platforms every month to make 12,000 purchasing decisions per minute.
]]>
The UK’s largest deal sharing community, hotukdeals, has appointed Dan Plant as head of content and community, as it hits a major landmark with two million registered members.
Thanks to an impressive Black Friday period, which saw 3.8 million unique visitors to the hotukdeals website over the Black Friday week*, the brand is continuing to build momentum as the biggest online deal-sharing community.
Following senior positions at MoneySavingExpert and MoneySupermarket focussed on helping consumers make the most of their money, Plant has joined hotukdeals to focus on the growth of its community – both in size and happiness. As content and community lead across the brand’s website and app platforms he will work to ensure the hotukdeals community has access to a wide range of market leading offers and tips posted by its members and editorial team, helping even more consumers shop smarter in 2020 and beyond.
Before joining hotukdeals, Plant supervised the content strategy for Barclaycard and brings experience in helping users cut through complicated terms & conditions and confusing sales tactics to understand what the best course of action for them may be. He is an experienced spokesperson and commentator who champions consumers and their rights, and previously served on the independent Consumer Panel within the Financial Conduct Authority, set up to advise and challenge the FCA to help UK consumers.
Dan Plant commented, “I’m excited to join hotukdeals and Pepper at this crucial time in its story. I’ve been a fan of the site since being at MoneySavingExpert when we looked to hotukdeals as a brilliant example of giving users a platform to share mindblowing deals that they hunt out, as well as unvarnished, honest reviews and expert advice.”“I’m looking forward to helping the fantastic team of deal editors, community managers, partnership managers and marketing experts build on the huge success so far; uncovering market leading offers across new categories, becoming known and used by even more of the UK public and hosting a welcoming, knowledgeable community to help people make great purchasing decisions.”
hotukdeals is a founding member of the Pepper.com Group, the world's largest shopping community which operates in Germany, Brazil, France, India, Mexico, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Russia and Spain. Each month 25 million consumers use the twelve Pepper platforms to discuss current offers and make 12,000 purchase decisions per minute. Since 2008, hotukdeals members have increased by over ten fold.
Fabian Spielberger, founder and CEO of Pepper.com, said: “As the hotukdeals community continues to grow we wanted to bring in Dan, who has experience of putting consumers first when analysing offers and creating content, to ensure our now two million strong forum of deal hunters continue to have the tools they need to make smart purchasing decisions and share their knowledge in a way that's informative, open and entertaining.”
“All of our Pepper.com communities, including hotukdeals, are the foundation of what we do and we all have them in mind when undertaking our daily tasks - whether it’s the community managers ensuring that our members are happy and that our sites are a safe place or the partnership teams working with retailers and brands on market leading deals.”
Plant is based at the hotukdeals headquarters in London and is available for comment on his appointment and the hotukdeals community, as well as a wide range of topics including pricing trends, consumer rights and money saving.
-ENDS-
Editor’s notes:
*Seven day active user stat from Google Analytics from 25.11.19 to 02.12.19.
Dan Plant headshots available here.
About hotukdeals:
hotukdeals is the UK’s biggest deal-sharing community where two million members find, rate and share the best deals from on and off the high street every day. Members use the temperature gauge to vote on deals so other users know that the hotter the deal, the stronger the offer.
About Pepper:
Pepper.com, the world's largest shopping community, was founded in 2014 by Fabian Spielberger and Paul Nikkel. Through international partnerships and conversations, Pepper.com gives smart shoppers around the world a voice to share deals, tips and ideas, connecting members in eleven countries on four continents. The Pepper.com group is headquartered in Berlin, Germany with offices in Belo Horizonte, Guadalajara, London, Lyon, Mumbai and Winnipeg and consists of market-leading platforms such as Dealabs (France), DesiDime (India), hotukdeals (United Kingdom), mydealz(Germany), Pelando.com.br (Brazil), Pepper.com (The Netherlands), Pepper.pl (Poland), Pepper.ru (Russia), Preisjaeger (Austria) and PromoDescuentos (Mexico). 25 million consumers use these platforms every month to make 12,000 purchasing decisions per minute.
]]>Shop around and check reviews:
It’s easy to be a lazy shopper - with just a few clicks an item can be in your hands the same day. But whilst this might save us time, it doesn't necessarily save us money. If you’re looking for a particular item, dedicate time to shop around, price check, and read real reviews and recommendations from other shoppers to find the best price. Dan Plant, head of community at deal-sharing website hotukdeals says, “Use other shoppers’ experiences to help make smart purchasing decisions - nothing beats advice from people who have already purchased a product, or who can even recommend an alternative.”
Plan ahead on gifts:
Whilst you might just be getting over your Christmas shopping, if you can face it now is the time to get stuck into the January sales and grab gifts for the year ahead. Whether it’s for birthdays, weddings or christenings, you’ll be pleased to have ready to go presents at home, meaning you can avoid any last minute purchases that are likely to cost more. Look for products that can work for different friends and family e.g. toiletries, homeware, candles and stationery.
Let others do the hard work for you:
We have apps for everything these days, so why not choose one or two for saving you some cash throughout the year? By using savings apps like Chip, which puts money to one side for you by calculating what you can spare, you can use that pot of cash when searching for a new holiday wardrobe, big purchase items, or even Christmas presents next year. And when you are ready to find a great deal, use the hotukdeals app to set alerts on items you’re interested in and receive alerts when a matching deal appears. That way you can wait for the best deal and buy at the best price.
Check for everyday codes:
Don’t just look for discounts or deals on big purchase items, you can save just as much by looking after the pennies you spend on everyday products. For example, if you’re heading out for dinner during the week check for voucher codes and offers, most high-street restaurants offer a discount to attract more weekday customers. And if you are looking to cut down on your food bills, check for vouchers and promotions featured in supermarkets’ in-store magazines. You can even save money on your morning coffee by investing in a reusable cup. Pret now offer a 50p discount meaning customers can get a filter coffee for just 49p if they use one.
Stack the discounts:
Some of the best deals are found by trial and error, whether stacking codes to make extra savings or seeing if a code for a specific product works on other items from the same retailer. Try this method for working out cheaper holidays during term time for example. Instead of opting for a package deal, try and piece together your own deal purchasing hotels, flights and hire cars separately to see if it works out cheaper.
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About hotukdeals:
hotukdeals is the UK’s biggest deal-sharing community where over 1.9 million users find, rate and share the best deals from on and off the high street every day. Members use the temperature gauge to vote on deals so other users know that the hotter the deal, the stronger the offer. hotukdeals is a founding member of the Pepper.com Group, the world's largest shopping community which operates in Germany, Brazil, France, India, Mexico, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Russia and Spain. Each month 25 million consumers use the twelve Pepper platforms to discuss current offers and make 12,000 purchase decisions per minute.
]]>With just two weeks to go until the big day we have top tips and expert advice from the UK’s biggest deal sharing community, hotukdeals, to help shoppers make the right purchasing decisions and save money this Christmas.
Don’t overbuy
Shoppers should only worry about overeating at Christmas and not overspending. Before the holidays, grocery stores have plenty of deals on food to get ready for the big meal. Along with vouchers, try to only buy food you need - which will also help to reduce waste, and check and compare grocery costs online to see which places have the best deals for what you need. If you’re having a big get together suggest family and friends bring a dish each to share the load.
Avoid hidden fees
Always factor in hidden costs and delivery fees when shopping online and compare the final prices once delivery has been added before buying. Don’t forget to check the returns policy and make sure any products will arrive in time for Christmas to avoid having to purchase extra gifts to make up for late arrivals.
Research 0% credit cards
If you can avoid purchasing gifts on a credit card, that would be the optimal choice. If not, try to use a card that has little to no interest and money back, so you don’t find yourself with a hefty credit card bill in the New Year. Many credit card providers also offer rewards such as vouchers or air miles to save money for other expenses, but be sure you have a plan in place to repay the final bill and never borrow money you may be unable to pay back.
Make a list, check it twice
Make a list and if you see something you like, make a note of it but don’t make a purchase straight away incase it’s cheaper elsewhere. Use the free hotukdeals app, the perfect shopping companion, allowing you to check deals (twice if you fancy) and set alerts to find the best price available for items on your list.
Plan ahead
January is the perfect time to not only start shopping for Christmas decorations and wrapping for the following year, but also for gifts for birthdays and other celebrations throughout the year thanks to sales that happen in January.
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About hotukdeals:
hotukdeals is the UK’s biggest deal-sharing community where over 2 million users find, rate and share the best deals from on and off the high street every day. Members use the temperature gauge to vote on deals so other users know that the hotter the deal, the stronger the offer. hotukdeals is a founding member of the Pepper.com Group, the world's largest shopping community which operates in Germany, Brazil, France, India, Mexico, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Russia and Spain. Each month 25 million consumers use the twelve Pepper platforms to discuss current offers and make 12,000 purchase decisions per minute.
]]>New research released today reveals that nearly two thirds (61%) of Brits are looking for discounts and deals at least once a week - with one in ten admitting to bargain hunting each and every day, as money gets tighter thanks to Brexit worries.
With Black Friday sales due to start next week, research from hotukdeals, the UK’s biggest deal-sharing community, found that 62% of Brits would be searching for Black Friday offers. And as sales start earlier each year, on average, shoppers are planning to spend from the 26th November, three days before the main event.
But the confusion on Brexit, including the upcoming General Election, has got shoppers nervous to reach for their wallets, with over half of Brits (57%) admitting the worries have affected their spending habits, with the biggest areas for belt- tightening being eating out (39%); furniture (38%); fashion (36%); electronics (35%); beauty (32%).
One in five (20%) also commented that they have noticed products are more expensive whilst 25% are paying more attention to what they’re spending.
It’s no surprise then that a huge 85% of UK shoppers said they look for deals online, with nearly half (41%) spending up to 30 minutes each day searching for discounts both in store and on the web.
And a third of Brits (34%) have been waiting patiently to buy products they have had their eye on in the Black Friday sales, as another 30% admit they have regretted missing out on great Black Friday deals before.
On average shoppers will be spending £158 with nearly half (47%) looking for electronics deals, followed by fashion (31%), toys (24%) and gaming (23%).
However, when asked if they believed that Black Friday deals were as good as they seemed, 85% said that some deals may look better than they actually are, with 20% saying they felt pressured to buying Black Friday items and a quarter of people (25%) admitting to buying an item they didn't need. It's no surprise then that many shoppers seek out expert advice before they buy to make sure they are getting the best deals.
Dan Plant, Head of Content and Community at hotukdeals, commented: “Black Friday can be a tricky time to navigate with thousands of deals and discounts from hundreds of retailers. Shoppers can use hotukdeals to tap into the tips and expert advice from our nearly 2 million strong community to help make the smartest purchasing decisions - whether that is buying or NOT buying - and find the products they love without falling into any Black Friday shopping traps.”
In preparation for Black Friday, hotukdeals has put together top tips for shopping smart from their near 2 million community members who know how to find the best deal:
1. Get the hotukdeals app
With some deals only available for a limited time, the free hotukdeals app enables users to set keyword alerts, such as Xbox, TV, LEGO or fashion, to receive notifications for new items instantly. The app helps users navigate the huge amount of offers available wherever they are, with the community voting hot or cold on deals to show others that the hotter the deal, the stronger the offer.
2. Sign up and save
With deals starting at varying times across Black Friday, hotukdeals members recommend that shoppers sign up to newsletters and emails from their favourite retailers to gain early access to discounts and VIP slots. The trick is to be ready as early as possible to avoid missing out.
3. Do your research
Regardless of whether it’s Black Friday or not always check the item’s value for money. Members of hotukdeals advise doing some research before purchasing and checking the price history of a product. Experienced Black Friday shoppers warn others to beware of exaggerated discounts and check reviews to make sure you’re getting a worthwhile deal on a quality product.
4. Stack discounts
During Black Friday, savvy shoppers on hotukdeals check for discount codes to add alongside a deal to stack for extra savings. They also look for ‘deal extras’ on items that retailers are price matching on. Extended warranty, free delivery or bundled music subscriptions are also extras worth looking out for.
5. Keep payment details updated
With items going out of stock quickly, shoppers can add products they plan on buying to their online basket in advance. To further speed up the check-out process, shoppers should check their saved payment details and delivery address are up to date, in case items sell out.
6. Use multiple devices
Members of hotukdeals recommend using multiple devices on Black Friday in case there is a virtual queue. For consumers with just one device, use multiple tabs to browse, so you’re ready to shop as deals go live at each retailer.
hotukdeals users can vote hot or cold on deals, alerting others that the hotter the deal, the stronger the offer. Hot or cold votes are based on factors such as price, quality of the product and retailer. The hotukdeals app is free to download on iOS and Android.
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Notes to Editors:
Research conducted by Censuswide with 2001 UK residents in November 2019.
Hotukdeals user case studies and comment available upon request.
Dan Plant, Head of Content and Community at hotukdeals, is an experienced spokesperson and commentator who champions real consumers and their rights, including getting the best deal. Following senior positions at MoneySavingExpert, MoneySupermarket and Barclaycard, Dan’s new role at hotukdeals sees him working closely with the community of nearly 2 million consumers who share deals, vouchers and tips to help others shop smarter. Topics Dan can talk on include pricing trends, money saving tips, consumer rights, how to spot shopping scams and the power of shopping communities.
About hotukdeals:
hotukdeals is the UK’s biggest deal-sharing community where over 1.9 million users find, rate and share the best deals from on and off the high street every day. Members use the temperature gauge to vote on deals so other users know that the hotter the deal, the stronger the offer. hotukdeals is a founding member of the Pepper.com Group, the world's largest shopping community which operates in Germany, Brazil, France, India, Mexico, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Russia and Spain. Each month 25 million consumers use the twelve Pepper platforms to discuss current offers and make 12,000 purchase decisions per minute.
]]>Do an inventory
It always seems to be the same supplies every year, buying pens, pencils, bags and uniforms. Before you set out it’s best to check what you already have and make sure you make a list so you don’t forget. Just have a quick look around cupboards and drawers to see what can be re-used and jot down only what you need and you will make savings on unnecessary purchases.
Know when it’s worth spending more
Although it’s best to re-use old supplies when you can, sometimes it is worth spending a bit more on something that could be used for a few years like a school bag. Investing a bit more now for something you will get a lot of use out of will be worth it when it doesn’t have to be replaced again in 6 months’ time. Expensive uniform is probably unwise to spend a lot on as we all know how fast kids grow out of everything.
Shop out of season
It will take some planning ahead but if you can shop for seasons later in the year you can find some great bargains. Winter uniform in summer for example can usually be found discounted making it a great time to get all the jumpers and coats. Likewise, in winter looking ahead to the summer months you will also find deals. You could even wait until after the August rush to buy supplies for the new school year until September when discounts will already start to appear if you can get away with re-using supplies at the start of term.
Always look for the best deals/sales
Shopping around is always a great way to make savings on all supplies. Always check for the best deals before making purchases. Sales and discounts will always pop up on uniforms and school equipment and make sure to look further than the first deal you see. Already deals are starting to appear such as buy one get one half price at Debenhams and school jumpers for £1 and whole uniforms for £4.50 at Lidl.
You can find more deals and tips on saving money for the school holidays by visiting hotukdeals dedicated thread on free days out and things to do in the school holidays or download the hotukdeals app to set up keyword alerts on any products you need.
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About hotukdeals:
hotukdeals is the UK’s biggest deal-sharing community where over 1.9 million users find, rate and share the best deals from on and off the high street every day. Members use the temperature gauge to vote on deals so other users know that the hotter the deal, the stronger the offer. hotukdeals is a founding member of the Pepper.com Group, the world's largest shopping community which operates in Germany, Brazil, France, India, Mexico, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Russia and Spain. Each month 25 million consumers use the twelve Pepper platforms to discuss current offers and make 12,000 purchase decisions per minute.
]]>The summer holidays are just a few weeks away and whilst we all love going abroad to soak up some sun, it can be an expensive trip for many families. In fact in 2018 UK residents spent a huge £45.4 billion* on visits overseas – that’s a lot of ice cream!
To help families make the most of their money, hotukdeals, the UK’s biggest deal-sharing community with over 1.8 million members, has put together top tips on the best ways to save.
Be flexible with destination and dates
If you don’t have fixed holiday dates and destinations you can find some great deals, even during the school holidays. Make sure to clear your browser cookies if you have already been researching particular dates or locations, to reset the prices and save some money. Use comparison websites such as Skyscanner or Momondo to search for flights and hotels separately and set up alerts to make sure you don’t miss out on any price drops.
Get the best rates on your money
Forgetting to exchange money before you get to the airport can set you back a small fortune - they take the highest commission and you will end up paying a significant amount.
Price comparison websites will show the best exchange rates you can get in your area leading to massive savings if you are exchanging large amounts. Also make sure to look at the rates aboard for using your credit/debit card as transaction fees and withdrawal fees can set you back. You can get great rates abroad with providers such as Monzo, Revolut or Starling who all offer the best rates on cash withdrawals and fees.
Be at one with nature
Choosing to camp instead of booking expensive hotels can be a great way to spend some quality time with the family and have a fun adventure without the price. Everyone can benefit with a disconnect from technology but the key to a stress-free camping holiday is to make sure all your equipment is working before you leave. You can look for great deals on kit in our camping section. A more luxurious experience is to look at glamping and outdoor cabin options so your accommodation is ready and warm when you arrive.
Don’t be afraid to negotiate
The travel industry runs on the art of negotiation. No one wants empty rooms in hotels, empty seats on flights or spaces on activities and tours. When dealing with travel agents, hotels or tour operators make sure to ask about potential discounts available, especially if booking last minute. If some tours look too expensive you can always arrange your own trips for sightseeing and travel. Simply research the location you are visiting, check for discounts on museums and attraction tickets and purchase local travel yourself.
Make sure to check out expert advice put together by the members at hotukdeals before booking any holidays including the best places to exchange money, flight discounts and last minute deals. You can also find the best deals for activities closer to home with discounts on restaurants, theme parks and freebies. Simply download the hotukdeals app on iTunes or Google Play and to set up keyword alerts on any products you need and let the money saving begin.
About hotukdeals:
hotukdeals is the UK’s biggest deal-sharing community where over 1.8 million users find, rate and share the best deals from on and off the high street every day. Members use the temperature gauge to vote on deals so other users know that the hotter the deal, the stronger the offer. hotukdeals is a founding member of Pepper.com, the world’s largest social commerce group.
Notes to editors:
*Based on ONS travel trends for 2018: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/leisureandtourism/articles/traveltrends/2018
]]>The UK’s biggest deal sharing community have chosen which retailers have the best savings as voted for by its 1.8 million-strong members
hotukdeals today revealed which retailers have offered its users the top money saving deals over the past 12 months. By analysing thousands of deals posted across the website - including the quantity of deals, the popularity of the offers and the community engagement, hotukdeals shortlisted 30 retailers for the public vote.
The final retailers were split between six categories including: fashion & beauty, grocery, family & kids, electronics, gaming and travel.
With a huge 1.8 million users finding and sharing deals every day, hotukdeals shoppers have been voting for their favourite money saving retailers across six categories including: fashion & beauty, grocery, family & kids, electronics, gaming and travel.
The winners of the hotukdeals 2019 Retailers Awards are:
Best in Fashion & Beauty deals:
· Winner – Boots
Best in Grocery deals:
· Winner – Tesco
Best in Family & Kids deals:
· Winner – Smyths Toys
Best in Electronics deals:
· Winner – John Lewis
Best in Gaming deals:
· Winner – GAME
Best in Travel & Leisure deals:
· Winner – Groupon
Fabian Spielberger, CEO of Pepper.com, the global shopping community which includes hotukdeals, comments: “We are all about giving shoppers insight and advice on where they can find the best deals, both instore and online. With lots of retailers in the UK battling to attract customers with bigger discounts, now is the time to save money and get the hottest deals on your purchases.”
Best in Fashion & Beauty deals - Boots
Savvy shoppers on hotukdeals know that you don’t have to break the bank when it comes to looking good and this year consumers have voted Boots as best in fashion & beauty deals. Thanks to their great offers on their No.7 range, including £31 worth of products for just £12 and their huge Christmas gift sets sale, the high-street favourite continues to come out top with hotukdeals users. One of the best deals spotted in the last 12 months included downloading the Boots app to get 200 Advantage Card points. One hotukdeals member who shared another Advantage Cards offer commented, “Boots are being pretty generous with their offers lately, hope you can all make use of this!”
Best in Grocery deals - Tesco
Tesco prides itself on everyday low prices, something that deal-savvy consumers certainly seem to agree with after voting the supermarket best in grocery deals for 2019. As Tesco celebrate their 100-year anniversary, prices have been roll backed across the store, including top deals on huge Christmas chocolate tubs, one of the most popular offers with hotukdeals users last year. Shoppers at hotukdeals also spotted great discounts on Yankee Candles and novelty jumpers in the run up to Christmas, as well as the supermarket’s offer cutting the minimum spend for Click & Collect services from £40 to £25.
Best in Gaming deals – GAME
The gaming category on hotukdeals, including items such as video games and consoles, is one of the most popular in terms of deal posting activity and comments from members who share tips based on their own experiences of prices, products and retailers. This year GAME has taken the top spot with big discounts on gaming bundles and offers on the latest games. The hottest deal posted by GAME in the last 12 months saw a PlayStation 4 bundle with a Now TV Entertainment go from £425 to just £359. The community at hotukdeals also shared a number of offers from GAME across the Black Friday and Cyber Monday period including Call of Duty Black Ops 4 for just £37, a 38% saving.
Best in Electronics deals - John Lewis
Following on from their win in the audio-visual category last year, John Lewis have picked up the award for best electronics offers in 2019. Known for their high-quality products, John Lewis is also popular with the hotukdeals community for their added extras, including free UK delivery, easy click & collect options and a fantastic 5-year guarantee promise. During the Black Friday madness, with deals on electronics from all major retailers, John Lewis caught the attention of hotukdeals users with a Google Mini Home Hub for just £25 that also included the 5-year guarantee. With so many discounts on offer, the hotukdeals community was able to advise shoppers on purchasing the device with John Lewis to get the best for their money during a huge sales period.
Best in Family & Kids deals – Smyths Toys
The family and kids category covers anything you need for your little ones, from days out to clothing and toys. Shoppers on hotukdeals have chosen Smyths Toys as their favourite retailer, with huge discounts spotted on fantastic products over the last 12 months. One of the most popular offers shared by the hotukdeals community included £10 off when you spend £50, with users advising others that the offer applied to every £50 you spent just in time for Christmas. Other offers included a free Lego giveaway at all stores, free delivery with no minimum spend and a very popular Black Friday Toy sale.
Best in Travel & Leisure deals – Groupon
Groupon are known for having a huge array of discounts and hotukdeals members love to share the best they can find with the community to help each other out. In the last 12 months some of the hottest deals from Groupon have included great travel discounts, such as a cruise to Amsterdam for £31, a 40% off discount on National Express trips and one night of glamping for the family for under £25. Bargain hunters at hotukdeals also posted a great deal from Groupon for a 12-month Costco Membership at just £33.60.
To date over two million deals have been shared on hotukdeals, with users posting offers relating to anything from groceries, flights, gaming, fashion, personal finance, furniture, eating out and more.
Members receive no commission or monetary incentives to post, they simply share deals for other consumers to take advantage of, helping them to save money on the products they need and to provide inspiration on the best prices.
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Notes to Editors:
hotukdeals helps consumers navigate the huge number of deals on offer nationwide, both online and instore, with users sharing knowledge and inspiration on what to buy at the best prices. Members use the temperature gauge to vote, so other users know that the hotter the deal, the stronger the offer. Voting is based on factors including price, quality of the product and retailer alongside community comments on deals, advice and shopping tips. Find out more at https://www.hotukdeals.com/.
11,641 hotukdeals users took part in the survey from 15th May 2019 to 3rd June 2019.
]]>Following the exciting Royal baby news announced yesterday, hotukdeals, the UK’s biggest deal-sharing community with over 1.8 million members, has put together a guide on how new and expectant parents can save money during what can be an expensive time when you’re not in line to the throne.
Boots parenting club: Expectant parents can sign up to the Boots parenting club, which is available for advantage card members. The scheme offers members 10 advantage card points for every £1 spent on baby products until the baby reaches the age of three. Boots also send tailored offers during each stage of pregnancy and baby age to help along the way such as free gifts, money off clothing and expectant mum products.
Emma’s Diary: Emma’s Diary is one of the UK's leading baby clubs for mums-to-be. By signing up you can get access to £250 worth of Argos money off vouchers, gift packs and vouchers tailored to each stage of your pregnancy and a photo book offer.
Mothercare club: Joining the Mothercare club gives you access to discounts such as 20% off maternity clothing; exclusive member-only early access to sales and over £100 worth of vouchers.
Free prescriptions and NHS dental treatment: Expectant mothers are entitled to free prescriptions and NHS dental treatment from when a pregnancy is confirmed until the baby is one. Ask your midwife for the relevant forms.
Nappies: As parents, you will go through mountains of nappies, whether reusable or disposable. Whichever method you decide on you can get free samples of Aldi nappies, as well as baby wipes, to try via Netmums, which can help towards those never-ending costs.
Baby & Toddler Events: Many of the big UK retailers run baby and toddler events throughout the year with huge savings on everyday essentials such as baby wipes and nappies plus more significant purchases like cots, car seats, pushchairs and more. Members at hotukdeals have put together a shopping guide, with dates and best buys for 2019.
Other places expectant parents can sign up to that include free gifts and advice include:
• The Cow & Gate baby club - free to join - advice, free goodies and more.
• Save up to 20% on nappies and baby food with Amazon Prime.
• Get a heads up on ASDA Baby events and money saving offers.
• Get 20% off at the Early Learning Centre on your child's birthday.
• FREE Money off vouchers/Coupons from Johnson & Johnson.
• Save money, enter competitions and get expert advice with Tesco Baby Club.
To find more deals and tips on saving money during pregnancy and early parenthood visit hotukdeals dedicated Family & Kids Offers page https://www.hotukdeals.com/tag/kids or download the hotukdeals app to set up keyword alerts on any products you need.
About hotukdeals:
hotukdeals is the UK’s biggest deal-sharing community where over 1.8 million users find, rate and share the best deals from on and off the high street every day. Members use the temperature gauge to vote on deals so other users know that the hotter the deal, the stronger the offer. hotukdeals is a founding member of Pepper.com, the world’s largest social commerce group.
]]>New research released today reveals that most people are snapping up Black Friday deals on the Thursday night, getting the best savings before the huge annual shopping sale has officially started.
Shoppers at hotukdeals, the UK’s biggest deal-sharing community, are ahead of the discount frenzy with the biggest spike in activity seen between 9pm and 10pm on Thursday, 11% more than those shopping on Black Friday morning at 9am.
Over 1700 deals were posted on the money-saving website the day before the shopping event last year, more than four times the amount on an average day. Another spike was spotted a full week before Black Friday, as retailers on the high street and online gear up for dramatic price cuts.
As the biggest shopping sale of the year shows no sign of slowing down, hotukdeals saw offers increase by 110% when compared to an average week, as well as 50% more deals becoming available in November 2017, compared to the previous year.
Danny Munday, General Manager at hotukdeals commented: “As the Black Friday frenzy begins earlier and earlier each year it is no surprise that by Thursday night savvy shoppers have got a huge range of deals to choose from and our 1.6 million members are the first to get the best offers.”
The research also identifies the most popular shopping categories as well as the increase in deals during Black Friday, including:
1. Computers (360% increase)
2. Gaming (323% increase)
3. Homes and Gardens (217% increase)
4. Electronics (359% increase)
5. Baby & Kids (172% increase)
hotukdeals users can vote hot or cold on deals, alerting others that the hotter the deal, the stronger the offer. Hot or cold votes are based on factors such as price, quality of the product and retailer.
In preparation for Black Friday, hotukdeals have put together six top tips for bargain hunters:
1. Get the hotukdeals app
The hotukdeals app enables users to set keyword alerts, such as Xbox, fashion, TV, or LEGO to receive notifications for new items instantly. With some deals expiring quickly, users can easily access deals as found by the hotukdeals community wherever they are. Featuring an alert feature and voting system, the app helps consumers navigate the huge number of offers available during Black Friday.
2. Sign up and save
With deals starting at varying times across Black Friday, hotukdeals members recommend that shoppers signup to newsletters and emails from their favourite retailers to gain early access to discounts and VIP slots. The trick is to be ready as early as possible to avoid missing out. Some members suggest taking out a 30-day Amazon Prime Free Trial for access to their early discounts – just remember to cancel if you don’t want to continue.
3. Make smart decisions
Regardless of whether it’s Black Friday or not, always check the item’s value for money. Members of hotukdeals advise checking the price history of a product and comparing prices to ensure the discount is worthwhile as, according to one user, “some retailers hike the price up to discount before Black Friday, so it looks like you’re getting a better deal than you are.” As experienced Black Friday shoppers will know, some unwanted stock also gets pushed during Black Friday, so beware of exaggerated discounts and check reviews to make sure you’re getting a worthwhile deal on a quality product.
4. Stack discounts
During Black Friday, savvy shoppers on hotukdeals check for discount codes to add alongside a deal to stack for extra savings. They also look for ‘deal extras’ on items that retailers are price matching on. For example, last year, retailers such as AO, John Lewis, Currys and Argos price matched on items including the Google Home and Google Home Mini. But hotukdeals users, with the help of fellow community members, could choose where to buy according to other factors such as extended warranty, free delivery or, for example, bundled music subscriptions.
5. Keep payment details updated
With items going out of stock quickly, shoppers can add products they plan on buying to their online basket in advance. To further speed up the check-out process, shoppers should check their saved payment details and delivery address are up to date, in case items sell out.
6. Use multiple devices
Members of hotukdeals recommend using multiple devices on Black Friday in case there is a virtual queue. For consumers with just one device, use multiple tabs to browse, so you’re ready to shop as deals go live at each retailer.
The hotukdeals app is free to download on iOS andAndroid.
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Editor’s notes
Data taken from the hotukdeals website from November 2017.
Black Friday week defined as Monday – Sunday.
Category uplifts based on Black Friday itself versus an average day.
About hotukdeals
hotukdeals is the UK’s biggest deal-sharing community where users find, rate and share the best deals from on and off the high street every day to provide inspiration to others on what to buy at the best prices. Members use the temperature gauge to vote on deals so other users know that the hotter the deal, the stronger the offer. hotukdeals has over 1.6m members and is a founding member of Pepper.com, the world’s largest social commerce group.
]]>Pepper.com, the world’s largest shopping community that includes hotukdeals in the UK, has strengthened its management with the appointment of Soenke Kisker as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) who, since April 2018, has been responsible for the financial strategy of the platform that hosts 25 million unique users/month.
Kisker previously held a senior commercial position at trivago, joining in 2014 and playing a major role in the execution of trivago's Initial Public Offering on NASDAQ in 2016. He has since established capital market-related functions in the financial sector.
Soenke Kisker first completed an apprenticeship in foreign trade before studying Business Economics in Maastricht and graduating at the WHU Otto Beisheim School of Management with periods abroad in New York, Shanghai and Bangalore, India as Master of Business Administration in General Management (MBA). He has held leading positions in the digital industry since 2013 – building the global finance department for Panna Cotta (now: Savings United), a coupon company active in 16 countries, and later for trivago. From 2014, Kisker focused on building the Finance global function at trivago and was substantially involved in preparing trivago’s IPO on NASDAQ. After the IPO in December 2016, he was responsible for trivago's capital market-related Financial Planning, Analysis and Treasury departments.
Fabian Spielberger, founder and CEO of Pepper.com, said, "We are delighted to have gained an internationally experienced and ambitious manager in Soenke and we are confident that Soenke and his team will contribute significantly to the further global growth of Pepper.com and our local brands.”
Soenke Kisker, CFO of Pepper.com, said, "Fabian and his team have written a unique success story in Germany and Europe in the last fourteen years without any financing rounds and have developed Pepper.com into a highly attractive company with a strong market position and great growth prospects. I am looking forward to being part of this success story and to working together to shape further growth."
Pepper.com was formed in June 2014 from a merger of the market leaders hotukdeals (UK) and mydealz (Germany), which have been active since 2004 and 2007 respectively. Today, Pepper.com operates social commerce portals in 14 countries on four continents.
Every month, 25 million unique users publish, discuss and evaluate around 95,000 offers from online shops, classic retailers and providers in the media and finance sectors. In total, Pepper.com influences 12,000 purchase decisions per minute and is thus the world's largest shopping community.
—
About Pepper.com(www.pepper.com):
Pepper Media Holding GmbH (Pepper.com for short) was founded in June 2014 by Paul Nikkel and Fabian Spielberger as a merger of their social commerce platforms hotukdeals and mydealz, which have been in operation since 2004 respectively 2007, has its headquarters in Berlin and employs around 200 people here and in Belo Horizonte, Guadalajara, London, Lyon, Mumbai and Winnipeg. With 25 million unique users per month, Pepper.com is the world's largest shopping community and operates social commerce portals in 14 countries on four continents. Smart shoppers from Austria, Brazil, France, Germany, India, Mexico, the Netherlands, Poland, Russia, Singapore, Spain, South Korea and the USA use the Pepper.com platforms to post and rate offers from classic and online retailers and buy products at the best conditions on the market. For retailers and manufacturers, Pepper.com plays an important role in conversion-oriented marketing and influences 12,000 purchase decisions per minute.
]]>
Despite the high number of consumers shopping from the UK with online retailers based in another country, consumers in places like Italy and Germany are more likely to shop away from home with 77 per cent of German consumers advising they have shopped online with retailers based abroad, 78 per cent of Spanish consumers and 86 per cent of Italian consumers.
For those British consumers ordering from online retailers outside of the UK, the main reason for choosing so, according to 60 per cent of consumers, was due to the fact the price was good (and supposedly better than that of UK retailers), even with shipping costs.
32 per cent of shoppers advised they shopped online with retailers based overseas because they were looking for a specific product only sold by that retailer; 2 per cent advised they did so simply to test out the process; whilst 7 per cent admitted that they weren’t aware the site was not a UK based retailer**.
Since the EU referendum, increased prices have already been seen across some food and alcohol products in the UK, with some consumer technology items also increasing in price since the vote, such as speakers. According to an article by Trusted Reviews in April 2017, the Sonos Connect rose from a suggested price of £279 in January 2017 to £349 in April 2017 - a 25.09% (£70) increase on the previous price***. They also reported other price increases seen across products such as the iPad Pro, iPad Air, HTC Vive, One Plus 3 Smartphone and more.
Members of hotukdeals vote hot or cold on deals so other consumers know that the hotter the deal, the stronger the offer based on factors such as price, product quality and the retailer selling the item. Members often post deals for overseas based retailers and international sites of global retail brands such as Amazon that get a lot of deal heat, highlighting that despite being an overseas seller/website, the deal is good and better than prices seen in the UK. One recent, hot deal posted by a consumer using hotukdeals was for the Samsung Galaxy S8 that was available from Amazon.de for 499 Euro, which the consumer highlighted would be £449****. This deal was voted hot by consumers (1418º) with those who purchased the smartphone advising that they were able to get free delivery and that the product was covered by Amazon’s EU warranty. Looking at data available on CamelCamelCamel, the cheapest the phone has been on Amazon.co.uk is £649 in January 2018*****.
Savvy shoppers find it increasingly easier to shop online with international sites, especially with the likes of Amazon where you can use your existing UK login details to shop at its foreign equivalents and use their returns policy which covers global store items. Consumers also feel more confident shopping abroad thanks to social commerce platforms like hotukdeals where consumers share tips and answer questions any concerned shoppers have about the process.
To view the latest deals as found by consumers for consumers on hotukdeals, please visit www.hotukdeals.com.
Editor’s notes:
**Pepper.com commissioned a survey of 2003 British consumers (not members of hotukdeals), which was carried out by Statista in September 2017 covering male and female consumers across different age groups and regions of the UK. The same questions were also asked to consumers in Italy (1000 participants), Spain (1005 participants), Germany (1002 participants) and France (1002 participants).
***http://www.trustedreviews.com/news/brexit-theresa-may-article-50-letter-eu-referendum-vote-trigger-2950590#UEJYGsE8ker4PG95.99
****https://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/samsung-s8-all-colours-449-from-amazonde-2896340
*****https://uk.camelcamelcamel.com/Samsung-Plus-64GB-SIM-Free-Smartphone-Midnight-Black/product/B06XYKR7GP?context=search
About hotukdeals:
hotukdeals is the UK’s biggest deal-sharing community where consumers find, rate and share the best deals from on and off the high street every day to provide inspiration to others on what to buy at the best prices. Members use the temperature gauge to vote on deals so other users know that the hotter the deal, the stronger the offer. hotukdeals has over 1.6m members and is a founding member of Pepper.com, the world’s largest social commerce group.
]]>London, Wednesday 4th April 2018: hotukdeals, the UK’s biggest deal-sharing community, today reveals which retailers have been offering the best deals to consumers across five categories in its Retailer Awards 2018, providing insight to shoppers on where to shop for some for the best offers, as voted by its deal-savvy consumers.
Awards were available for deals relating to fashion, gaming, audio-visual, computing and groceries with ASDA George, Amazon, John Lewis, Lidl and Currys PC World leading in their categories with Lidl taking the award for best in grocery deals for the second year running.
Winning retailers were determined by looking at the data of deals posted by the platform’s deal-savvy consumers throughout 2017, taking into considering the number of deals posted per retailer and the deal heat given to deals, on average - consumers who use hotukdeals to find and share deals also vote them hot or cold based on factors such as price history, quality of the product and the retailer, so other shoppers know the hotter the deal, the stronger the offer. A shortlist of retailers was then put to the vote to consumers on hotukdeals to find an overall winner in each category*.
The winners of the hotukdeals Retailer Awards 2018 are:
Best in fashion deals
· Winner – ASDA George
· Runner-up – Debenhams
Best in gaming deals (such as video games and consoles)
· Winner – Amazon.co.uk
· Runner-up – CDKeys
Best in audio-visual deals (such as TV’s and speakers)
· Winner – John Lewis
· Runner-up – Currys
Best in grocery deals
· Winner – Lidl
· Runner-up – ASDA
Best in computing deals (such as tablets and laptops)
· Winner – Currys PC World
· Runner-up – Ebuyer
Best in grocery deals - Lidl
Lidl prides itself on quality products at low prices, something that deal-savvy consumers certainly seem to agree with after voting the supermarket best in grocery deals for the second year running.
The hottest Lidl deal as posted by consumers on hotukdeals in 2017 was for six bottles of Allini prosecco, which Lidl was selling for just £20 in August, in time for BBQ season. Other hot grocery deals included the supermarket’s XXL DEALS with the hottest of these voted back in January 2017, with the offers that week including a 1L bottle of Extra Virgin Olive Oil for £2.39, Mozzarella (250g) for 75p, Black Forest Ham (250g) for £1.99, Laundry Gel (32 Washes) for £2.29, 1L Yogurt Drink for 99p and 1L Shower Gel for 99p.
Best in gaming deals – Amazon.co.uk
The gaming category on hotukdeals, that includes items such as videogames and consoles, is one of the most popular in terms of deal posting activity and comments from members who share tips based on their own experiences of prices, products and retailers, which is helpful to consumers when making their purchasing decisions. It’s no surprise to see Amazon taking at least one award in the hotukdeals Retailer Awards thanks to the popularity of its sales events – Prime Day, Black Friday and Cyber Monday and its quick and easy delivery.
Last year, Amazon’s gaming deals were included in a mega-thread of deals posted for its Black Friday event such as the Oculus Rift and Oculus Touch, which was down to £349.99 – an improved price since it was voted hot in July during Prime Day when the same product on Amazon was £399.99. The hottest standalone gaming deal from Amazon.co.uk, as posted by consumers on hotukdeals, was another Black Friday offer this time for the Nintendo Switch Super Mario Odyssey for £279.99, which included a physical copy of the game.
Best in audio-visual deals - John Lewis
John Lewis’s hottest deal as posted by a consumer in the audio-visual category on hotukdeals in 2017 (that includes products such as televisions and speakers) was for a 40" Samsung HDR 4K Ultra HD Smart TV, with TVPlus plus a free 5-year guarantee and free delivery, which the retailer was selling for £289 in December, which according to PriceSpy was the cheapest price it’s been**. The original deal poster advised this was a confirmed price match that included ten free UHD movie rental purchases through redemption (directly from Samsung). A lot of deals posted for products sold by John Lewis are voted hot due to the company’s guarantee offers with TV’s coming in at 5 years as standard. This makes consumers feel confident they’re getting a good deal on a quality product, and is an added deal extra when a retailer price matches items.
Best in fashion deals – ASDA George
Deal savvy consumers on hotukdeals teach others that you don’t have to break the bank when it comes to fashion items whether it be clothes for adults, babies and kids, or teenagers. This year consumers voted ASDA George as best in fashion deals thanks to offers posted on the platform available for all the family. One of the company’s hottest deals was for sale items spotted just before Christmas with savvy shoppers picking up discounted items such as coats for £15 and shirts and women’s dresses for half price (some seen for as little as £6). One consumer advised that they purchased eight tops for £30, that they were going to pay full price for. The May sale was also voted hot with consumers getting deals on their holiday wardrobes, as well as items for the kids.
Best in computing deals - Currys PC World
The computing category on hotukdeals covers products such as laptops, tablets and accessories such as SD cards and hard drives. The hottest deal as posted by consumers on hotukdeals for Currys PC World last year, was for a Microsoft Surface Pro 4 with pen and a 128GB hard drive (ex-display) for £429, which was a nationwide in-store offer that got a lot of deal heat from consumers, so others knew it was a good deal.
It’s often hard to find deals on Apple products, but last year the second hottest deal for Currys PC World was for a MacBook Pro (2016) with retina and touch-bar that the retailer was selling for £1299. Consumers at the time advised other shoppers that Apple had this model for £1399 (refurbished) highlighting that this deal was better. Other popular deals for Currys PC World included offers from the retailer’s Black Friday week, with the most popular being the ASUS C300 13.3" Chromebook, which was £129.99 for the blue version of the product with consumers advising that the black version was £199.99.
Editor’s notes:
*1352 respondents who use hotukdeals took part in the survey to vote for the retailers that they thought offered the best deals in each shortlisted category.
** https://pricespy.co.uk/audio-video/tvs/samsung-ue40mu6120--p4414241?q=Samsung%20UE40MU6120.
About hotukdeals: hotukdeals is the UK’s biggest deal-sharing community where users find, rate and share the best deals from on and off the high street every day to provide inspiration to others on what to buy at the best prices. Members use the temperature gauge to vote on deals so other users know that the hotter the deal, the stronger the offer. hotukdeals has over 1.6m members and is a founding member of Pepper.com, the world’s largest social commerce group.
]]>London, Tuesday 23rd January 2017: hotukdeals, the UK’s biggest deal-sharing community, has revealed the top ten shopping deals of 2017, as rated by consumers using the platform to find, share and vote on deals, with the recent offer for 20% off at eBay taking the number one spot.
Consumers using hotukdeals vote hot or cold on deals, so other consumers know that the hotter the deal the stronger the offer. Votes are based on factors such as product quality, the price and the retailer offering the deal.
The hottest (and best) deal of 2017, in terms of deal heat from consumers using hotukdeals, was for 20% off at eBay between 12pm and 6pm on the 28th December, which was voted 14,930º. Not only was this the hottest rated deal of 2017 but also since the site’s inception in 2004. This deal was popular amongst consumers as it’s rare to get this kind of saving on big ticket items such as electrical equipment and games consoles. Some of the discounts deal-savvy shoppers could get, thanks to this offer, included £75 off a new washing machine from Currys, £75 saving on a Nintendo Switch Bundle from Argos, £70 off a Hotpoint cooker, £75 off an iPad Pro and more.
It’s no surprise to see Amazon dominating the top ten with offers from the online retail giant claiming the second, third, fourth and seventh hottest deals of 2017. Its best deal (and second hottest of 2017), according to consumers, was for £10 off a £50+ spend with a code in January 2017, with shoppers highlighting it as a good offer for others to use to save money on the items they were looking to buy after Christmas when money can be tight. This deal was voted 7152º by consumers and was the second hottest deal of the year.
Amazon’s second hottest deal (and third overall) was posted at the end of June when consumers could get a year’s membership of Amazon Prime for £59 instead of £79 – just in time to access Amazon’s exclusive Prime Day discounts. This deal was voted 5477º. The fourth hottest deal of the year was voted at 5175º in September and was for £4.49 worth of free credit for an Amazon Video Rent or Buy for Student Accounts, which non-student consumers also seemed to be able to access (if they hadn’t done so before). The seventh hottest deal was for the Amazon Echo Dot that was reduced to £34.99 in December, which was the same as the Black Friday offer. This deal was voted 4731º by consumers using hotukdeals in 2017. The price on Amazon is now at £49.99.
Six of the top ten hottest deals of the year were posted in December, all in time for Christmas (apart from the eBay deal which was live on the 28th December). A deal posted on the 11thDecember was for Reebok’s end of season outlet sale, which consumers could combine with a £20 off a £40 spend thanks to a code, plus free delivery on a £50 spend, plus free returns. This deal was voted 5160º by deal-savvy consumers looking for Christmas present ideas (or items for themselves) including trainers, gym and fashion pieces and was the fifth hottest deal of the year.
Consumers on hotukdeals also share freebies and on the 4th December, the sixth hottest deal of the year was posted. This was for a gaming deal where, just in time for the holiday season, Ubisoft celebrated two big anniversaries by giving players the chance to download Assassin’s Creed IV Black Flag and World in Conflict on Uplay PC for free. This deal was voted 4883º. The tenth hottest deal was also a freebie - this time from the Sky Store where customers could download the Amazing Spider-Man for free and also get a DVD copy for free in the post. This deal was posted in September and was voted 4041º.
Deals from Tesco were the eighth and ninth hottest deals of 2017. In eighth position was another gaming deal available from Tesco Direct, posted on the 21st December, which had various PS4 and Xbox games on offer including For Honor, Far Cry, Bioshock Collection, Yooka-Laylee, Steep and Lego Star Wars for £10 each. This deal was voted 4421º. The ninth hottest deal of the year was also from Tesco, with the supermarket offering customers two free Terry’s Chocolate Orange when purchasing one, making them just 67p each instead of the usual £2.00. This deal was posted in September and voted 4263º by consumers.
For all the latest and hottest deals as posted and voted for by consumers for consumers, please visit www.hotukdeals.com.
Editor’s notes:
*Deal heat correct as of the first week of January and time of writing. If deals are still live in 2018 then consumers can still vote on the deal.
About hotukdeals: hotukdeals is the UK’s biggest deal-sharing community where users find, rate and share the best deals from on and off the high street every day to provide inspiration to others on what to buy at the best prices. Members use the temperature gauge to vote on deals so other users know that the hotter the deal, the stronger the offer. hotukdeals has over 1.6m members and is a founding member of Pepper.com, the world’s largest social commerce group.
]]>London, Thursday 14th December 2017: Pepper.com today strengthens its position as the world’s largest shopping community by launching a Spanish platform chollometro.com. Like hotukdeals, chollometro.com enables consumers to share, rate and comment on the latest deals to help shoppers make better buying decisions.
Digital Link Marketing (DLM), a Seville-based company that owns Spain’s biggest bargain platform ReyesDelChollo.com, joins Pepper.com to run the Spanish portal.
Deal savvy consumers in Spain can now use chollometro.com to share deals as well as their experiences with specific retailers and products and vote on current offers. Thanks to the voting system, shoppers are able to the see the best deals at a glance and spend their money wisely. This kind of service is in demand by Spanish consumers and offers retailers an added value as a representative Statista survey, commissioned by Pepper.com, shows: 41.7% of Spanish consumers use shopping communities to get information and inspiration about products and 18.9% discover new retailers in this way.
Spain is Pepper.com’s 13th market worldwide and its seventh in Europe. The company was founded in June 2014 as a merger of the market-leading platforms hotukdeals (United Kingdom) Dealabs (France) and mydealz (Germany) and has most recently started operating in Brazil and Singapore. With 25 million unique users per month, Pepper.com is the world’s largest shopping community and influences 12,000 buying decisions every minute. Pepper.com is also preparing to launch in two other markets.
Miguel Nogales, co-founder of Digital Link Marketing, said, “Receiving Pepper's proposal from Fabian and Paul in Berlin was very exciting. Exactly one year since we started, and after other big companies in the sector had contacted us, we received the proposal from them that we accepted instantly. Internally, at the time, we were building a platform similar to the one used by Pepper around the world. Joining means a super-enriching, mutual partnership since both parties will succeed in improving and achieving the common goals that we have - to create the largest deal community in the world.”
Fabian Spielberger, CEO of Pepper.com, said, “Spain is definitely one of Europe’s most promising e-commerce markets due to its market volume and its dynamic growth. Since 2013, internet retailers in Spain have nearly doubled their turnover from €6.8 billion to €13.5 billion in 2017 and are also benefitting from a strong annual growth of 18.6%, which is significantly higher than the European average of 17.4%. The fact that four out of ten Spanish consumers are – simultaneously – using shopping communities to discover new retailers and offers makes me very confident that we are able to contribute to the further growth of the e-commerce industry in Spain.”
About Pepper.com: Pepper.com, the world's largest shopping community, was founded in 2014 by Fabian Spielberger and Paul Nikkel. Through international partnerships and conversations, Pepper.com gives smart shoppers around the world a voice to share deals, tips and ideas, connecting members in 13 countries on three continents. The Pepper.com group is headquartered in Berlin/Germany with offices in Belo Horizonte, Guadalajara, London, Lyon, Mumbai and Winnipeg and consists of market-leading platforms such as BuenosDeals (North America), Dealabs (France), DesiDime (India), hotukdeals (United Kingdom), mydealz (Germany), Pelando.com.br (Brazil), Pelando.sg (Singapore), Pepper.co.kr (South-Korea), Pepper NL (The Netherlands), Pepper PL (Poland), Preisjaeger (Austria), PromoDescuentos (Mexico) and now Chollometro (Spain). These platforms are currently used by more than 25 million smart shoppers and influence 12,000 buying decisions every minute.
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