Members’ cards

My wallet’s become extra thick with various stores’ point cards, so I pulled them all out and had a look at what I’ve collected. Most of them are useless but they offer a voyeur an interesting look into my shopping habits.

Santoku & Queen’s Isetan (grocery stores) cards get me a 500 yen coupon after I’ve purchased 50,000 in groceries). I just redeemed a Santoku coupon yesterday. It will be about 6 weeks before I get another one. At QI, you have to check your total in a little kiosk that prints you a coupon if you have enough points.

Bic Camera gives me 10% of the purchase price in points to be spent as yen on future purchases. I think Tod’s card has about 16,000 points. Mine’s got 5,000. We shop there too often but it feels good to buy things just in points.

Jingu Skate Rink has a really good deal. Get 5 stamps and earn one free entrance. Ten stamps gets you in for free three times. I have 2 stamps so far. Must skate more!

Oshman’s sporting goods store gives you a 1,000 yen discount after you spend 20,000 yen. I bought one bathing suit and I’m already 70% of the way there. It was a double points sale week; I didn’t spend 14,000 on a bathing suit.

Shop In gives 500 yen for 10,000 yen in purchases. This is probably the most generous of the programs, but they sell cosmetics and jewelry and stuff like that, so I don’t shop there very often…why have I kept this card?

Karako sells “ethnic” housewares at La Qua. I’ve got 520 points on the card, but no idea what they are good for. I should toss this one.

Club ON is Seibu’s member club. I accumulate 1 point for every 1000 yen I spend, but I’ve no idea what I do with the points. I do a lot of framing at Loft, part of the Seibu group, so I probably have a fair number of points.

Junoesque Bagel Buy 4000 yen’s worth of bagels and get three bagels free. They have a kiosk in the station where I transfer on a Friday night coming home late, so we often have bagels for breakfast on Saturday mornings. I’m sure I’ll fill this one up in no time at all.

Coffee History is my newest card. It’s a coffee bean shop in Ginza with roasted and green beans from all over, but a paltry reward program: after 2.5 kg of coffee purchased, you get a 500 yen discount. Good coffee isn’t cheap.

Posted by kuri at August 15, 2004 12:58 PM