SINGAPORE — Supermarket chain Giant announced on Thursday (March 25) that it is extending its discounts on hundreds of products until the end of the year, which will set it back by an extra S$4 million.

It will also add more than 100 discounted products, which include Kirei Kirei anti-bacterial handwash, Angus beef patties imported from Australia and Japanese sweet potatoes from Vietnam.

Giant, with 53 stores islandwide and owned by Dairy Farm Group, said that this would continue in order to help ease the financial hardship faced by customers during these uncertain economic conditions due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

It had already invested S$17 million last year into its discount campaign called Lower Prices That Last, which provides wide-ranging discounts on 650 products.

Mr Chris Bush, Dairy Farm Group's chief executive officer for Southeast Asia food business, said: “We understand that during these uncertain economic times, our customers are still looking to stretch their dollar.

“With an average grocery basket savings of up to 27 per cent, and with customers visiting supermarkets on an average of once a week, that adds up to very significant cost savings over time.”

From data that Giant collected from December last year to March, it said that customers who shopped at its stores instead of its competitors would have saved up to an average of 28 per cent or S$14.40 for every basket.

The hypermarket chain said that since the campaign launch, it has seen a “significant uptick” in shopping traffic and volume sales in its stores, particularly for fresh produce such as minced pork, prawns and cabbage.

This year, customers may expect discounts of 20 per cent on average, which is the same as last year, it said.

The price for a bottle of Kirei Kirei anti-bacterial foaming hand soap, for example, is slashed from S$2.35 to S$1.50, a 36.2 per cent drop.

For Japanese sweet potatoes from Vietnam, there is a 28.6 per cent discount to sell at S$2.50 instead of S$3.50.

The price reductions will also apply to products across Giant’s own brands such as Meadows. It will be expanding its product catalogue to include staples such as oil, cereal and cooking spices.

Separately, Giant is expanding its merchandise. It will add 300 new products in its stores, including Haagen Dazs strawberry cheesecake, Impossible Beef products and Darlie mouth spray.

Mr Bush said: “We have increased our investment so that we can continue to deliver on our customer promise of keeping prices low — and now for even longer — so that they can enjoy savings on the products of which they buy the most.

“Since the launch of the campaign, we have proven to customers that these reduced prices aren’t short-term promotions but long-term price reductions on products that matter most to them, so when they shop at Giant, they can shop with the confidence that they are getting the best value in the market.”