Great Singapore Sale (GSS) is back for its 26th year from Friday, 21 June 2019 to Sunday, 28 July 2019 – this time, with a fresh new look! Leveraging on the successful legacy of the 25-year Great Singapore Sale which has won the hearts of locals and tourists from all over the world, the rebranded GSS: Experience Singapore (GSS: ES) is a proactive response to the ever-evolving retail landscape, changing consumer preferences and competition from the online marketplace.
This year’s GSS: ES sees Singapore Retailers Association (SRA) join forces with One Kampong Gelam (OKG), Orchard Road Business Association (ORBA), Restaurant Association of Singapore (RAS), Singapore Furniture Industries Council (SFIC), and Textile and Fashion Federation (TAFF) to bring locals and tourists a vibrant retail experience that integrates fashion, entertainment, lifestyle design, technology and art.
Here are the highlights at Singapore’s most significant sale season.
Orchard Road Fashion Scramble
Kickstarting the GSS: ES season this year was the Orchard Road Fashion Scramble – an extravagant flash mob featuring 100 models and over 100 dancers. Held at one of Orchard’s busiest intersections on Friday, 21 June 2019, the Fashion Scramble saw traffic on all three roads at Cairnhill Road, Grange Road and Orchard Road come to a simultaneous halt.
More than 100 dancers burst into the yellow box junction at the traffic intersection and danced their way into the hearts of onlookers at Orchard Road. It was literally a traffic-stopping “Orchard Road Fashion Scramble” as the over-100 models subsequently took over the ‘yellow box traffic intersection’ to showcase collections from entrepreneurial and established local and international designers, as well as creations by budding young designers from reputed fashion design schools.
The Great Singapore Pop-Up
Held till Sunday, 30 June 2019, The Great Singapore Pop-Up spans along the Orchard Road shopping belt. Shoppers will be spoilt for choice with the 43 retail and F&B outlets available – ranging from cult jeans and active sportswear, fashion apparel and accessories, furniture and home furnishings, jewellery and vintage collectables, cosmetics, arts and crafts, lifestyle specialty gifts and more!
Shoppers may also eat their fill with an array of delectable dishes at their fingertips, featuring gourmet burgers, craft beers, salted egg rostis, Ah Hoi’s famed Chilli Crab, and even Singapore’s very own bubble tea concoctions.
Finally, chill out at the air sofa and picnic benches at Grange Road Carpark with jazz bands and screenings of short films produced by students from Temasek Polytechnic.
The Experience Kampong Gelam
This year, GSS: Experience Singapore will be extended beyond its usual sphere of retail outlets to celebrate one of Singapore’s oldest urban precincts – Kampong Gelam (KG). Held from Friday, 5 July 2019 to Sunday, 14 July 2019, The Experience Kampong Gelam endeavours to educate both locals and tourists about the cultural and national significance of this beautifully preserved community.
Experience the old-world charm of this historic Singaporean neighbourhood through selected activities involving arts, culture, cuisine and shopping in the specially curated KG Precinct Tours. Be it on bicycles or Vespa sidecars; visitors may enjoy the ride while embarking on a treasure tour and discovering tantalising spices. A special edition of the Precinct Tour will also be conducted in conjunction with the launch of the Outdoor Art Gallery, Gelam Gallery.
For your dose of entertainment, visit Kandahar Street, where you can catch performances by musicians, artists and theatrical groups from the Aliwal Arts Centre. And if you are yearning for a snack, food trucks offering traditional items such as satay and kueh will satiate your hunger.
Baghdad Street will also be transformed into a shoppers’ paradise for those with an affinity for unique handicrafts, curios, and other traditional knick-knacks.
The GREAT Singapore Stories
The GREAT Singapore Stories presents an evocative collection of local films, music and stories told by Singaporean filmmakers, musicians and students. Watch curated short films made by students of Temasek Polytechnic, movies by Singapore filmmakers, and tune in to performances by jazz bands and local buskers.
The GREAT Shopping Spree
The GREAT Shopping Spree come in the form of sales, discounts and special treats to keep shopaholics and foodies on the feet all 38 days of the GSS: ES season – notably TGIF! And 7.7 GST Absorbed Day.
TGIF! takes place every Friday during GSS: ES, whereby shoppers may look forward to additional promotional deals offered by retail, dining and lifestyle establishments such as one-for-one flash deals, storewide discounts, gift with purchase and other treats!
Meanwhile, 7.7 GST Absorbed Day – which takes place on Sunday, 7 July 2019 – allows you to shop, dine and play to heart’s desire as merchants will absorb GST for one day only!
For more information, visit https://gss.sra.org.sg
Photos by Goh Jing Wen of the DANAMIC team.
