I recently came across this incredibly fascinating story of how a furniture business does its promotions.
Enter Jim McIngvale, better known as Mattress Mack.
He owns Gallery Furniture, one of the top furniture retailers in the US, with more than $200 million in annual sales revenue at its three Houston locations.
While his founding story is a very interesting read in itself, it has been his way of promoting his business that has caught the attention of many.
He has become a legend in sports betting circles, as he has publicly placed many seven-figure betting tickets on high-profile sporting events.
Just to reference a few recent ones:
Betting $2 million on the Patriots to win the 2022 Super Bowl, one that would pay out a staggering $46 million which is one of the biggest potential payouts in US sports betting history.
UNREAL! Mattress Mack just bet $2 MILLION on the Patriots (+2,300) to win the 2022 Super Bowl.
— theScore Bet (@theScoreBet) November 19, 2021
The historic bets would pay out $46,000,000. One of the biggest potential payouts in U.S. sports betting history. pic.twitter.com/I9Vs8rT8Wo
He won $3.46 million when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat the Kansas City Chiefs in February 2021.
Market commentary like this is only useful if you can translate it into what it means for your own purchase: your entry price, holding period and exit options.
That’s where many buyers get stuck. General market insights rarely tell you whether a specific unit, at a specific price, is the right decision for your circumstances.
Over time, that’s also why we decided to work with agents who shared the same data-driven and advisory-led approach behind our editorial, consultants who could help readers think through decisions more objectively, rather than simply push transactions.
Today, the team has worked with more than 2,000 clients across over $5B in property transactions.
And in 2019 he had about $15 million on the line for the Astros to beat the Nationals in the World Series.
But it’s not so much the size of the bets, as it is how he uses it to promote his mattresses.
Here’s how the promotion works:
If Houston wins the series that he’s bet on, any Gallery Furniture customer who bought a new mattress for at least $3,000 before the beginning of the game will essentially get it free.
In essence, he bets a ton of money on the outcome of the events and uses the sales from his mattress promotions as a hedge against potential losses, so whatever the outcome, he would come out as a winner.
For example, if he bet $2 million that could potentially accrue him $46 million in winnings. If he wins the bet, as long as that promotional period doesn’t result in more than $46 million worth of mattresses, he still walks away as a winner.
However, if he loses his bet of $2 million, he just needs to ensure that the new customers gained from the promotion will have bought more than that amount in mattresses.
Mathematically speaking, any number of mattresses sold with an overall value between $2 million and $46 million will be a positive outcome for Mattress Mack.
It’s incredibly smart for many reasons:
- the amount of press and awareness generated is essentially free PR
- the promotion increases revenue by a ton
- customers are “in” on the bet with him, creating more excitement around their purchase
Ultimately, it’s a win-win for all. If Mattress Mack wins his bet, his team wins, the customers get free mattresses, and his business gets more awareness and bigger revenues.
If he loses his bet, well, he doesn’t exactly lose, and customers walk away with the mattress that they were going to buy anyway, with the thrill of participating in his epic bet. It’s genius.
So in light of the recent cooling measures, you may see some developers look to try out more interesting promotions in a bid to move some units. While we may never see a Mattress Mack betting style promotion here, here’s how some developers have been doing promotions in recent years:
- Free car
As far as big-ticket items go, a car is undoubtedly very high on the wish list of many Singaporeans. With the recent COE prices hitting new highs, buying a car in Singapore is an expensive proposition indeed.
So it’s no surprise that giving away free cars would be an effective promotion for developers, both from an attractiveness and awareness standpoint. (Although the cars typically do not come with a free COE though).
Some examples include the developers of Flo Residence at Punggol, where the promotion was to give away 18 Volkswagen cars in a lucky draw to buyers.
And more recently in 2017, developer City Developments Limited (CDL), held a Dream Draw campaign that was open to the first 100 buyers of 4 of their projects (Coco Palms, D’Nest, Echelon, and The Venue Residences). The top prize is a luxury Mercedes-Benz coupe.
It was also just last year in January 2021 that the last car giveaway was held at Normanton Park. There were 10 Mercedes-Benz cars up for grabs for buyers, in a bid to create more hype and awareness around the development.
- Free country club membership
Remember the 5 Cs? It used to be a very popular term in the 90s in Singapore.
For the sake of those who are of the younger generation, it stands for Car, Country Club, Condo, Cash, and Credit Card.
So again, it’s no surprise that country club memberships were used as a promotional tool to sell condo units in Singapore.
It does make sense too, especially when some developments are getting smaller, and with fewer facilities on offer. In that way, having a country club is a good draw to make up for the lack of facilities.
This has been done at Seastrand in Pasir Ris, where developers Far East Organization gave away country club memberships to buyers of certain units.
More recently, I’ve also heard of Laguna Club social memberships being given away to buyers at Sloane Residences, a luxury boutique condominium at Balmoral.
- NS promotion
Before this piece, I wouldn’t exactly have placed CDL as being the most creative with their promotions, but looking at past promotions they seem to be pushing the boundaries of condo promotions!
In what seems to be the first and (last) of its kind, CDL had an NS promotion for national servicemen in Singapore.
This was pushed out to commemorate SAF Day (1st July), in which CDL held their NS promotion over 2 days with a special discount for all NS men for 3 of their projects (Venue Residences, Coco Palms, and D’Nest).
As you can probably tell since CDL had to resort to 2 different promotions to move these few projects, those few years from 2016 to 2017 were a slower market for property developers in Singapore.
- ID/Furniture rebate
This is probably one of the more popular types of promotions when it comes to moving units, and perhaps even more relevant in today’s context where Covid-19 has made renovation costs shoot through the roof.
Sometimes this can come in the form of a smaller furniture package. Or this can also be a more significant ID rebate that was offered in new launches like Riviere in 2020 during the more uncertain phases of Covid-19.
There are also cases where a furniture package is offered at a discounted price point (like Dairy Farm Residences).
Frankly, though, the value of the actual rebate can be a bit of a hard thing for buyers to truly value.
For example, while the ID rebate is stated to be at $100,000 worth – the value of it is what the developers are promoting. It may not be worth that amount in the real world.
We’ll keep you updated as new promotions or discounts come about, so do follow us on Stacked. In the meantime, check out our in-depth review of new and resale condos alike.
Commentary like this is useful for understanding the broader market. The harder part is applying those ideas to a specific property, budget or decision you’re actually considering.
That’s often where a second opinion becomes valuable.
If you’d like to discuss how this applies to your own circumstances, you can reach out for a one-to-one consultation here.
And if you simply have a question or want to share a thought, feel free to write to us at stories@stackedhomes.com. We read every message.
Frequently asked questions
What are some common types of promotional offers used by property developers in Singapore?
How do free car promotions work in Singapore property sales?
What is the purpose of giving away country club memberships in condo promotions?
What was unique about CDL's NS promotion for Singaporean servicemen?
Why are ID/furniture rebates popular in Singapore condo promotions?
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