Amid a flurry of Carousell listings trying to dispense with Robinsons gift vouchers after news of the department store's impending closure, a new policy for the vouchers' redemption has been announced in a Facebook post.

Purchase must be at least double voucher amount

Gift vouchers are still exchangeable for goods at Robinsons, but with one additional condition: the purchase value must be at least double the voucher amount.

This means that a customer hoping to redeem S$100 worth of vouchers will need to make a purchase of at least S$200.

Robinsons did not state a reason for the new policy, but provided a link to the website of its provisionally-appointed liquidators, Kordamentha Pte. Ltd., for further explanation.

According to an FAQ sheet on the website, the liquidators' purpose is to "maximise returns for all stakeholders".

The voucher policy makes sense as it requires voucher-holders to purchase more items, allowing Robinsons to clear its existing stock more quickly while recovering some cash from the sales.

The FAQ sheet further explained that the management of Robinsons can no longer make decisions regarding the company and its operations, as the liquidators have assumed full control.

Vouchers may be exchangeable at other retailers

Additionally, customers whose vouchers are issued by the Al-Futtaim Group may be able to redeem their vouchers at other retailers under the group, such as Zara, Marks and Spencer, Pull and Bear, and Royal Sporting House.

If more customers were to redeem their vouchers on relatively-preferable terms at these retailers instead of at Robinsons, this would allow Robinsons to liquidate more of its existing stock.

The sale proceeds can then be used to pay its staff, suppliers, and other creditors.

You can see the full post here:

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Top image via Carousell and a Mothership reader

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