The Christmas music has ceased and red and gold decorations are everywhere.

You don’t need a calendar to tell you that Chinese New Year (CNY) is just around the corner.

That means — if you celebrate the occasion — you’d better start making the requisite preparations.

Yet, with all that shopping you’re going to be doing, it would only make sense for you to maximise the bang you get for each buck you’ll spend.

To help you along with that, we’ve compiled five places with promotions, rewards, and hacks for you to make the most of your CNY shopping this year.

1. Sheng Siong Supermarket

CNY wouldn’t be the same without its staples.

Can you imagine having to sit around in your aunty’s living room for hours on end without snacks to munch? Or how about showing up to your partner’s house without mandarin oranges for their parents?

A great place to stock up on such items is your local Sheng Siong supermarket, where you can find New Year classics that you’ve probably had for as long as you can remember.

A personal highlight includes this array of Chinese New Year snacks that you’re allowed to indulge in guilt-free once a year.

While you’re there, you might as well pick up the ingredients you’ll need for your family reunion feast.

If you’re feeling a bit lost, Sheng Siong has curated the essentials — such as roasted meats and popular steamboat ingredients — in this helpful CNY catalogue:

It’s always a good idea to check in with their Facebook page to see what’s on promotion too!

2. Shopee

Nothing gets a household into the festive mood like some CNY decorations.

Thankfully, you can avoid the squeeze and rush of crowds this year by purchasing everything from the comfort of your home on an e-commerce site like Shopee.

The online marketplace is a treasure trove of good deals and unique finds that will set your house decor apart from everyone else’s.

Here are some items that stood out to us:

Festive-themed doormats from S$5.99

Lighted Chinese signs from S$15.99

Pillowcases in retro CNY designs from S$2.70

Swole fortune cats from S$70.30

Lit pussy willow branches from S$4.05 for 20

Shopee is actually holding a massive sale right now on appliances and other household items, so if your induction cookers or steamboat pots have gone into disrepair since last year’s celebration now’s a great time to replace them.

Keep in mind the delivery times when planning your buys; you don’t want your purchases to arrive after the festivities are over.

3. Zalora

It’s the new year, and whether you subscribe to the belief that a new year warrants a new look or simply look to refresh your wardrobe, you’ll be needing new clothes.

Online fashion retailer Zalora is holding a sale of up to 70 per cent off CNY-coloured clothes from top brands.

For those of us with little patience to scroll endlessly and filter out the inauspicious options, this list curated by Zalora is an absolute life saver.

Here are some examples:

Utility shirt from Zalora Basics (S$27.90)

Nike Air Barrage Low (S$108.90)

Boss Parley 4 polo shirt (S$121)

Mango puffed sleeves blouse (S$39.90)

Twenty Eight Shoes floral print chiffon dress (S$132)

Otherwise another way to get more savings on your new year clothes is to download Singtel Dash to your mobile phone. The mobile wallet will score you 18 per cent off and two per cent cashback on your Zalora purchases, as long as you spend at least S$80.

4. Foodpanda

There’ll be times this CNY that your mum might be too tired to cook, or maybe you might just be tired of your mum’s cooking.

That’s when food delivery apps like Foodpanda and Deliveroo come in handy.

With a wide selection of restaurants and eateries to choose from, you can keep to the theme of traditional Chinese food from places like Crystal Jade, or change up the menu with western or Japanese options.

If you’re in need of any last-minute CNY groceries, Pandamart might be the answer.

Depending on where you live, you can get snacks, decorations, and even Yu Sheng delivered to your house.

One lifehack many of us will be utilising is to buy heavy products — like drinks or canned abalone — through Foodpanda’s grocery delivery service.

The 20-minute delivery will save you from backaches and ensure your arms are well rested for the all-important job of receiving ang baos.

5. Singtel Dash

It’s not exactly a place to shop as much as it is an all-in-one mobile wallet, but Singtel Dash might just be the most crucial tool to unlocking maximum prosperity this CNY.

The app can be used to make payments at all of the places we’ve mentioned above, as well as any merchant that accepts Visa PayWave or FavePay.

Even hawkers centres accept Singtel Dash — just in case you crave your favourite local hawker dishes this CNY.

You’ll even find special deals at some merchants if you pay using Singtel Dash, like the Zalora deal we mentioned above or the S$5 off deal they have every Monday with Shopee.

To pile on with the huat, Singtel Dash is offering users over 500,000 sure-win prizes that you’ll gain access to just by making a transaction of S$10 by paying with QR code (merchants that accept Dash, Fave and PayNow), Visa Contactless or online with Dash Visa Virtual Card.

Sure-win prizes include a Huawei Matebook 13, a Huawei MatePad LTE, up to 100 per cent cashback at hawkers and your favourite brands, as well as Dash rewards points from 88 to 8,888 points.

Each transaction also gets you an entry to the Grand Draw of 1 million Dash reward points.

Each transaction will also net you Dash reward points which can be exchanged for shopping vouchers.

Here are some vouchers which give you great savings at half the points required:

Vouchers and redemption rates are valid for a limited time, while stocks last. View the full rewards catalogue on Singtel Dash app.

Those who are not on Singtel Dash can get 800 Dash reward points on their first transaction as a welcome bonus.

Not a bad deal at all if you ask us.

Find more information about Singtel Dash here.

Top image from Sharon McCutchoen via Unsplash

Writing this Singtel Dash-sponsored article really put the writer in the mood to receive some ang baos.