I came to know about these group buying sites last year when I first stumbled upon Ensogo. At that time, the group-buying industry has yet to boom and people were excited to get the latest deals. Who wouldn’t be when you can grab whopping discounts for 50% up to 80% for anything from cutting tools to the latest beauty treatment?
A year forward and we’ve witnessed the mushrooming of group-buying sites and of course, the tons of horror stories from customers who were shortchanged or who did not get to use their vouchers altogether. I’ve then decided to do a mini-review of my own purchases from the group-buying sites that littered the internet. Please be reminded that my opinion is based on my personal account when I claimed/used my deal vouchers, hence my experience may be different with yours or your friends’. Thanks!
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Probably the first of its kind in Manila and one of the biggest. For over a year, it has been faced with a lot of complaints from dissatisfied customers. So far, I’ve had 6 transactions with them but I haven’t had any problems with them so far. I always get my vouchers at once after paying for them probably because I usually pay via Paypal or Credit Card so it’s more automated on their part, but, I’ve also had my fair share of problems with the deals I purchased from them in the past.
Good Deal #1
The Merchant: LEGEND OF INDIA
The Deal: Pay PHP200 for PHP500 worth of food
Vouchers Bought: 2
Claimed/Used: February 2011
My boyfriend and I went to have dinner at Legend of India a few days after Valentines’ Day. I did not have any problems making a reservation. When we got there, we were greeted by polite and friendly food servers. The place was not packed and we were actually the only customers that night until another group came. The food was okay (I especially loved the Manchow Soup. It was spicy but good!) The price was also fair. We exceeded the PHP1,000 limit of the vouchers we had so we had to pay the excess. For my first deal from Ensogo, it wasn’t such a bad experience.
Good Deal #2
The Merchant: FruiQuet
The Deal: Pay PHP325 for a Sunny Tropics fruit bouquet worth PHP650
Vouchers Bought: 1
Claimed/Used: March 2011
Bought this voucher specifically for my mom’s birthday. I thought that a fruit bouquet delivered right at her office will be a pleasant birthday surprise. Guess what? I was right. 
I used the voucher when I placed my order online though I had to spend for the delivery fee and the add-ons such as a picture message card and a small jar of chocolate fondue (which was okay because it was explicitly stated that delivery fee is not included in the promo). Imagine the look at my mom’s face when the delivery man arrived. Not only was she pleased to see a bouquet for her, but she was even more thrilled to receive a unique kind of bouquet. I was happy with the outcome of this deal. But my mom was even happier.
Good Deal #3
The Merchant: Kartini Spa
The Deal: PHP 1,500 for a Complete Mother’s Day Package which includes a 90-minute Body Scrub with Massage and 30-minute foot spa, plus a 45-minute Special Facial with Collagen Mask Treatment.
Vouchers Bought: 1
Claimed/Used: August 2011
Bought this for mom for Mother’s Day. Unfortunately, we were both out-of-town on Mother’s Day and she had a function to attend to the week after. It was pushed back until it became my Pre-boards Thank You gift to my mom in August! LOL. Anyway, booking for my mom’s treat was not a hassle and my mom was pampered and treated to a nice scrub, body massage and facial. She said the whole experience was nice. I don’t know if I got a really good deal for just 1,500 but if it made my mom happy, then I probably did.
Good Deal #4
The Merchant: Chocolat Deep Dark Chocolate Cakes
The Deal: Only PHP320 for a 9” Round Whole Death by Tablea Chocolate Cake worth PHP640.
Vouchers Bought: 1
Claimed/Used: August 2011
We were supposed to use this as a Mother’s Day present for my beau’s mom but because we were both out-of-town on Mother’s Day, we were not able to claim the voucher at once. I ended up claiming the cake a few days short before it was to expire. The voucher took a few days before it arrived in my account as we paid via Banco De Oro deposit. Aside from that, confirming my pick-up and getting it at their Mall of Asia branch was not a hassle. My mom and brothers loved it. I am not a big fan of dark chocolate so I didn’t enjoy it much. Hehe. It was a good deal nonetheless.
To be continued…
