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Just do it nicely, or you may get a nasty surprise in your dinner. It's not just restaurants that might pay up for bad service — one woman recently claimed she has made more money from complaining about poor customer service to banks and phone and electrical companies than she has from her job.
If you're making an expensive electrical purchase, negotiate with the salesperson to see what else they can throw in to make the deal more attractive — some sales staff are so keen to make commission they will accommodate you within reason. If you're buying a new computer , ask for antivirus software; if you're buying a laptop, see if they'll throw in a free laptop case; or ask for a DVD player or some speakers if you're looking at a big TV.
Fancy department stores will often give away travel-sized bottles of lotions and potions bigger than the usual mini-samples on the beauty and cosmetics floor if you either appear to be very interested but unsure if a product is right for your skin type, or if you've already spent a lot.
Sign up to be a mystery shopper on websites such as Mystery Shoppers and the UK Mystery Shopper Employment Agency and get freebies in exchange for assessing customer service you'll be paid a daily or hourly rate on top of that, too. You could find yourself undercover in restaurants eating free meals, or staying in hotels to see whether the service is up to scratch.
Of course, the downside is you have to pay upfront for it all first — mystery shopping companies usually only pay you and refund your initial outlay after you've reported back. Also, you can't start bagging the really top-end free stuff like spa days until you've built up a good enough "mystery shopper profile", so you may have to start small. One mystery shopper told us her freebies amounted to free burgers at JD Wetherspoons.
Not achievable for everyone, admittedly, but those of you under 26 years of age can get free theatre tickets at more than theatres through the Arts Council England's A Night Less Ordinary initiative. There are more than venues participating, including London's Royal Court and Young Vic theatres, Manchester's Royal Exchange, and Birmingham Rep — you can search for them on the website.
Different venues are running the scheme in different ways, so you may have to go on a specific night of the week, for example. And you will probably need to show ID to prove you are 25 or under when collecting your tickets. The image of Kirsty Allsop scavenging through someone else's skip on telly was priceless, but the point remains that one man's junk is another man's treasure.
But there is one exception The Beaufort of a complimentary afternoon tea experience within luxury surroundings. It is about 12 years old so has been well loved and used! Would you like to tell us about a lower price? Surprise your loved ones in London by sending cute birthday cakes. There are many providers of free online courses, which might involve an exchange of knowledge, online live classes or even options where you can just stream and watch. About Us How It Works?
It's not a method that is guaranteed to bring success, but if you pass a skip that happens to contain something you want, knock on the door and ask if you can take it. Why spend a whack on stylised vintage doorknobs at the likes of Anthropologie when you could feasibly get something more original for nothing?
There are some brilliant websites with free stuff up for grabs, although again the quality of available items varies. You'd be surprised at the amount of stuff that goes begging on Craigslist arguably more popular in the US than it is here: Also try the Freecycle Network , which matches people who want to get rid of things with people who want them. You can find all sorts, including laptop chargers, old typewriters, wooden trunks, televisions, beds and fax machines.
Stream your music for free.
You need an invite to join Spotify 's free service, but We7 and Last. YouTube is the obvious place to go to watch video clips. Set up a hotmail account and use it to register with websites that offer freebie giveaways. Try SeeFilmFirst for free cinema tickets, or register for free tickets for BBC shows and email for free tickets to be in the audience for Channel 4 shows. You could also register with HotUKDeals — some of the freebies are admittedly rubbish, but there are a couple of gems: On Twitter, follow giveaway sites such as freebiesiteuk to get free stuff fast again, some of them are fairly pointless, like free washing powder samples, but a few weeks back they were giving away a snack box from trendy food supplier Graze.
Check galleries. Talking of hotels, London has some pretty gorgeous 5 star loos. And of all those that my hotel blog colleagues have inspected, the ones at The Langham just off Oxford Street probably outshine most others. The Langham does a pretty mean afternoon tea too and you may also get sidetracked at the wonderful Artesian bar. This is another example of the philosophy that 5 or 6 samples make a feast. Last time we were there, the friendly staff regaled us with a generous range of delicious little bites.
Scoop or Gelato Mio are in my view two of the best London gelaterie. And both are generous in offering free samples, in the best Italian tradition. Their ice cream is truly luxurious and they constantly rotate flavours to stay in season — try the cioccalata extra fondente at Scoop for the ultimate multi-sensory experience. One time my companion and I were so satiated by our samples that we only managed to buy one ice cream to share between us.
But we have made it up to them with our repeat business every time we are in the Holland Park Gelato Mio or Covent Garden Scoop vicinity. Try house-sitting — a growing trend which with a bit of luck can save you thousands of pounds.
There are catches and conditions of course, and you may also have to take care of pets or a garden in exchange. But if you qualify then you may end up living in luxury for extended periods without paying for it. What better venue to work from than a good London hotel? This may be especially useful for someone on an extended London visit e. Other noteworthy options include the beautiful lobby lounge at the Renaissance St Pancras the hotel charges for WiFi but there was still coverage on the free WiFi network at St Pancras station when I last visited.
Enjoy classical music? Love opera? Not so, as London has abundant free options for the culture vulture. Here are a few of them:. But there is one exception The Beaufort of a complimentary afternoon tea experience within luxury surroundings. I hope that this list shows that luxury is all around us without necessarily having to bust the bank! And as for house-sitting some yappy little dog and working hard amongst the slugs and snails in the huge gardens of the rich.
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