American Express has been at work during the pandemic, working to ensure that their cardmember base stays engaged with the brand and continues to generate spend on their card accounts. Some of the initiatives that stood out were the Everyday Spend offer, which allowed Platinum and Centurion Cardmembers to get up to INR 18,000/INR 35,000 back when they spent on their Amex at specific brands, followed by the second take in 2021, offering up to INR 27,500 cashback. They were also offered double Membership Rewards and double value for Membership Rewards redemption as a Statement credit. American Express recently launched the Reward Multiplier to enhance the number of points you can earn at various merchants.

American Express brings a second take on the Shop Small offer: Dine, Shop & More.

American Express started the Shop Small programme in the United States to encourage Cardmembers to use their American Express cards at Small Merchants and has expanded it into other markets over the years. To encourage customers to spend at their favourite Small Merchants in India, American Express had launched the Shop Small initiative in India in 2020. The same initiative now returns with a new name, perhaps more localised to India.

American Express Dine, Shop & More Offer India

As part of the Dine, Shop & More Offer, Cardmembers will get INR 200 cashback on spending INR 200 or more in one transaction in-person only, up to 5 times during the campaign period across participating stores between April 1 and May 31, 2021. The promotion is valid at over 75,000 outlets in Bangalore, Delhi NCR, Mumbai and surroundings, and Pune, Hyderabad and Chennai outlets will join in on April 15, 2021. This is a big up from the first version where only three cities were included.

The promotion is available to all personal accounts in good standing with American Express. However, you need to activate the promotion by heading into your American Express account and saving the offer on your card under Amex Offers.

Here are some of the cards which are included in the American Express Dine, Shop and More offer:

• American Express Centurion Card
• American Express Platinum Card
• American Express Platinum Reserve Card
• American Express Platinum Travel Card (Free)
• American Express Membership Rewards Card (Free)
• American Express Gold Card
• American Express SmartEarn Credit Card

If you don’t have a card, perhaps a good idea to apply for one using these links above.

The Dine, Shop and More initiative is also available for the ICICI Bank and IndusInd Bank-issued American Express network cards. However, you need to apply for registration here first. If you don’t see the offer on your Amex Offers website, you can use this form for registration.

Finding local small businesses which accept American Express cards

American Express has created a ready reckoner of Small Businesses, and you can use a drop-down or PIN Codes to locate the small business. The definition of small businesses is pretty broad, and it could include your favourite restaurant, the nearest Chemist or Hospital, your Garage and many other stores.

For instance, two of my favourite restaurants in Mumbai, Jai Hind and Jaffer Bhai’s Delhi Darbar, are listed as a Small Merchant.

Terms of the promotion

American Express says that only the listed locations are valid for the offer. Here are the salient terms:

• Please note: For Cardmembers in Bangalore, Delhi NCR or Mumbai the offer starts 01/04/2021. For Cardmembers in Chennai, Hyderabad or Pune, the offer starts 16/04/2021.
• Offer valid for payments made in Indian Rupees in-person at participating “Dine, Shop & More” stores. In the event a participating store has locations that are not listed, the offer is not valid at these locations.
• ₹200 cashback will be applied one time per participating “Dine, Shop & More” store, and the offer is limited to a maximum of ₹1,000 cashback applied to your Card during the offer period.
• Offer valid on transactions made on the saved Card directly in-person at participating “Dine, Shop & More” stores. Valid at India locations only. Excludes online transactions.
• Transactions made through a third party establishment or payment processor (including, but not limited to, digital wallets) are not eligible.
• Cashback should appear on your billing statement within five business days from qualifying spend but may take up to 90 days from the offer end date 31/05/2021.
• If you have not received your Cashback within five business days of your qualifying purchase, please contact American Express.
  Any unlisted locations of participating Shop Small businesses are not valid for the offer.

Bottomline

American Express Dine, Shop and More is a great initiative. It encourages you to head to your local small merchant and spend money at their outlet, where American Express will return INR 200 to your account against a spend of at least INR 200 on your account. Don’t forget your mask and social distancing protocols while you do that.

What do you think of the new American Express Dine, Shop and More offer?

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