Big saving ahead: '828 JoyYou Fest' returns with $8.28m cash rebate for seniors

Octopus Cards Limited announced the return of “828 JoyYou Fest” starting this Thursday–a two-week promotion that allows seniors to score big with the JoyYou card. 

JoyYou cardholders can receive an HK$8 cash rebate for a successful single payment transaction of HK$100 or above at participating physical stores, with a maximum rebate of HK$800 throughout the promotional period. The quota is limited and will be offered on a first-come-first served basis.

To encourage local spending among seniors, Octopus has partnered with 120 merchants to offer exclusive discounts at over 6,600 spending points.

Among the participating merchants, McDonald’s is offering four specified meal sets for just HK$100. Cafe de Coral provides HK$12 off when spending HK$120, while Starbucks features a buy-one-get-one-free deal on large handcrafted beverages.

Supermarkets are also joining the celebration with special discounts.

ParknShop is offering 88 percent off on selected products with a minimum spend of HK$128, and Watsons members can save HK$18 on purchases over HK$128. Wellcome is providing 88 percent off on selected own-brand products when customers spend over HK$88.

Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun Yuk-han expressed hopes that local businesses will step up to provide more benefits for seniors, thereby boosting spending and revitalizing the city’s economy.

With 2.5 million JoyYou cardholders in Hong Kong—representing one out of every three residents—Sun humorously described the card as a "symbol of both government support and identity."

Highlighting the average life expectancy of 82.5 years for men and 88 years for women, Sun emphasized the importance of increasing initiatives targeting the silver economy. He also reaffirmed the government’s commitment to collaborating with the business sector to unlock the potential of senior consumer spending.

As this marks the second year of the "828 JoyYou Fest," Tim Ying Tien-chi, the Chief Executive Officer of Octopus, expressed hope that the festival will strengthen connections between seniors and their families, fostering a sense of community support through a total cash rebate amounting to HK$8.28 million.

Ying also expressed gratitude to the government and partner merchants for their backing of the highly anticipated event within the silver community.