The American Chamber of Commerce in Luxembourg (AMCHAM) established a Members' Benefits Club (AMBC) during the COVID pandemic to support the retail sector; there are now over 260 companies affiliated with the programme, with over six thousand membership cards (offering discounts at retail shops, cafés and restaurants, and services) issued to their staff.
Chronicle.lu has had a look at what is on offer and has created three groupings. Each grouping covers a number of categories and many categories and associated services are interchangeable between groupings.
In this first article in a four-part series we take a look at categories associated with personal care, as well as dining out and eating in.
Personal Care
Through the AMBC, discounts are available at eight beauty salon/spa/beauty treatment centres. Three hairdressers and one barber are listed, some offering discounts on hair styling and cutting, others on products only. There are at least seven retailers advertising cosmetic products, four of which will accept AMBC cards for online purchases. Organic and natural products are popular cosmetic choices. Five personal development and mind/body programmes also feature on the list, the majority being advertised in the Wellness category: this includes reflexology and personal coaching programmes. Three cryotherapy centres are to be found, one in the Beauty and Health category and two in the Wellness and Personal services categories. Five opticians offer discounts, but surprisingly only one is featured in the Optician category. The remaining four are to be found in Personal Services.
Dining Out and Eating In
The AMBC Eating Out category covers fine dining, restaurants and fast food, while Eating In deals with gastronomy and specialist foods. Unsurprisingly, these two categories overlap a great deal, both with each other and with the Bio and Organic, as well as the Beverage categories. In total there are over 30 entries to choose from within these sections.
Three restaurants offer discounts through the AMBC card, whereas ten baristas/tea/coffee shops do, three of whom will accept AMBC cards online. Groceries can be purchased from three separate épiceries or “expat” shops, while one health food centre offers discounts on online orders only. Those with a sweet tooth can use their discount in two ice cream and three chocolatiers.
One cheese and one caviar shop are available to complement the eight wine/champagne sellers or distributors mentioned, one of whom also advertises in the Bio and Organic category. Five selected beer or cider products are advertised, including one online. There are also five whiskey or spirit producers/sellers mentioned in the categories.
The AMBC card offers a choice of discounts on a wide array of services in 31 different categories. Chronicle.lu will discuss the remaining categories in forthcoming articles.
