Before I had even set foot on the airplane to start my adventures, I accidentally stepped into the Duty Free shops at Pearson and walked away with one too many products. How I managed to spend so much money even before leaving the country confounds me too. Oops…?
I came across these “airport exclusive” sets at the JFK airport in New York a couple of months ago. The prices on these airport exclusive sets were so mouth-wateringly good but since I was in a rush the last time (i.e. running across the terminal to get to my gate as it was closing), I planned on going back to the airport to purchase them when I visited New York again in February. Fast forward a couple of months later, our Canadian dollar had tanked, and the sets that had initially been a lot cheaper (even if converted into Canadian dollars) suddenly costs even more than what it would cost when purchased at retail plus the 13% tax!
Fortunately, I found the same sets in Toronto’s very own Pearson Airport. Even though they costed (nominally) more than what I saw at JFK, it was still a great deal compared to buying it at retail at Sephora or Shoppers Drug Mart!
I purchased an exclusive duo from Clinique which features the best-selling CliniqueDramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion+ ($32, available here) for my mom. She is a long time fan of the brand and the product, and the price was too good to pass on! The bottles come in separate boxes, so if you had thought of splitting the gift for two people, that is feasible too! I thought it would make for a very thoughtful gift… even if it came from Toronto’s very own Pearson Airport Duty Free shop.
I finally caved and bought two of Dior’s most beloved lip products, the DiorLip Glow ($37, available here) and DiorLip Maximizer ($37, available here). I walked away with quite a buyer’s remorse given how much I had spent on them even before leaving the airport. I had initially wanted to purchase the Rouge Baumes which I had wanted to get more of but the sales lady did not seem to know the product I was talking about. Since I couldn’t find them on the shelf, I resigned myself to the fact that the store simply didn’t carry them!
Who doesn’t love skipping the taxes? You certainly won’t find me complaining even with how much I spent before even leaving the city!
Now it’s your turn! Have you tried any of these products before? Ever got sucked into the duty-free shopping experience? As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts! Share with me comment section or through Twitter or Instagram!
Agreed! Those airport-exclusives are so hard to resist ????
Taxes are a real pain — I would totally do the same thing. Since marrying into the Military, it’s been nice being able to go shop at the Exchange and not pay taxes there. ????
My mom uses the same Clinique moisturizer, that’s neat. She loves it, too! Those Deor lipsticks look amazing. Beautiful. Gorgeous. The price tag is painful, though. Enjoy those babies!!
I make an effort to stay away from the Duty Free but sometimes, those airport-exclusive sets just get to you!
oh yea. duty free shopping is the /best/ i always try and save high end purchases for when i go travelling.