Up To £25 Cashback With Winter 2021 Amex Shop Small

American Express has confirmed they are bringing back their Amex shop small initiative again for winter 2021. Normally this promotion runs in the run-up to Christmas however recently we’ve seen more restrictive summer versions launched. Because this has happened for the last 2 years it might be safe to say that Amex Shop Small is now a biannual event. Don’t get too excited, however… The Winter 2021 Amex Shop Small unfortunately is a copy of its more restrictive summer version…

What is Amex Shop Small?

Usually a promotion in the run-up to Christmas, it’s to encourage you to shop in smaller independent stores over larger chains. This of course also encourages smaller independent stores to accept Amex cards so they can participate!

When is it?

It runs from 4 December to 15 December 2021.

How is the Winter 2021 Amex Shop Small different this year?

Last year the winter version of Shop Small gives you £5 back on a £10 spend. This has now changed to £5 back on a £15 spend for the Winter 2021 Amex Shop Small Initiative. The other change is the maximum cashback per card has decreased from £50 to £25. So it will be valid in 5 different shops as opposed to 10. This is a copy of the changes which were applied to the Summer 2021 Amex Shop Small.

How do I find stores taking part in the Winter 2021 Amex Shop Small?

You can use the map on Amex’s Shop Small website – https://www.americanexpress.com/uk/benefits/shop-small/shoppers.html. You’ll also often see shops with an Amex Shop Small sticker in the window.

On the map, you can search by business name or postcode/location to see what shops near you are taking part!

Please note in previous years this map hasn’t been 100% accurate. There are stores not on there that are taking part and stores that are that don’t even accept Amex!

As well as stores selling physical goods you will find a selection of barbers, cafes & pubs taking part too… with the easing of restrictions it may be the perfect opportunity for a few Amex sponsored rounds in the pub!

How do I take part?

First of all, you will need to save the offer to your account (you can do this when registration opens under offers once you’ve logged into your account.) Starting from the 4th of December when you make a qualifying purchase of £15 or more at a shop that is taking part in shop small, you will receive a £5 credit within a few days of your transaction.

Key points

You can only make one transaction, per registered card, per shop. So if you only had your BA Amex registered you will only receive the credit once per location.

If you have multiple cards and/or supplementary cards that are registered for the promotion you can use them in the same location you’ve used a different card in and get the credit.

You can use the offer at up to 5 different participating small businesses per registered card.

Don’t abuse the offer! For example, asking the merchant to split your bill into £15 chunks and paying with a different Amex card for each piece. Amex has been known to close the accounts of people who do this.

You needn’t worry about taking full advantage of this offer as it is fully funded by American Express, not the small business. You can read more about the promotion here – https://www.americanexpress.com/uk/benefits/shop-small/shoppers.html