Fashion retailer City Beach has followed supermarket chain Woolworths’ lead and will dump expiry dates from all its gift cards nationwide as of 31 March 2018.

City Beach chief operating officer Anita Dorwald said that when new legislation in NSW takes effect at the end of this month, all its customers holding a City Beach gift card would be able to redeem it at any of its nationwide store locations and its online store.

“We decided to take this as an opportunity to scratch expiry dates all together, nationwide,” Dorwald.

“When we first pitched the idea internally it was met with a resounding yes from all stakeholders.”

“Gift card systems have evolved a lot since we first launched ours back in the early 2000’s, with financial structures that better manage the burden for retailers addressing contingent liabilities, so we feel it’s only right we pass these benefits onto our customers.”

The New South Wales Government will introduce a mandatory minimum expiry period of three years for gift cards and gift vouchers sold to consumers in NSW from 31 March 2018.

“This will apply regardless of when the gift card was purchased or the dollar value it holds,” Dorwald said.

“When customers purchase a gift card, their intention is for the recipient to be able to enjoy the full value of the gift card. “Eliminating expiry dates means gift card holders will enjoy complete flexibility to use them as they please, without having to worry about losing any residual balance.”

Dorwald said the retailer would also refresh its gift card design to make the ‘redemption experience fairer’.

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