PHOTO OF THE YEAR

The Museumof BrandsNotting Hill,LondonThe Museum of Brands, Packaging andAdvertising is located just off PortobelloRoad in Notting Hill. It showcases over12,000 objects from the Robert OpieCollection. Its ‘time tunnel’ revealsdecade by decade how our favouriteproducts evolved and how societyevolved with them. Aquamanda perfume,Omo washing powder, Spangles sweetsand Dansette record players form just asample of what is on display.Classic television commercials play inthe Museum cafe too – Sammy Davis Jr’s“You can be sure of Shell” advert fromthe 1960s being one of them. TheMuseum of Brands, won the LittleTreasures of Britain Award at the 2012Group Travel Awards. To celebrate, itoffers SPA members a special groupdeal: one admission ticket, tea/coffeeand a biscuit for £5 plus a 10% discountin the Museum gift shop. Please presentyour SPA membership card whenpurchasing. The offer is available until26 May 2013.Paymentsabroad:reduced feesoffered tomembers byTravelexLast year, SPANews featured an articleabout the fees associated with sendingmoney abroad via a bank. As a result,some members contacted and usedTravelex, a foreign exchange specialist.The company was pleased to welcomethis type of business and is offeringdiscounted fees to all SPA members.With around 20 million Brits makingoverseas payments for propertypurchase, moving abroad, paying tuitionfees or sending money home,approximately £153 million is paid infees each year and being sent at inferiorrates to those achievable via a specialist.According to a report published byTravelex*, one in 10 of those that havetransferred money in the last year sent£10,000 or more and the amount ofmoney being transferred is increasingeach year. Fifteen percent of thosequestioned are now spending over£5,000 more than they were last year.The average fee for money transfers was£17. Over one-third of people regularlypay £20 or more, whilst one in 20 areused to paying over £40. Attitudes tofees are mixed: one-fifth said they thoughtfees are generally expensive, yet morethan half admitted to not actuallychecking the fees before they transferredtheir money. One in 10 views the feesas a ‘necessary evil’.Travelex International Payments offerscustomers a secure way to transfermoney. Transactions over £2,500 arefee-free or £7 for smaller payments,almost 60% cheaper than the £17average fee.SPA has taken this one step further, andnegotiated free transfers for all memberson amounts over £500. The service isavailable online or over the phone.Follow this link to find out more: http://internationalpayments.travelex.co.uk/?pid=2038Or you can register over the phone on+44 (0) 207 614 4185 and mention theSPA to obtain the offer of free transfers.*please contact Travelex should yourequire any confirmation on any of thearticle sources.SPA NEWS | 27