Shanghai's merchants expect to cash in big on sales during the
weeklong National Day holiday and the many visitors drawn to the
city by special events.
New stores are opening, and most shopping centers are cutting
prices and adjusting their product mix to cater to crowds during
the "Golden Week," which begins today. Other expected boosts to
store revenues include the Special Olympics, which begins tomorrow,
and the annual Formula One auto race at the Shanghai Circuit over
the weekend.
Chinese travelers flock
along Nanjing Road Pedestrian Mall, one of Shanghai's popular
tourist destinations. Millions of holidaymakers are flocking to
China's big cities during their 7-day National Day
holiday.
Among the new shopping malls, Infiniti Lifestyle Center, located
on Huaihai Road M., is conducting trial operations in advance of a
grand opening on Sunday.
The six-story mall covers 40,000 square meters of sales space
and claims to offer the city's only "ice bar."
The Lotus Supermarket chain, owned by Thailand's biggest
retailer Chia Tai Group, kicked off a Thai food festival in its 20
stores across the city last week.
Lotus has expanded the promotional period to 30 days for the
first time and is displaying more Thai products than ever before,
including fresh fruit, packaged snacks and drinks.
News brands
Shanghai Oriental Shopping Center has introduced new brands,
including Switzerland's La Prairie skin-care line and IWC watches
ahead of the holiday.
"The holiday should prove its financial value for every retailer
as today's consumers have a greater ability to spend," said Zhang
Ping, a marketing official at Shanghai Oriental. "We are optimistic
about another all-time sales record."
The shopping center in the Xujiahui commercial area recorded
39.36 million yuan (US$5.2 million) in sales during the last
National Day holiday, almost doubling its usual weekly haul.
More than 4.2 million tourists are expected to visit Shanghai
during the weeklong break, up five percent from a year earlier.
Analysts said retail sales should also boom because of rising
inflation. Consumers, they said, want to buy now before prices rise
further.
Shanghai's Consumer Price Index rose 3.9 percent in August.
During the last National Day holiday, retail sales at the city's
358 medium and large retailers jumped 21.4 percent year on year to
3.99 billion yuan.
The growth was 8.4 percentage points higher than the same period
in 2005.
(Shanghai Daily October 1, 2007)
