Beijing Department Store Wangfujing Opens In Hainan
What: Chinese retailers are accelerating to expand their reach on the market before the reopening of the country.
Why it is important: Hainan expect to grow its GDP by 10% this year, thanks to an increase of +20% of tourists, generating +25% revenue for the state.
Department store retailer Wangfujing has opened its first store in Hainan, a duty-free shopping haven in China where sales boomed during the pandemic. The store, named WFJ Duty Free, is located in Wanning City, southeast of Hainan, and has a total construction area of over 1.1 million square feet.
It's the first duty-free store for Wangfujing and it's being called "a starting point" for the company's dual tax + tax-free business. The store was designed by an Italian team and has a fantasy flower and plant theme, developed in cooperation with well-known artists. The store features nearly 400 brands across 9 categories, including health care products, food and coffee, and sporting goods.
The official opening of the Hainan store last week did not have much impact on investors, with Wangfujing's share price trending downwards slightly. In the nine months ending September 30, 2022, Wangfujing Group reported sales of $1.15 billion (Chinese yuan 8,466 million), compared to $1.3 billion in the same period a year earlier, while basic earnings per share from continuing operations were cut in half.
Beijing Department Store Wangfujing Opens In Hainan