Hong Kong may be a special administrative region, but Shenzhen residents see it is a special shopping zone, with a quarter of the Guangdong city's residents crossing the border more than once a month last year, a poll found.
A Shenzhen trade association in conjunction with a local consulting firm surveyed 2,100 people last year, finding that 27 per cent had visited Hong Kong specifically to shop - nearly three times the figure for 2010.
While most mainlanders need to obtain a permit for each entry, Shenzhen residents can come and go with ease under the multiple-entry scheme introduced in 2009.
Among those polled, 25 per cent said they had been to Hong Kong more than once a month last year. Many were highly educated, earning on average more than 10,000 yuan (HK$12,300) a month.
Fifty-five per cent of shoppers said they bought clothes and footwear, while 30 per cent bought cosmetics or simply came for groceries. About 15 per cent bought jewellery, tobacco or liquor, according to the survey cited by the Guangzhou Daily.
Products sold in Hong Kong are generally viewed by mainlanders as more reliable, especially those for infants, and there is greater variety. 'People going to Hong Kong to buy soy sauce has become a hot topic on the internet,' the paper said.
In recent years, mainlanders packing grocery stores or pharmacies with their shopping baskets have become a common sight, both in border areas, such as Sheung Shui in the New Territories, and in retail centres such as Mong Kok.