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Celine Sun

Beijing's policy to spur domestic spending is prompting retail giants to step up their push into the mainland market.
 Fast food chain McDonald's Corp says it will double its outlets to more than 2,000 in three years while Ikea, the global leader in home furnishing, plans to invest about 1 billion yuan (HK$1.17 billion) to build its second store in Beijing. 
McDonald's China yesterday announced it would increase investment by 40 per cent next year, compared with a 25 per cent rise this year. The investment will be primarily used to open new outlets, renovate existing ones and introduce more convenient services.
 The company did not disclose the investment amount. 
Between 175 and 200 new McDonald's stores are expected to open next year on the mainland, which has become the fastest-growing market for the world's largest restaurant chain. 
The company unveiled a facelift campaign in Beijing yesterday, with four newly renovated stores opening for business in the downtown area. The new design features bright warm colours and soft seating. 'These renovated restaurants will become the new face of McDonald's in China as we stay on the development fast track over the next 20 years,' Kenneth Chan, chief executive of McDonald's China, said. 
About 100 stores, mainly in the first-tier cities, will get the new look by the end of next year, and 80 per cent of the rest will do the same by 2013. Beginning with an outlet in Shenzhen in 1990, the fast food service provider currently runs more than 1,100 restaurants in the country.
The number, however, is far behind its rival KFC of Yum! Brands, which has about 3,000 outlets. 
'It took McDonald's 19 years to reach the first 1,000 stores, but we aim to get to the next 1,000 in just three years,' Chan said. He added half of the new stores would be drive-throughs in order to cater for the fast-growing car owners in the country.
Separately, Swedish-based furniture retailer Ikea announced yesterday that its second store in Beijing, which will cost 1 billion yuan to build, would open for business in 2012. The store, with 50,000 square metres of retail space, is located in Daxing district in the south of the capital. 
Ikea's sales on the mainland jumped 23 per cent to 3.7 billion yuan in the fiscal year ended in August. It opened its first store in Shanghai in 1998. Ikea now hopes to more than double its stores to 18 from the current eight by 2015. 
The retail industry on the mainland has been benefiting from the booming economy and the government's efforts to boost domestic spending. The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences estimates the total retail sales of consumer goods will exceed 15 trillion  yuan this year, up 20 per cent from last year.



Retail titans in mainland push