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Retailing

Retailing
Latest news and features on retailing with a particular focus on Hong Kong, mainland China and Asia, covering consumer goods and services, retail strategies, shopping habits, sales results and trends.
Tourists from Russia take selfies on the Bund in Shanghai. China is keen to drive up spending by inbound travellers over the Lunar New Year. Photo: Xinhua
China consumption

China targets foreign tourists for Lunar New Year ‘consumption feast’

Beijing sees huge untapped potential in spending by inbound travellers as it strives to drive up demand over the crucial nine-day holiday.

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China economy

Budweiser and Heineken face polar opposite fates in China as punters stay home

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China property

Sofa so bad: China’s home-furnishing sector hits a do-or-die stretch

China economy

Strong Lunar New Year demand fuels China’s gold jewellery market

Retailers offer small discounts to spur holiday sales but are set to raise prices after the festival, as investment banks issue bullish outlooks.

Customers look at gold rings at a jewellery store in Shanghai. Photo: Reuters
Mainland China

Sam’s Club cracks China market formula even as foreign retailers shut shop

The warehouse retailer opened 10 new stores in 2025, accelerating expansion in smaller cities like Zhangjiagang and Yangzhou.

Hong Kong society

Curry fishball toys a hit as Hong Kong nostalgia shines at Lunar New Year fair

Vendors say locally designed Hong Kong-themed merchandise drew in customers at Victoria Park’s Lunar New Year fair.

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China's economic recovery

China’s Xi prioritises ‘AI-plus’ and consumer spending to counter economic risks

Previously unreleased comments by Xi urge income growth and tech breakthroughs, potentially setting stage for measures ahead of March’s parliamentary meetings.

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A humanoid robot is pictured, with a big AI logo on the ceiling, at the 2025 Global Industrial Internet Conference in China’s Liaoning province on September 6. Photo: Xinhua
Style Edit

Style Edit: Lane Crawford’s beauty rewards are gifts you’ll actually want

Elevate your self-care with Lane Crawford’s HK$8.8M Beauty Rewards Programme and redeem products from brands like Skit and Tom Ford Beauty.

Timepieces

How these luxury watchmakers are going beyond boutiques

Luxury watchmakers from Richard Mille to Vacheron Constantin and Jaeger-LeCoultre now offer homelike spaces for deeper client connections.

Pop Mart

Pop Mart balances boom and bust: can Labubu’s leap match Molly’s momentum?

As Labubu’s meteoric rise cools, Molly’s longevity highlights the challenge Pop Mart faces in turning hype into stable intellectual property.

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Illustration: Brian Wang
China consumption

China overhauls CPI basket, with never-before-seen unveiling of its composition

Beijing’s five-year recalibration aims to better reflect consumption, as policymakers shift weight away from food and housing.

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For China’s consumer price index (CPI) basket, Beijing has increased the weight of transport and communications to 14.3 per cent in its latest five-year adjustment. Photo: Getty Images
China's population

Glimmer of hope? Why China’s marriage uptick could spark 2026 birth rebound

Double-digit jump in registration rate, boosted by policy and cultural tradition, offers modest upturn, but demographers are wary of weak fertility intentions.

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Hong Kong property

Exclusive | Box office bust? The show may be over for another Hong Kong cinema

IFC Mall is reportedly looking at the big picture as it explores potential tenants to replace upscale movie theatre Palace IFC.

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Hong Kong society

Hong Kong enterprise for needy unable to set up new shop after government error

Tender exercise cancelled after erroneous power supply details sent to bidders by Housing Authority, leaving Agape Garden in limbo.

Agape Garden’s old premises have been left vacant since the restaurant closed down last July. Photo: Emily Hung
Fashion

In conversation: Bohan Qiu and Ian Hylton on Chinese luxury fashion

Hylton is known for his eponymous label as well as his work on the brand Ms Min, while Qiu is the founder of Shanghai PR agency Boh Project.

Bohan Qiu (left) and Ian Hylton at the latter’s in-house residency at Rosewood Hong Kong’s Beaureguards boutique. Photo: Alexander Mak
Fashion

Q&A | Thailand’s Gentlewoman: viral totes and Covid resilience

Discover how 3 Thai accountancy and finance graduates steered the fashion brand’s rapid rise using smart data-driven design and being nimble enough to adapt.

Hong Kong property

How Hong Kong’s headquarters economy fuels rebound in commercial property

The headquarters economy is powering office and retail recovery, with rising demand, stabilising rents and renewed investor confidence.

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China’s private sector

China’s Year of the Horse shoppers let emotional satisfaction take the reins

Brand prestige fades in importance as consumers favour festival-themed toys, playful designs and pet items.

Pop Mart sold out of its Have a Good Run series. Photo: Handout
Consumers

How Chinese consumers’ changing demands are keeping KFC’s owner on its toes

Yum China CEO Joey Wat banks on fast-food firm’s flexible store format and cheaper products to attract more Chinese consumers.

Fashion

Hong Kong’s indie fashion labels bloom at new Tsim Sha Tsui pop-up

Chance Encounters is a pop-up run by the brands YanYan, Aenrmous and Kinyan Lam that aims to elevate Hong Kong’s indie fashion scene.

Hong Kong healthcare and hospitals

Hong Kong recalls Aptamil baby milk formula batch over toxin contamination fears

Centre for Food Safety says a local retailer sold a small quantity of the formula batch suspected to contain cereulide.

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Aptamil Profutura DUO Pre D 800g. Photo: Handout
Hong Kong economy

Hong Kong’s retail sales edge up 1% in 2025 after 7.3% decline in 2024

Census and Statistics Department says retail sales for December worth HK$35 billion, and provisionally estimated at HK$380.5 billion for 2025.

Hong Kong’s retail sector emerged from a 14-month slump in May last year with 2.4 per cent growth. Photo: Dickson Lee
China GDP

China’s financial powerhouse Shanghai aims for 5% growth, ‘global influence’

Chinese megacity ranks in the world’s five most powerful metros after New York, Tokyo and Los Angeles, with a GDP of 5.67 trillion yuan.

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Sweden

Multinationals race into China’s US$143.9 billion instant retail market

Ikea, Continental and Aldi Nord enlist local partners to launch faster, more comprehensive delivery services than they offer abroad.

Pop Mart

Labubu toymaker Pop Mart picks London as European headquarters in overseas push

CEO Wang Ning reveals firm’s latest expansion plan at Friday’s closed-door meeting with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

A shopper walks inside a Pop Mart store in London on May 21, 2025. Photo: Xinhua
E-commerce

China slaps US$3.7 million fine on Kuaishou for live-streaming e-commerce breach

The penalty reflects a broader regulatory crackdown on content and operations deemed undesirable or harmful on Chinese online platforms.

Chinese regulators are tightening oversight on live-streaming e-commerce platform operators such as Kuaishou Technology. Photo: Shutterstock
China economy

Video | Scuffles break out at Ikea clearance sale in China

Furniture retailer to focus on targeted growth in key cities, with plans to open 10 small-format outlets over two years.

China GDP

Tale of 2 megacities: how did Beijing, Shanghai GDPs surpass 5 trillion yuan?

China’s two largest cities are outpacing national growth rates, each generating gross domestic products equal to a small European country.

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