Introduction to Shanghai 

Shanghai is China’s biggest city and a global financial hub. Its heart is the Bund, a famed waterfront promenade lined with colonial-era buildings. Across the Huangpu River is the Pudong district, built from the ground up in the 1990s and now featuring a futuristic skyline, including the 632-meter Shanghai Tower and the Oriental Pearl TV Tower.

Demographics

Shanghai is home to over 24 million people, and has a sizable expatriate community. In 2018, Shanghai had over 150,000 officially registered foreigners, some of the biggest nationalities are 31,500 Japanese, 21,000 Americans and 20,700 Koreans. Shanghai has one of the longest life expectancies in the world at 83, driving a higher elder population and a relatively high median age of 44 years old. 

Top Shopping Districts

1. Streets

• Nanjing Road: Shops that are centuries old, special stores and modern malls.
• Huaihai Road: Celebrated for its elegance, top end designer brands, reasonable prices and special offers (generally in the form of discounts).
• North Sichuan Road: Inexpensive merchandise. 
• Middle Tibet Road: Local snacks and local specialties.
• Taikang Road: In Huangpu district, you’ll find local treasures, specialty shops, silver jewelry, Tibetan handcrafts and unique handbags. 

2. Cities (these are shopping malls, but called “cities” in Shanghai) 

• Yuyuan Bazaar: Specialist Chinese goods such as jade, gold and silver jewelry, antiques.
• Xujiahui Shopping City: Large offering high-end and mid-range goods.
• New Shanghai Shopping City: Grand scale, offers best facilities and amenities – surrounded by many retail outlets) 
• Jiali Sleepless City: A bustling commercial area for people looking for something special, such as handcrafts, gift items, souvenirs.
• Xintiandi New World: Fashionable area with upscale shopping and entertainment venues in stone-gated buildings.

Famous Retail Events

Shanghai Fashion Week: Attracts over 40,000 visitors and 150 international and local media every year, not quite at the same scale as fashion weeks in New York, London, Paris and Milan but as the main fashion show in Asia it presents a unique opportunity to see trends in the region, in addition to established independent and international brands.   Shanghai Black Fashion Week: The first and only fashion event in China aimed at discovering diverse and emerging fashion designers, Shanghai Black Fashion Week seeks to lower the barriers to entry by giving fresh fashion design graduates, novice designers, aspiring seamstresses and underground creative minds a platform to display their individual talents. While other fashion weeks show some of the most talented professional designers to an exclusive audience, Shanghai Black Fashion Week features undiscovered designers, showcasing designs with models from all over the world: Angola, Congo, France, Ghana, Kazakhstan, Papua New Guinea, the UK, the US and Zambia.

10 Innovative Retailers

Nike [caption id="attachment_87240" align="aligncenter" width="368"] Source: news.nike.com[/caption] Nike recently unveiled the House of Innovation 001 in Shanghai. The 41,150-square-foot store covering four floors is located in the Nanjing East Road shopping district. The interior was inspired by the fluidity of sport. The concept is localized products exclusive to the Nike Shanghai store. The House of Innovation will also serve as a platform to launch new and exclusive products, installations such as a Battleknit LeBron sculpture that rotates, a digital center court where shoppers can enroll in workshops and more. The Nike Expert Studio lets NikePlus members match to personalized products in a private session with highly trained store associates. In the New Nike by You section NikePlus members can have private sessions with a designer to customize select shoes by (among other options) dip dye, embroidery, etc. The Nike House of Innovation 001 claims to have approximately 30,000 visitors a day.  Location: Nike House of Innovation Shanghai 001, Nanjing East Road, Shanghai 200333.    Libert’aime by Forevermark [caption id="attachment_87241" align="aligncenter" width="434"] Source: Forevermark.com[/caption] Libert’aime by Forevermark targets millennials with reasonably priced jewelry. The goal was to integrate the physical store, online platform and social channels to create a personalized shopping experience. The Millennial Zone features a 3D “diamond wall” and a magic mirror designed for selfies wearing the jewelry. Instead of traditional display counters filled with jewelry, customers browse items on an iPad, select the item they are interested in and a store representative brings the item – encouraging customers to browse through a wider selection of jewelry. Libert’aime also operates a WeChat store, as well as a customer loyalty program through WeChat.  Location: Libert’aime by Forevermark, L165 HKRI Taikoo Hui Qujiang Road, Nanjing Xilu, Jingan Qu, Shanghai 200333.   Zara [caption id="attachment_87243" align="aligncenter" width="254"] Source: yicaiglobal.com[/caption] Zara opened its first concept fashion store in Shanghai called #WearTheFuture and designed to create an easier shopping experience. The store features digital services provided in collaboration with Alibaba’s Tmall platform that lets customers purchase limited-edition items via smartphone. Shoppers scan the barcode of a product, which signals an associate to bring the items to the fitting room. Customers can pay for items they want with their phones, and skip the checkout line. Location: Zara, Nanjing East Road, Shanghai 200333.   K11 Shopping Mall [caption id="attachment_87244" align="aligncenter" width="382"] Source: k11.com[/caption]   The owners refer to the K11 center as a “Museum Retail Concept.” The six-floor building features restaurants, art and retail, with multiple retail innovations. The mall itself has a unique design that required the use of special software for the engineering and construction of the building. Artwork is a main feature of the mall, with one piece of art placed at every corner. Retailers include luxury brands and local brands. The K11 mall has an entire floor dedicated to urban farming, to grow herbs, chilis and more. The K11 shopping art center has locations in Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Shenyang, Tianjin and Wuhan. Location: K11 Shopping Mall, 300 Huai Hai Zhong Lu, Huai Hai Lu, Dong Duan, Xuhui, Shanghai 200333.   Freshippo (Hema) Supermarket [caption id="attachment_87245" align="aligncenter" width="326"] Source: alizala.com[/caption] Freshippo (formerly Hema) is Alibaba’s pilot project for “New Retail” – it integrates online and offline shopping. This is achieved by combining three concepts: A supermarket, a warehouse and dining area, all in one place. The Freshippo market is 10,000 square meters and specializes in fresh food, seafood, groceries and food services. To start the Freshippo experience, shoppers download the app and connect to a Taobao or Alipay account. Shoppers can order fresh food and groceries online for delivery, either raw or cooked by in-store chefs. For shoppers who want to dine in the store, there is the Robot.He restaurant: Customers pick the food they want, place it on a conveyor belt to the kitchen, be seated by the app and their food arrives cooked within 30 minutes. Every day, grocery shoppers simply pick their products, scan the code, use the app to pay and walk out.  Location: Freshippo Supermarket, 77 Wanrong Road, Daning Music Plaza, B1, Shanghai 200002.   Gucci [caption id="attachment_87246" align="aligncenter" width="344"] Source: Gucci.com[/caption] The Gucci store in Shanghai at the IAPM mall takes up two floors and offers the full collection of womenswear, menswear, as well as accessories. It also offers décor gifts and DIY for certain products. The Luxury Gucci Restaurant inside the store is the only one in a Gucci store in China, called 1921 GUCCI and featuring (of course) Italian cuisine. Reservations are required but some customers have been able to walk in. Everything in the 1921 GUCCI restaurant is decked out in the Gucci logo, from the silverware to the menus. The restaurant covers around 600 square meters on the malls third floor and aims to be Tuscan-inspired. During spring and summer, the outside terrace is open. Location: Gucci, Shop L109-110, 209-210, No. 999 Huaihai Middle Road Xuhui District, Shanghai 200031.   Moby Mart by Wheelys [caption id="attachment_87247" align="aligncenter" width="364"] Source: mobymart.com[/caption] Moby Mart by Wheelys says it is the first autonomous mobile retail shop. It has no address: The store comes to you. Customers first set up an online account, then when they want to shop, summon the shop – which knows their location using GPS technology. Once the store arrives, shoppers enter using an app, which they also use to scan items and pay. Moby Mart charges the credit card on file and sends a digital receipt. These mobile shops offer basic convenience items and some prepared breakfast, lunch and dinner meals as well as snacks made by local kitchens and bakeries.Moby Marts are battery powered. Wheelys worked with the Hefei University of Technology to integrate self-driving technology.   Carrefour Le Marché [caption id="attachment_87248" align="aligncenter" width="304"] Source: carrefour.com[/caption] Carrefour China launched its first Carrefour Le Marché smart store in Shanghai in May 2018. Carrefour Le Marché focuses on imported goods and private labels, restaurants and fresh food as well as electronic items. The company partnered with Tencent to add features such as scan and go payment, facial recognition payment, self-checkout counters, electronic tags and more. Carrefour Le Marché offers an omni channel shopping experience as well: Customers can order online to ship from store for delivery within an hour if you live in a 3km distance. In addition to these features, they provide a restaurant and café on the second floor of the grocery store which takes up around 700 square meters. Customers can purchase fresh seafood in store and have it cooked in front of them. There are is also pre-cooked food available.  Location: Carrefour Le Marché, 18 Pusong North Road, Shanghai 200333.   Suning Biu [caption id="attachment_87249" align="aligncenter" width="290"] Source: china.org.cn[/caption] Suning Biu is a staffless store that uses the same basic operating model of other so-called New Retail shops: Customers register online, download an app and shop.  The shops use facial recognition technology to let customers in, so part of the online registration process includes uploading a photo. Products include a variety of sportswear, everyday items, smart devices and Suning merchandise. There is a second facial recognition device once customers are inside that pulls up purchase history and makes recommendations on what to buy. Customers check out and pay using facial recognition. Location: Suning Store, 1^st Floor, Number 585 Handan Road, Shanghai 200081.   MAC Cosmetics [caption id="attachment_87250" align="aligncenter" width="294"] Source: Ibbonline.com[/caption] MAC Cosmetics entered the New Retail space with a new store that blends online and offline experiences into one. The store was created by Wunderman Shanghai and is the result of extensive research to understand Gen Z purchasing behavior. When consumers enter, they are greeted digitally and asked to use WeChat to check in, which then displays a personalized greeting. MAC has a WeChat mini program which will be in use throughout the whole store experience. The shop features a lipstick section where customers can “try on” different shades using a virtual makeup mirror, another for eyeshadow that lets customers use the virtual palette to create their own shade. Another is the foundation section, where an infrared touch screen interface matches foundation shade. The second floor contains space for master classes and Influencer events. Location: MAC Cosmetics, 819 Huai Hai Road, Shanghai 200065.   Must-See Street: Xinle Road Xinle Road is a shopper’s paradise, with countless unique boutiques, shoe stores and picturesque qualities.

1. Heirloom: Shanghai-based label, selling products such as totes, clutches and handbags.
2. iSup: A trendy streetwear store.
3. Nikelab 158: Nike concept store.
4. JO1: A boutique displaying a variety of shoes.
5. No School: A trendy boutique with limited edition/co-branded products such as Louis Vuitton x Supreme, Moncler x Balenciaga and others.