How Duty-Free Shops in China Thrived Despite Travel Restrictions

Chinese travelers are notorious for their love of luxury products and the savings they can take advantage of at Duty Free shops. While COVID-19 forced everyone to stay home, duty-free shops suffered collateral damage almost everywhere, but not in China!

Even during the pandemic, Chinese people were able to buy duty-free goods. The levies on luxury goods in China are as high as 30%, that is why Chinese love duty-free goods. Jean-Marc Pontroué, CEO of high-end watchmaker Panerai said: “Duty-free Sales in China have been extremely solid in the last 12 months.” China’s share of the global luxury market, especially products sold at duty-free shops, almost doubled last year, according to consultants Bain & Co.

This happened in Sanya, Hainan Island, where Chinese shoppers can purchase luxury goods without travelling outside the country. These shops are called offshore duty-free shops. The local government revealed that average daily sales are around 180 million yuan (35.4 million Canadian dollars), tripled the revenues from last year.

The largest duty-free shop in the world

Opened on September 1, 2009 and located in Haitang Bay, the Sanya International Duty-Free Shopping Complex is a large comprehensive duty-free themed tourist project integrating commerce, catering, entertainment, relaxation, and shopping. The construction spans over 120,000 square meters and has two buildings, making it the largest duty-free shop in the world. Around 300 well-known international brands are sold there. You may find 45 types of duty-free goods, including cosmetic products, perfume, clothing, watches and accessories, health products, home appliances, candies, and chocolate.

credit: Sanya International Duty-Free Shopping Complex. https://www.cdfg.com.cn/offshoreDutyFreeBusiness/

How does it work?

credit: official website. https://www.cdfgsanya.com

Since the pandemic, the government has eased restrictions on duty-free purchases. On December 30, 2020, several duty-free shops were opened and the total revenues from four duty-free shops reached 31.6 billion yuan (6.18 billion Canadian dollars), the number of clients reach 3.4 million and there were 19 million goods sold. In 2021, this trend continues with six more duty-free shops opening in Hainan Province.

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