Knight Frank and Holdways have jointly published the latest China Retail Property Market Watch report. Despite local and global economic uncertainties, China’s retail sales reached RMB12.4 trillion in the first half of 2014, up 12.1% year on year. The growth in China’s luxury retail market has shown signs of slowing, the showdown was attributable to the increasing preference of Chinese consumers to shop for luxury goods abroad and the implementation of anti-gift regulations in 2012.
The paradigm shifts in consumer behaviour has transformed the competitor landscape of retailers. More and more retailers as well as department stores have launched online platforms to extend customer reach and further penetrate the market.
Shopping with friends and families remains an unchanged tradition amongst the Chinese. So despite the proliferation of online shopping, shopping malls still occupy an important place in the market.
Learning the lessons of the past, shopping malls have also been better positioned and better planned to cope with the changing consumption pattern of the mass.
Given the policymakers’ continued efforts in boosting domestic consumption, David Ji, Director and Head of Research & Consultancy at Greater China, Knight Frank, says the outlook for the Chinese retail sector is cautiously optimistic in the coming year.