Published on ShanghaiDaily.com (http://www.shanghaidaily.com/)
http://www.shanghaidaily.com/sp/article/2008/200807/20080712/article_366473.htm
Zhongshan Park area set for major retail expansion
Created: 2008-7-12, Updated: 2008-7-11 22:01:07
Author:Nie Xin
THERE are ambitious plans to expand the Zhongshan Park commercial area into a discount electronic goods retail hub to rival the world-renowned Akihabara district in Tokyo.
Akihabara is known as "electric town" and has streets dedicated to stores selling a range of the latest cutting-edge gadgets, and Shanghai residents could have a similar sprawling retail center in the coming years.
Officials from the Changning Economic Commission revealed the plans for the new development project at a recent seminar.
The high-powered seminar included leading Shanghai academics and the leaders of more than 30 companies operating in the Zhongshan Park area.
The plan will continue the strong growth of the area over the past decade.
Over the past 10 years, the area has become a center for commercial, residential, educational, leisure and entertainment activities.
Zhongshan Park area is one of the three economic zones in the Changning District.
The area covers 1.14 square kilometers, bordered by Jiangsu Road in the east, Yan'an West Road in the south, the Inner Ring Road in the west and stretches as far north as Suzhou Creek.
As one of the most important transport hubs in Shanghai, the area is covered by an extensive bus service and Metro Lines 2 and 3 that cater for 500,000 passengers daily.
Last year the area's seven biggest retailers reported sales of more than 31.73 billion yuan (US$4.63 billion). This is almost three times the total sales generated by all the retailers in the area in 2000.
The Zhongshan Park area is a well-known shopping area for electrical appliances, with two big electronic goods retailers Gome and Suning setting up outlets there in the last five years.
The American chain Bestbuy is also considering establishing an outlet in the area.
"In a good commercial area, retailers are not afraid to compete with their neighbors," says Liu Chenhui, a sales manager at a small electronic store in the area. "If there are more choices in one area, then more customers are attracted."
According to a Changning Economic Commission survey conducted in 2007, about 36 percent of the total profits in Zhongshan Park area were derived from electronic goods retailers.
The 2.6-kilometer-long Kaixuan Multi-media Industry Corridor, which starts from Multi-media Life Plaza on Changning Road in the north, and ends near Hongqiao Road and Kaixuan Road in the south, is a mecca of cutting-edge electronic appliances. It also includes the Shanghai Multi-media Industry Zone - the first multi-media industry base in China.
More than 100 multi-media enterprises are in the zone, including DELL, Global Digital, Morpheus Animation and Foremost Multimedia.
It will include several well-known brand outlets and smaller-scale enterprises that will be incubators for digital media development, cartoon and computer game production and information technology services.
"Zhongshan Park area is different from other business centers such as the Xujiahui area, with its multi-commercial function, Huaihai Road, which features fashion, and Nanjing Road, which targets tourists," says Yao Zhikang, director of the Public Relation Department in the Zhongshan Park Development Office. It was set up by the Changning government to accelerate the economic development of the area.
"The Zhongshan Park area is going to focus on the multi-media industry and will target young people from 16 to 30 years of age, the so-called Y-Generation, who have an interest in high-technology products."
The development plan for the area also includes an upgrade of roads along Metro Line 3, which will start with the landscaping and greening of Kaixuan Road to make it more appealing to shoppers.
According to the plan, retailers at Zhongshan Park will be able to operate 24 hours, making it a shopping, entertainment and leisure hub.
Some residents believe that more work needs to be done to cater for the predicted huge increase in pedestrian traffic, with access difficulties already being experienced by some shoppers.
"My office is near Zhongshan Park, but I don't have a strong desire to walk around and shop, because I have to walk a lot to take the tunnel to get across to the other side of the street," says 25-year-old Yu Min.
The new development plan has provisions for the expansion of various underground pathways designed to provide better access to retail centers.
"According to our new plan, we are going to build underground pathways at one or two points at the corner of Kaixuan and Changning roads,Huichuan and Changning roads, and Dingxi and Changning roads.
"When the pathways are constructed, it will be much more convenient for shoppers and ease traffic congestion on Changning Road," says Yao.
Akihabara is known as "electric town" and has streets dedicated to stores selling a range of the latest cutting-edge gadgets, and Shanghai residents could have a similar sprawling retail center in the coming years.
Officials from the Changning Economic Commission revealed the plans for the new development project at a recent seminar.
The high-powered seminar included leading Shanghai academics and the leaders of more than 30 companies operating in the Zhongshan Park area.
The plan will continue the strong growth of the area over the past decade.
Over the past 10 years, the area has become a center for commercial, residential, educational, leisure and entertainment activities.
Zhongshan Park area is one of the three economic zones in the Changning District.
The area covers 1.14 square kilometers, bordered by Jiangsu Road in the east, Yan'an West Road in the south, the Inner Ring Road in the west and stretches as far north as Suzhou Creek.
As one of the most important transport hubs in Shanghai, the area is covered by an extensive bus service and Metro Lines 2 and 3 that cater for 500,000 passengers daily.
Last year the area's seven biggest retailers reported sales of more than 31.73 billion yuan (US$4.63 billion). This is almost three times the total sales generated by all the retailers in the area in 2000.
The Zhongshan Park area is a well-known shopping area for electrical appliances, with two big electronic goods retailers Gome and Suning setting up outlets there in the last five years.
The American chain Bestbuy is also considering establishing an outlet in the area.
"In a good commercial area, retailers are not afraid to compete with their neighbors," says Liu Chenhui, a sales manager at a small electronic store in the area. "If there are more choices in one area, then more customers are attracted."
According to a Changning Economic Commission survey conducted in 2007, about 36 percent of the total profits in Zhongshan Park area were derived from electronic goods retailers.
The 2.6-kilometer-long Kaixuan Multi-media Industry Corridor, which starts from Multi-media Life Plaza on Changning Road in the north, and ends near Hongqiao Road and Kaixuan Road in the south, is a mecca of cutting-edge electronic appliances. It also includes the Shanghai Multi-media Industry Zone - the first multi-media industry base in China.
More than 100 multi-media enterprises are in the zone, including DELL, Global Digital, Morpheus Animation and Foremost Multimedia.
It will include several well-known brand outlets and smaller-scale enterprises that will be incubators for digital media development, cartoon and computer game production and information technology services.
"Zhongshan Park area is different from other business centers such as the Xujiahui area, with its multi-commercial function, Huaihai Road, which features fashion, and Nanjing Road, which targets tourists," says Yao Zhikang, director of the Public Relation Department in the Zhongshan Park Development Office. It was set up by the Changning government to accelerate the economic development of the area.
"The Zhongshan Park area is going to focus on the multi-media industry and will target young people from 16 to 30 years of age, the so-called Y-Generation, who have an interest in high-technology products."
The development plan for the area also includes an upgrade of roads along Metro Line 3, which will start with the landscaping and greening of Kaixuan Road to make it more appealing to shoppers.
According to the plan, retailers at Zhongshan Park will be able to operate 24 hours, making it a shopping, entertainment and leisure hub.
Some residents believe that more work needs to be done to cater for the predicted huge increase in pedestrian traffic, with access difficulties already being experienced by some shoppers.
"My office is near Zhongshan Park, but I don't have a strong desire to walk around and shop, because I have to walk a lot to take the tunnel to get across to the other side of the street," says 25-year-old Yu Min.
The new development plan has provisions for the expansion of various underground pathways designed to provide better access to retail centers.
"According to our new plan, we are going to build underground pathways at one or two points at the corner of Kaixuan and Changning roads,Huichuan and Changning roads, and Dingxi and Changning roads.
"When the pathways are constructed, it will be much more convenient for shoppers and ease traffic congestion on Changning Road," says Yao.
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