From store to store in Shanghai (part 3.) – Tesco

Within the single hour I spent in a Tesco in Shanhai, I had seen 37 signs saying “cheaper” in both Chinese and English. There is always plenty of activity to be seen in the store, where quite unusual product placement can also be seen frequently. Shopping is certainly an experience here. We are still in the Pudong district of Shanghai, often referred to as the “Chinese Manhattan”, but we don’t see any skyscrapers around here yet. The Tesco Jin Xiu Store under no. 3218 Jin Xiu Road has a truly magnetic effect on pedestrians. We are greeted by the store manager, Mr. Li Xin Jiang and his colleagues with courtesy that is easy to get accustomed to. We are told that there are 47 Tesco stores in China, of which 17 are located in Shanghai. They have a Chinese partner – Ting Hsin (Hymall) – which has a 10 per cent share in the joint venture. Total initial investment amounted to USD 270 million. They plan to open ten new stores each year in the future. Since there are not many cars in China, Tescos are always located in places which are easy to reach by public transport. Chinese Tescos are generally smaller than in Europe, but have several floors. Small, independent stores are generally located on the ground floor, while the hyper market is located upstairs. The first thing we see upstairs is two shopping carts side by side, filled with the same products. A sign on one of them tells us how much we would spend in the competing XX Mall (CNY 352.48), while the sign on the other one tells us that we only have to pay CNY 291.69 in Hymall. That is a difference of 21 per cent. We are offered Wrigley chewing gum by an angel with wings. Total store area is 33 385 square meters, half of which is used for selling food, which accounts for 70 per cent of sales. The number of full time employees is 280 and there are 30 cash registers. The average number of customers is 49,000 per week who spend CNY 2.9 million, which is equal to HUF 72.5 million. Apart from the bicycles we see displayed all over the place, the most surprising sight for us is a wooden shack with mountains of rice in it which is portioned by the customers for themselves, using small shovels and bags. There is so much rice that nobody ever has to queue anymore.