'First-store economy' further fuels consumption in China

SHANGHAI - Japanese lifestyle megastore "niko and ..." opened a flagship shop on Dec 21 on the bustling thoroughfare of Huaihai Road in Shanghai, becoming the latest foreign brand to set foot in the commercial zone known for its numerous flagship stores.

The first in China and largest in the world, the brand's three-story store in Shanghai covers an area of 3,500 square meters and sells up to 4,000 types of merchandise.

Affiliated with Adastria Co Ltd niko and ... has more than 140 stores worldwide, of which 110 are in Japan. It signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Shanghai Huaihai Commercial (Group) Co Ltd in mid-2019 and has hence began expanding its presence in the Chinese market.

"The Chinese market is full of opportunities and is very important for us. Shanghai is a modern city and young people here embrace new things quickly, so we decided to open our first store here," said Yoshiaki Kitamura, general manager of sales at Adastria Co Ltd. "We are looking forward to further development and integration into the Chinese market."

According to Kitamura, in order to attract more consumers, the Shanghai store sells customized products with local features and plans to cooperate with local chefs to present more gourmet food in the future.