CHINA. The China Duty Free Group-run Sanya International Duty Free City (CDF Mall) has celebrated its reopening with record daily ecommerce sales of more than CNY44.28 million (US$6.3 million).
As reported, China Duty Free Group (CDFG) reopened its main duty free stores on Hainan Island, including the flagship CDF Mall in Sanya, on 20 February. The stores had been closed since 27 January due to the COVID-19 crisis.
The CDF Mall reopening was particularly important for CDFG. President Charles Chen told The Moodie Davitt Report in a phone interview on 20 February that the move would instil confidence in consumers and staff.
CDF Mall is the world’s largest duty free store. In a statement, CDFG said that it had responded to the requirements of the Party Central Committee and the State Council on the orderly resumption of work and production to resume business.
“The opening ushered in good news,” CDFG said. “On the day, e-commerce sales exceeded CNY44.28 million (US$6.3 million), setting a record for e-commerce single-day sales.”
In-store customer traffic was light as CDFG worked hard to promote online shopping in order to keep crowds limited during the epidemic. However, buoyed by a range of promotional activities online, ecommerce order volumes soared.
“The ecommerce team worked overnight, and all departments worked together,” CDFG said. “By increasing the number of shifts, optimising the system, speeding up replenishment, and overcoming problems such as insufficient manpower, they overcame all difficulties and set a single day’s record high. This helped contributed to stabilising domestic consumption and unleashing emerging spending potential.
“Sanya International Duty Free City is focusing on the prevention and control of the epidemic and resuming production one the one hand, while giving full play to the social role of central enterprises on the other. With our focus on prevention and control and the resumption business, we are striving to go forward.”
