CHINA. China Duty Free Group (CDFG) is preparing to roll out a major shopping extravaganza from 29 January to 4 February designed to drive consumption during the holiday season.
The leading travel retailer is collaborating with its six duty-free stores to offer a dynamic line-up of Chinese New Year-themed activities, exclusive promotions and cultural tourism experiences, combining tradition with modern retail.
Each store is highlighting its unique shopping concepts to appeal to tourists and local residents throughout the holiday season.
The cdf Haikou International Duty Free Shopping Complex has prepared a series of activities centered around traditional Chinese New Year (CNY) celebrations, including personalised calligraphy by professional artists at the AURA atrium throughout the campaign period.
A CNY garden party and a themed market will also take place in the atrium, where shoppers can enjoy limited-edition wines, traditional food offerings and wellness products from CDFG’s private label, cdf Health.
In addition, cdf Haikou International Duty Free Shopping Complex will feature festive events such as traditional CNY parades and lion dances. The ‘God of Wealth’ will greet visitors, offering blessings for a prosperous year. Shoppers can also join the Red Envelope Rain lucky draw by scanning a QR code, offering guaranteed prizes for every participant.
The Haikou store has added a festive touch with a 6.5m-tall snake installation at its west gate, providing a striking photo opportunity for visitors. All concierge desks will also offer free fortune stick drawings, giving guests the chance to bring home a memorable experience and good luck.
At the cdf Sanya International Duty Free Shopping Complex, visitors can enjoy a series of activities celebrating traditional Chinese arts and crafts.
Starting from Chinese New Year’s Eve the mall will host huohu (fire pot) performances, copper drum dances and fish lantern dances.
These time-honoured art forms, integral to Chinese culture, are listed as part of China’s National Intangible Cultural Heritage.
To further immerse visitors in local culture, cdf Sanya will feature an Intangible Cultural Heritage Interactive Zone on the first floor of Block A. Visitors here can watch craftsmen demonstrate traditional arts such as calligraphy, paper cutting, sugar painting, rubbing (an ancient craft for reproducing textures and patterns) and lacquer fan making.
A flurry of discounts and promotions
CDFG’s Hainan stores, under strong government support, have joined forces with different sectors to provide payment benefits, duty-free shopping vouchers and digital product trade-in subsidies. These offerings, combined with shopping discounts and promotions, aim to create what CDFG describes as a “CNY shopping bonanza” for consumers.
Shoppers at cdf Mova Mall store in Haikou can enjoy discounts of up to -60% on all product categories, including fragrances & beauty, jewellery, and wines & spirits.
The store will also showcase dragon dances, lion dances and visits from the God of Fortune, bringing added fun to the shopping experience.
In response to the growing demand for gifts and souvenirs at duty-free shops among tourists departing Hainan, the cdf Haikou Meilan Airport store is offering exclusive early-bird discounts for travellers who arrive at the airport at least three hours before their flights.
The store is also offering a -15% discount on selected products for students and teachers on winter break, as well as international transfer passengers.
At the cdf Sanya Phoenix Airport store, shoppers can enjoy -25% off one skincare product or -30% off when buying three. All in-store purchases during the promotional period also come with a complimentary souvenir.
Innovative experiences and personalised services
cdf Haikou has recently unveiled a series of store openings, including the Bulgari flagship and an MLB store, as well as Chinese New Year pop-ups by Huawei and Elizabeth Arden, offering customers a more diverse and immersive shopping experience.
In line with the ‘cultural tourism’ trend, CDFG’s Hainan stores are stepping up services to enhance consumer experience.
To offer more convenience, cdf Haikou partnered with the government to plan fast routes to the store, providing self-driving tourists multiple travel options to cut down on travel time.
With major events such as the Spring Festival Gala and singer Jacky Cheung’s concert taking place in Haikou during the CNY holiday, the three CDFG Haikou stores have also offered special privileges and benefits for concertgoers.
In preparation for the CNY holiday, cdf Sanya has stocked up on popular products, enhanced employee training, completed safety checks and deployed more staff in frontline positions.
With a steady rise in tourist arrivals to the island this month, CDF Sanya set up promotional booths at key tourist spots, creating engaging retail experiences to showcase the appeal of Hainan’s offshore duty-free industry.
By combining a diversity of business formats with traditional Chinese culture, arts and customs, CDFG seeks to inject new vitality into the island’s culture and tourism industries and deliver a “retail feast” to consumers this CNY, the retailer said.
CDFG added: “In the future, CDFG will continue to uphold the group’s principle of ‘doing business in good faith and providing quality services’, and keep optimising products, services and retail scenarios through passion and innovation, so that every visitor can enjoy a Hainan trip that’s full of excitement and warm memories.” 🏝️
