Hongkongers head north to bulk buying megastores, but city ill-equipped to host its own, experts say
- Bargain-hunting Hongkongers are searching online about hypermarts Sam’s Club and Costco Wholesale, set to open its new store in Longhua district next week
- They could further drain customers away from Hong Kong retailers and replicating the big box stores in city may be impossible, given land and logistics costs
Hongkongers are showing a keen interest in the membership megastores offering bulk buying over the border, but experts are sceptical the city can replicate their success locally given the scarcity of land and high cost of logistics.
The opening of Costco Wholesale’s new store in Shenzhen’s Longhua district next Friday comes as bargain hunters from Hong Kong continue to go north for shopping deals and cheap meals, putting fresh strain on the city’s businesses.
Google Trends showed that the search popularity among Hongkongers for Sam’s Club – a US warehouse retailer that opened its first mainland outlet in Shenzhen more than 27 years ago – began to surge two months ago and peaked over the New Year’s Eve weekend. An outlet in Qianhai became its fourth store in Shenzhen over the summer.
But the buzz over Costco has gathered pace recently, driven by media coverage of a preview event, with the search interest in the new store surpassing Sam’s Club on Friday among Google users in the city.
Costco gained further publicity after it teamed up with WeChat Pay to give away coupons to Hong Kong users and as group tours were launched to the new store.
A Facebook post promoting a HK$299 (US$39) two-night tour including a visit to the Costco store and an annual membership drew 580 responses in the comment section asking for details just an hour after it was uploaded.
Mandy Hu Mantian, an associate professor at the marketing department of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, said that, apart from the lower prices, the weaker yuan and the widespread use of electronic wallets accepted by mainland merchants had contributed to residents’ fondness for warehouse stores across the border.
