Beauty, cross-sector initiatives drive city's consumer market

Shanghai's consumer market is delivering a standout performance this year. Strong retail growth, rising tourism, and innovative consumption experiences are positioning the city as a leader in national spending.

In the first 11 months, Shanghai accounted for 23.2 percent of the country's clothing and footwear sales, 10.9 percent of gold and jewelry purchases, and more than 30 percent of cosmetics sales. From January to November, retail sales of cosmetics reached 130.61 billion yuan (about $18.62 billion), up 5.7 percent year-on-year, outpacing apparel, daily goods, and automobiles.

Shanghai has long been a hub for the beauty industry, supported by a large consumer base and strong international reach.

For beauty shoppers, product launch speed and global synchronization are critical. Between January and October, the city added 848 new "first stores", including 13 global or Asia-first and 134 China-first locations. Brands came from the United States, France, Italy, the United Kingdom, South Korea, and Germany, among others. Streamlined inspection procedures allowed more than 20,000 new products from 20 brands to enter the Chinese market efficiently in the first half of the year.

Consumer activity has also been boosted by a rising tourism flows. Relaxed visa policies pushed inbound arrivals in the first 10 months above last year's total. Events such as the 2025 Shanghai Summer International Consumption Season hosted more than 300 themed activities spanning fashion, performing arts, family travel, and cultural tourism, creating frequent consumption opportunities.

Cross-sector initiatives have amplified spending. For example, the exhibition Paths to Modernity: Masterpieces from the Musee d'Orsay, Paris at the Museum of Art Pudong attracted over one million visitors and tens of millions of yuan in cultural merchandise sales, while also driving consumption through themed cruises and bundled tourism offerings.

For overseas visitors, optimized departure tax refund policies have strengthened purchasing incentives. Shanghai now has more than 1,700 tax-free stores, covering time-honored brands, local specialty shops, shopping malls, and international luxury labels. Many tax refund counters offer fully digital processing, with refunds issued in real time through mobile payment platforms.

Since the start of the year, nearly 100,000 visitors from 179 countries and regions have benefited. As of Sept 29, sales under the program rose 83.8 percent year-on-year, while refund amounts increased 82.9 percent. Sales under the instant "refund-upon-purchase" service surged 21-fold, placing Shanghai at the top nationwide.