Shopping Tourism, the return of the Chinese to Italy: how retailers can attract tourists

06-07-23

I went in China the first time in the summer of 2012 and until the end of 2019 I traveled several times a year, each time seeing crowds of Chinese tourists leaving Italy returning home loaded with shopping bags from prestigious Italian and international brands. Then it came the pandemic, with tourism as the first victim and the lack of Chinese travelers for three years had serious effects on retail, in particular for the medium-high range products that were purchased by visitors from China. Many of the boutiques in the Quadrilatero in Milan and all the outlets starting from Serravalle until January 2020 counted on the huge revenues generated by Chinese tourists, who often also bought for friends and relatives, with very high receipts (in 2019, the latest data available, they were an average of 1,500 euros).

From China a new wave of tourists to Italy between July and August 2023

Then finally on Chinese New Year 2023, tourism outside China picked up significantly. During that time, according to the Immigration Department, some 250,000 people departed every day, equal to around 7.5 million overseas travelers per month, with destinations such as Singapore, South Korea, Hong Kong, Japan, Thailand and Macau.