Mainland Shoppers in HK

Louis Vuitton, where there is always a line to enter on the weekends

Typical Saturday afternoon in Chanel

Early on I learned that there is a Chinese divide, those whom are from Hong Kong and those from the Mainland. Those in HK think less of the mainlanders, assuming they are unsophisticated, speak loudly and have poor manners. It is not for me to judge, but I do think I understand a bit, for us New Yorkers view those from NJ in the same manner. And similar to those in NJ spending 100s of dollars in NYC, the mainlanders spend thousands and millions individually in Hong Kong. For many reasons (lack of sales tax, HK being the closest proximity to the "western" shopping market, security that they are purchasing "real" goods, not knock off, and the need for many wealthy Chinese to unload cash), the mainlanders are the ones supporting all of these luxury stores. They come in huge tour groups and most recently as individuals (before 2003, they were only allowed in groups or for business) easily spending thousands of dollars. The average spend for overnight is about $600 specifically for shopping. And rather than spend (I will get to this issue later in my blog) on expensive hotels and restaurants, their main purpose is to shop for luxury goods. Approximately 70% of all tourism is from the Chinese shopper. For those more interested, in the divide between the Hong Kong citizens and the mainlanders, check the link below. It details a latest uproar, around HK based tour guides basically bullying mainlanders into buying products. The attitude seems to be, if you invade our island, you better buy and buy a lot to support our economy....

WSJ Article