In the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak, Shanghai is leveraging its nighttime economy to boost consumption and aid economic recovery, Xing Yi reports.

Time-honored local restaurants draw visitors to Shanghai's Yu Garden shopping arcade. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)

With the novel coronavirus outbreak reined in across China, cities have been taking measures to boost consumption. Shanghai, for instance, has turned to leveraging its nighttime economy.

Following Shanghai's Double Five Shopping Festival, an event that focused on promoting e-commerce through livestreams and virtual coupons, the city unveiled the Double Six Nightlife Festival on June 6, offering night owls a bevy of retail, dining and lifestyle options.

I think this new initiative of having a nightlife festival is good. The night market has always been part of the urban culture, and many people long for a place to relax after work

Xu Jin, a Shanghai resident

On the Bund

That day, the 150-meter-long Fengjing Road which leads to the southern part of the Bund was transformed into a market in the evening. The three rows of white tents housing around 100 vendors selling snacks, beers and novelties were packed with people.

"We are a weekend pop-up fair with a beautiful skyline of the Bund," says Yang Bokai, who is in charge of the market.

"You can quaff pints of Tsingtao beer or sip Rio cocktails at our eight bars, taste a variety of delicacies at the 30 food carts here, play games and watch the live concerts."

Flanked by the Fosun Art Center and the Bund Finance Center, the market also features activities held on the rooftop terraces of the BFC and the art center, where people can enjoy the view of the Bund and the skyscrapers on the other side of the Huangpu River.

"The fair will be held every weekend through the rest of the year," Yang says. "In case of rain, we've also prepared special fluorescent raincoats for the public."

Downtown areas

Another nightlife-festival site is the Anyi Road Night Market, a 250-meter lane located just a block away from the city's bustling West Nanjing Road.

Like the site on the Bund, this market was teeming with visitors.

"I knew there would be crowds, but I didn't expect so many people," says Tian Suyuan, who works at an IT company.

"But I found it to be a great place to hang out with friends and family as some indoor entertainment, such as movie theaters, haven't reopened yet."

Shanghai residents visit the weekend night market at the Bund Financial Center on June 6. (GAO ERQIANG / CHINA DAILY)

The Anyi Road Night Market was launched by the Kerry Center with the support of Jing'an district in October. It also serves as a weekend market, with traffic through the site closed from Friday evening through Sunday.

Cai Junyi, a community manager of the Jing'an Kerry Center, says the market was upgraded when it reopened after the outbreak.

"During this summer month, we want to make the market a big garden and bring back the old flower market to the modern city," Cai says.

"The current theme is Green Escape, and we will change the theme of the night market every two months."

Around the city

The festival has also singled out several commercial areas as the city's nightlife landmarks. Among them are Xintiandi and Julu Road, both of which are famous for their wide offerings of watering holes set in traditional shikumen-style buildings; Wujiang Road, which is known for its traditional local-snack shops; Xujiahui and Hengshan Road, another popular bar-and-cafe stretch; and College Road, which is located near Fudan University and is frequented by hordes of students and nearby residents.

In Hongkou district, the 15th Shanghai Wine & Liquor Festival was held at the 1933 Old Millfun, a former abattoir transformed into a modern complex comprising restaurants, shops and studios, last weekend. Hongkou says it'll also host wine-and liquor-tasting events on the third week of every month.

In Huangpu district, Li Shiyi, a young Shanghai paper-cutting artist, joined the evening art fair held at Sinan Mansions, whose 1920s-era Western European buildings have often been used for book launches, art exhibitions and cultural salons.

"I've attended many art fairs before and this time I'm bringing not only my paper-cutting works, but also peripheral products with Shanghai art designs, such as phone cases and yellow liquors," Li says.

People wander near the gate of the weekend night market on Fengjing Road. (GAO ERQIANG / CHINA DAILY)

The venue for the China International Import Expo has also been turned into a market. Here, visitors can shop for imported products that were previously sold during the expo, such as coffee from New Zealand, rice from Japan and wines from Italy.

Tang Guifa, general manager of the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai), says the venue will hold two night-market events during weekends in June and resume exhibitions in July.

Malls play their part

Eighteen big shopping malls owned by Shanghai's Bailian Group stayed open until 11 pm on the opening day of the nightlife festival on June 6.

A traditional Chinese music concert was held in the open-air area of Bailian Xijiao Shopping Mall while a techno disco event was held on Huaihai Road in the newly opened Bailian TX from 9 pm on June 6 until 2 am on June 7.

Many of the shopping malls have also launched small markets within their premises and are offering 500 million yuan (US$71 million) worth of discount coupons on Alipay to Shanghai residents.

In light of the festival, the city has extended the operating hours of metro lines 1, 2, 9 and 10. Starting from June 6, these lines will operate until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays.

"I used to go to the old Pengpu night market on Linfen Road, but after it was shut down in 2017, there just wasn't another night market that was convenient enough for me to get to," Yangpu resident Xu Jin says.

"I think this new initiative of having a nightlife festival is good. The night market has always been part of the urban culture, and many people long for a place to relax after work. I've often had meals with friends at the sidewalk food stalls at night in the past, and I really hope to rediscover that feeling at the new night markets."

Contact the writer at xingyi@chinadaily.com.cn