Specialty shops booming in cities as private economy expands

SHANGHAI -- Tucked away in the Longshan vegetable market in Shanghai is a tailor's shop so small that one might easily miss it, were it not for the sign outside installed in recent years.

However, size is no obstacle for owner Master Ye, who can tailor all sorts of garments, from opera costumes to vendors' work suits. Indeed, he also has orders coming in from far afield, from northeastern China to the Greater Bay Area.

Cao Teng, a graphic designer from Taiwan, is among Master Ye's happy customers. Cao is usually keen to buy seasonal fashion garments from major brands, but the ready-made clothes often do not fit and need to be modified. Master Ye is always willing to take his orders, which some other shops cannot handle or consider too much hard work, and the price is always fair.

Another regular customer is Jiang, a retired subdistrict office worker who lives near the Longshan vegetable market. Jiang said that almost all of his labor suits have been modified by Ye.

"We have to take care of the trouser legs and cuffs. Only when they're tailored to our needs do they fit properly," Jiang said.

In Jiang's view, with the development of society, the living space of traditional tailor's shops is being squeezed, but the needs of consumers are increasingly personalized, which brings new opportunities for small shops like Ye's.

With the rapid expansion of the private economy and the uptick in consumption in China, Shanghai added more than 30,000 specialty shops in the first quarter of this year, according to data from China's e-commerce platform Meituan. The metropolis issued a guideline for the development of specialty shops in March.

In a studio in the Yuandong Building in Shanghai's financial hub of Lujiazui, more than a dozen audience members held their breath as they followed the movements of a magician's hands.

The Gala Magic Club has set up several shops in Shanghai in just two years. Although some of the shops are less than 10 square meters in size, they have become a source of happiness for many customers.

"Watching a magic show here can drive away all of our unhappiness," one netizen commented on social media, just one of many positive reviews online.

The club's shops staged more than 100 magic shows in just five days this year, a fact that owner Li Fan views as a sign of success.

"Magic is an ancient form of entertainment, and it's showing new vitality and constantly bringing fresh consumption experiences to the people in cities," Li said.

From January to March, nearly 500,000 small shops across the country registered on Meituan. More than 40,000 new specialty shops have opened in Beijing alone since the beginning of this year, data from Meituan shows.

Chinese authorities issued a guideline in mid-July on boosting the growth of the private economy, promising to improve the business environment, enhance policy support and strengthen legal guarantees for its development.