As if dealing with penny-pinching tourists and an exodus of local shoppers to nearby mainland cities wasn’t enough, Macao’s retailers now have another steep hurdle to face: the massive surge in sales by online shopping giant Taobao.
According to the Macau Daily Times, the Chinese e-commerce platform says it has seen a huge upswing in sales to Macao, with transaction values soaring fourfold between January and October of this year, compared to the same period in 2023.
The head of the platform’s operations in Macao and Hong Kong, CK Chan, told the Times that the boost was because of the waiver of delivery fees to Macao as well as smoother logistics, leading to a tripling of customers.
[See more: People from Macao and Hong Kong spend 454 million yuan in Zhuhai each month]
Huge discounts for the so-called “Single’s Day” shopping season – scheduled from 31 to 11 November 11 – are expected to lead to a further surge in business, leaving local retailers unable to compete.
According to the latest figures from the Statistics and Census Service, overall retail receipts in Macao plunged by more than 22 percent in August, compared to the same month last year.
Watch and jewellery retailers were affected most, suffering a massive 37.3 percent loss of business. Cosmetics retailers were hit with a 22 percent plunge in takings, the bureau said.
