SHANGHAI, Aug. 30 (Xinhua) -- From roast chicken, laundry detergent, to high-end Moutai liquor and six-figure Birkin bags, Chinese shoppers were buying them all at U.S. retail giant Costco Wholesale's first brick-and-mortar store on the Chinese mainland.
On opening day Tuesday, crowds of shoppers flocked to the store in southwest Shanghai, forcing it to shut down early in the afternoon. Beginning Wednesday, Costco had to impose a traffic limit, allowing no more than 2,000 shoppers at any given time into the store.
Still, shoppers continued to queue in long lines to get into the store Thursday and Friday.
At the 14,000-square-meter store, customers can enjoy commodities with larger pack volumes and lower prices in the warehouse after paying a membership fee of 299 yuan (about 42 U.S. dollars) a year.
More than 130,000 Chinese customers have registered memberships since July, setting a new record for a single Costco store across the world.
Zhang Jie and her husband drove one and a half hours from Yangpu District in northeastern Shanghai to check out the famous U.S. retailer.
Before long, the 33-year-old office worker had filled her shopping cart with a variety of foods from around the world, including Chinese milk, Australian steaks, Japanese soft drinks, as well cereals from Thailand and wine produced in Argentina.
"We often keep an eye on newly opened stores, and take time to visit them for a new shopping experience," said Zhang.
Commissioned by his mother to shop for groceries and foods, 21-year-old college student Qian Wei had put Australian steaks, Philippine bananas and a dozen freshly baked croissants into the cart.
"My mother has a shopping habit of always looking for products with the finest quality, either imported or domestic," said Qian.
Since opening day, Richard Chang, senior vice president-Asia at Costco Wholesale, has been busy helping staff members cope with the big crowds and provide customers with a satisfactory shopping environment.
Chang attributed the large crowds in the first week to the large middle-class customer base with an international appetite around Shanghai.
"With growing purchasing power, Chinese customers have adopted a more open and mature mindset toward consumption," said Chang. "They have a clear idea of what authentic and high-quality goods are."
Costco started its cross-border e-commerce business in the Chinese mainland market five years ago. Prices of general merchandise in Costco are 30 to 60 percent lower than market prices and the food sold there is 10 to 20 percent cheaper, according to the retailer.
Bai Ming, an expert with a research institute affiliated to the Commerce Ministry, said the big crowds at Costco showed the high expectations of Chinese customers, but it is still early to predict the long-term success of the U.S. retail giant.
"The first few days are usually the 'honeymoon' period," said Bai. "If the current traffic flow can maintain for a month, then it's safe to say Costco's business model meets the demand of Chinese customers."
Earlier this year, another retail giant Walmart opened its second Sam's Club warehouse store in Shanghai and will continue its expansion in China.
"The upgraded consumption demand in the country has provided huge opportunities for foreign enterprises," said Bai. "Any suggestion to give up the Chinese market makes no business sense at all."
