Xinhua News Agency, Hefei, March 18 (Reporter Wang Haiyue) A dressing room that can be "disguised" at any time, a carefully set up two-dimensional check-in wall, and a "grill store" full of 2D peripheral products... This is the Parkson Shopping Center on the Huaihe Road Pedestrian Street in Hefei City, Anhui Province. The traditional old shopping mall has now been "transformed" into a hot "grape eater".
The five-story shopping malls are concentrated in 25 second-dimensional brand stores, of which 20 are the first stores in Anhui. The operating area of the second-dimensional business format accounts for about two-fifths of the total area of the mall. The strong "gray eating" atmosphere and various thematic activities held from time to time have made this old department store continue to maintain its popularity since its transformation.
"The 'grilled' shops here are very dense, and there are many new shops, which are very suitable for 'grilled' check-in." Xu Qing, a 25-year-old Hefei citizen, has become a regular customer here, just like many second-dimensional enthusiasts wearing COS clothes.
Young people line up to buy products at the 2D brand store of Parkson Shopping Center in Hefei. Xinhua News Agency issued the "Guzi", which is transliterated from "Goods" (product), refers to two-dimensional peripheral products made as prototypes such as comics, animations, games, etc. According to the relevant person in charge of Hefei Parkson Shopping Center, since the transformation and development of the "grill economy", the average customer flow in the mall has increased by about 60% compared with the previous period, of which young consumers account for more than 80%.
Young people are keen on "eating grain" and like to decorate their lives with "grain", lighting up new offline consumption scenarios. The "2024-2025 China's millet economy market analysis report" released by iMedia Consulting shows that in 2024, the market size of China's "mill economy" reached 168.9 billion yuan, an increase of 40.63% over 2023, and is expected to exceed 300 billion yuan in 2029.
This year's government work report proposes to innovate and enrich consumption scenarios and accelerate the development of new consumption such as digital, green, and intelligent. From the "Millet" carnival to the first-time feast, immersive night tours, artificial intelligence + consumption, new consumption scenarios are constantly reshaping the consumption structure and releasing consumption potential, releasing "new" heat for the economy.
Wearing a VR headset, you can travel to Luoyang, the "Shen Capital" more than 1,000 years ago, and embark on an immersive fantasy journey in a 300-square-meter real-life space. This is a new experience brought to consumers by the integration of digital technology and national trend culture.
"Through a variety of technologies such as virtual reality technology, motion capture technology, dynamic equipment technology, etc., consumers can truly feel the bumpy feeling of the carriage and the weightlessness of falling during the experience, smell the fragrance of flowers, hear the sound of wind, touch the cliff, and feel the water splashing on their faces." Zhang Yingzi, head of Hefei Opportunity Space X-META Full Sense VR Park, said that this is the new charm brought by technology to consumption.
Young people in Hefei Opportunity Space-Time X-META Full Sensation VR Paradise Immersive Experience Interactive Project. Xinhua News Agency has released
As one of the top 100 new consumption scenarios in Anhui and American in 2024, this experience project has attracted nearly 40,000 experiencers since its trial opening in early 2024.
"The whole process is full of realism and many interesting experiences, such as rain, can be felt truly. The combination of ancient style and high technology makes the experience full of experience!" said Chen Chen, a young man born in the 2000s who experienced it with friends.
The head of relevant departments of the Anhui Provincial Department of Commerce said that it is focusing on new consumption hotspots such as traffic supermarkets, integration of business, culture, tourism and sports, artificial intelligence + consumption, and accelerating the planning and construction of new consumption scenarios, helping traditional commercial enterprises to transform and upgrade, and stimulating more consumption potential.
This consumption "new" boom has also been rolling out across the country. Zhejiang Wuzhen Scenic Area has introduced humanoid robots, and tourists have "shake hands" with the robots and take photos; in Chongqing, the former air-raid shelters have been transformed into new cave consumption scenarios such as hot pot restaurants, bars and bookstores; Chang'an 12-hour theme block in Xi'an, Shaanxi has launched digital technology application products such as immersive treasure hunting maps, empowering tourists to "dream back to the Tang Dynasty" through technology empowerment... "At present, consumption scenarios such as intangible cultural heritage markets, immersive cultural tourism, trendy toy experience stores, and creative coffee shops are accelerating to "new" to stimulate consumption enthusiasm." Li Gang, Director of the Market Operation and Consumption Promotion Department of the Ministry of Commerce, said at a press conference held by the State Information Office on the 17th that the Ministry of Commerce will organize a series of activities "Buy in China" to create more "must-buy, must-eat, playable, and considerable" commercial, tourism, culture, sports and health integrated consumption scenarios.
