△Add friend and note "inspection" to register Food coupons, cloth coupons, supply and marketing cooperatives, state-owned small shops—do these 'old things' resonate with you? Facial recognition, mobile payment, VR shopping—can you get the trend? Over the past 40 years of reform and opening-up, the development of China's retail industry has witnessed how ever-upgrading consumption trends have shaped the vitality of China's economy. China's retail industry is also transforming from a 'follower' to a 'leader'. From rationed distribution to dazzling variety, from peddlers carrying loads to retail conglomerates, from state-owned department stores to foreign supermarkets, from queuing up to buy to home delivery, from traditional retail to smart retail... The small matter of 'buy, buy, buy' reflects China's economic changes. 1949–1978: Before Reform and Opening-Up Before reform and opening-up, the retail industry under the planned economy was dominated by public ownership, with unified purchase and marketing being the era's hallmark. In the 1950s, the First Department Store on Nanjing Road in Shanghai was the largest state-owned department store in China at the time. On February 19, 1956, the Qianmen District Commodity Exhibition, jointly organized by the Beijing Qianmen District People's Committee Commercial Section and the District Federation of Industry and Commerce, opened. On the eve of National Day in 1964, Beijing's commercial departments prepared a large quantity of fresh fruit for the market. This is a corner of the newly established Qianmen Fruit Stand. On December 10, 1971, members of the Lugouqiao People's Commune on the outskirts of Beijing shopped for daily necessities at a supply and marketing cooperative. Shanghai No. 1 Department Store set up a special counter for pairing single socks, where many customers were satisfied to pair single socks into a pair. In 1973, a children's picture book stall on the streets of Xuzhou. In that era, reading picture books was a leisure activity for all ages. (Photo by Yu Huitong) In 1974, children had few toy options; a set of glass marbles was often enough to keep a group of kids entertained for half a day. (Photo by Yu Huitong) 1978–1992: Reform of the Planned Economy System Looking back at 1978, the Third Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee unveiled the prelude to reform and opening-up. China's economy began to move toward marketization. Reform and opening-up drove China's economic takeoff and also spurred the development of the retail industry. That year, spring returned to the land. On December 11, 1980, Zhang Huamei of Wenzhou became the first individual industrial and commercial household in China to obtain a business license. China's first batch of individual businesses was born. On April 11, 1981, China's first small supermarket opened in the underground hall of Guangzhou Friendship Store. Due to the development of rural commodity economy and rural industry, some ancient small towns gradually transformed into new-type small towns with relatively developed industry and commerce. Tangqiao Town in Shazhou County, Jiangsu Province, in 1983 was a microcosm. On April 10, 1984, a store specializing in electronic cash registers, home computers, and 'baby computers' opened in Shanghai. In the same year, Lenovo was founded in Beijing. On September 27, 1988, Nanjing citizens queued to buy grain upon hearing rumors of grain price increases. (Photo by Yu Huitong) In March 1992, hula hoops swept Nanjing. This is the market where hula hoops were purchased. (Photo by Yu Huitong) In the late 1980s and early 1990s, a large number of multinational companies entered China. KFC was a trendy 'check-in' spot of that era, becoming a conspicuous consumption benchmark for Chinese people, like luxury goods. Today, foreign fast-food restaurants are more of a place for ordinary people to gather and rest. 1992–2001: Establishing a Socialist Market Economy System The east wind brings spring to the eye—in the early spring of 1992, Deng Xiaoping, the chief architect of reform and opening-up, inspected Wuchang, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, and Shanghai, delivering important speeches along the way. Reform entered a new stage. International retail giants such as Walmart, Metro, and IKEA entered the Chinese market one after another. Private enterprises in the retail industry rose rapidly, and China's retail industry was full of spring. On the opening day of the Sino-Japanese joint venture Shanghai No. 1 Yaohan Co., Ltd., 1.07 million consumers visited and shopped, setting a Guinness World Record. In 1995, Carrefour opened a hypermarket in China. In September 1998, vending machines entered people's lives on a large scale. 2001–2010: Full Opening to the Outside World and WTO Accession In 2001, China joined the World Trade Organization (WTO). A series of commitments upon accession were turned into step-by-step actions. Various industries embarked on new struggles in the world economic competition arena full of opportunities and challenges. China's retail industry faced the impact of foreign businesses and capital, growing, rising, and strengthening against adversity, and even expanding into overseas markets, while also giving birth to the development of e-commerce. On July 11, 1986—China formally notified the Director-General of GATT, requesting the restoration of China's status as a contracting party. This is a meeting of GATT members in Tokyo. On November 11, 2001, the signing ceremony of China's WTO accession protocol was held in Doha, the capital of Qatar. In the photo, China's Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation Shi Guangsheng (right) toasts with WTO Director-General Mike Moore (left) to celebrate China's successful accession. Xinhua News Agency reporter Wang Jianhua photo. On July 21, 2004, Suning Appliance Chain Group Co., Ltd. was officially listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, becoming the first IPO home appliance chain stock. In 2008, Taobao launched its B2C model and established Taobao Mall. By 2009, it had become China's largest comprehensive mall, with annual transaction volume reaching 208.3 billion yuan. 2010–2018: The Internet Gives Rise to the Great Development of Smart Retail Department stores, chain stores, supermarkets, shopping malls, pedestrian streets, online stores... What will the future retail scene look like? Facial recognition, mobile payment, unmanned stores—smart retail has repeatedly broken through the limits of imagination. Since 2013, smart retail has gradually taken the lead and truly led the transformation of the world's retail industry. On November 11, 2013, at Alibaba Group's Taobao headquarters, more than 3,000 technical and business personnel worked through the night from midnight to cope with the annual 'Double 11' online shopping festival. On February 20, 2017, Alibaba announced cooperation with Bailian Group to create a 'new retail' economy. The two parties aimed to provide consumers with a full-time, multi-scenario new consumption experience. 2017 was China's 'first year of unmanned retail.' The emergence of Suning.com's BIU store marked China's retail industry entering the 'smart retail' development stage. In January 2018, JD.com's unmanned supermarket in Tianjin Sino-Singapore Eco-City officially opened, using IoT, artificial intelligence, biometric recognition, and other technologies to achieve fully self-service unmanned shopping. On June 22, 2018, a consumer used 'face-scan payment' at the Fudong Meilin Supermarket in Handan City, Hebei Province. Xinhua News Agency (Photo by Hao Qunying) On November 9, 2018, as 'Double 11' approached, more than 200 robots were deployed to sort express packages at a sorting center of a courier company in Fuyang City, Anhui Province. Xinhua News Agency (Photo by Wang Biao) Conclusion From the proliferation of time-honored brand shops to the prosperity of commercial complexes; from the crowded counters of department stores to the popularity of online shopping clicks; from the scale expansion of the real economy to the model extension of the virtual economy... The changes in economic forms and economic behaviors have been captured by camera shutters, accumulating full memories. From November 17 to 26, the 'From Following to Leading: 40 Years of Changes in China's Retail Industry Photo Exhibition' was held at Beijing's Qianmen Beijing Fun. The event was hosted by the Xinhua News Agency National Brand Project Office and organized by the Jiangsu Center of Xinhua News Agency Information Center. In the exhibition hall, photos outlined a vibrant development trajectory, vividly showcasing the brilliant achievements of China's retail industry over the past 40 years and the subtle changes in people's lives. In the time tunnel, mottled photos record those not-so-distant old times; 'Sharpening scissors, honing kitchen knives'... In the 'Sounds of History' section, you put on headphones, and the street cries and childhood advertisements open the door to memory like a key; from 'ration tickets' to 'cards everywhere' to 'face-scan payment,' payment methods are becoming more and more convenient. The carefully designed ration ticket wall evokes memories for those born in the 60s, 70s, and even 80s; in front of the time mailbox, you can write down your consumption wishes and drop them in, giving a promise to the future; the exhibition also displayed more than 100 classic mobile phones, from the brick-like 'Big Brother' to the latest trendy models—there is always one that is your 'familiar taste'! Currently, consumption's contribution to China's GDP is continuously increasing, becoming the main driving force of economic growth. Expanding domestic demand has become one of the important focuses of future economic development. The just-passed Double 11 once again created a shopping carnival consumption explosion. This precisely illustrates from the side: the variety of people's shopping lists reveals the confidence index in China's economic future. In the never-ending consumption spring, traditional retail and smart retail, these hot Chinese business terms, are at the critical juncture of the 40th anniversary of reform and opening-up, in the midst of this magnificent and extraordinary journey, resonating with the great era to produce more far-reaching significance. 10th B-end E-commerce Inspection: 'From Products to Scenes' Event time: December 10–13 Event location: Wuhu, Nanjing, Changsha Event schedule:

Morning of December 10: Visit Three Squirrels headquarters + snack store

Afternoon of December 10: Visit Nanjing Squirrel Small Store

Evening of December 10: Visit Nanjing Master Gao Beer Workshop

All day December 11: Nanjing to Changsha, or free arrangement

Morning of December 12: Community group buying exchange salon

Afternoon of December 12: Kaola Select Heroes League launch event

Evening of December 12 to early morning of December 13: On-site inspection of Kaola Select logistics center—This time period is the peak sorting period in the warehouse, allowing direct observation and learning of the backend operation process of community group buying e-commerce Interested distributor friends are welcome to join us for understanding and on-site inspection: Organization format

  1. Big-name exchange salon
  2. Company visit
  3. On-site explanation
  4. One-on-one communication
  5. Actual market case visit If you are interested in a specific day's content, you can register separately. Long press this QR code or click 'Read Original' to register in one click! Add friend and note the purpose -END-