Silk Street
Encyclopedia
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
that accommodates over 1,700 retail vendors, notorious among international tourists for their wide selection of counterfeit
Counterfeit
To counterfeit means to illegally imitate something. Counterfeit products are often produced with the intent to take advantage of the superior value of the imitated product...
designer brand apparels.
The Silk Street attracts approximately 20,000 visitors daily (from 9am to 9pm) on weekdays and between 50,000 and 60,000 on weekends as of 2006. This 35,000-square-meter complex houses 1,700 retail vendors and over 3,000 salespeople spread over seven floors with three levels of basements. Many of the stalls have, over the years, gained local and international reputation for selling counterfeit luxury designer brands at relatively low prices. Some have carried on this trademark despite growing pressures from the management, the Chinese government
Government of the People's Republic of China
All power within the government of the People's Republic of China is divided among three bodies: the People's Republic of China, State Council, and the People's Liberation Army . This article is concerned with the formal structure of the state, its departments and their responsibilities...
and famous brand-name companies.
Opened on March 19, 2005, and replacing the old alley-based Xiushui Market, the current Silk Street establishment has diversified their business scope. In addition to selling fashion apparels and accessories such as hats, handbags, shoes, belts, sportswear and silk fabrics like their predecessor, the new Silk Street has introduced traditional Chinese handicrafts, antiques, calligraphy, carpets, table cloths, bed coverings, paintings, hand-knit dresses, toys, electronic gadgets, trinkets, and fine jewelry. Reputable establishments such as the Tongrentang Pharmacy, Quanjude
Quanjude
Quanjude is a famous Chinese restaurant known for its trademark Quanjude Peking Roast Duck and its longstanding culinary heritage since its establishment in 1864 in Beijing, China.- Company profile and branches:...
Peking Roast Duck restaurant, and multi-national coffee and restaurant chains such as Lavazza
Lavazza
Luigi Lavazza S.p.A. is an Italian manufacturer of coffee products. Founded in Turin in 1895 by Luigi Lavazza, it was initially run from a small grocery store at Via San Tommaso 10. The business of Lavazza S.p.A. is currently administered by the third and fourth generation of the Lavazza family.-...
, SPR Coffee
SPR Coffee
SPR Coffee is one of Taiwan's two major coffee chains. It entered mainland China in 2001 and in 2010 claimed 545 franchises worldwide. In March 2011 Asia Times Online counted SPR Coffee, with another originally Taiwanese competitor UBC Coffee, as one of the major competitors with Starbucks and...
, Caffe L'affare, Subway
Subway (restaurant)
Subway is an American restaurant franchise that primarily sells submarine sandwiches and salads. It is owned and operated by Doctor's Associates, Inc. . Subway is one of the fastest growing franchises in the world with 35,519 restaurants in 98 countries and territories as of October 25th, 2011...
and TCBY
TCBY
TCBY is an international franchise chain of frozen yogurt stores based in the United States. It is the largest U.S. retailer of soft-serve frozen yogurt with live active cultures....
have also joined Silk Street's bid to become the "ultimate one-stop tourist destination" in Beijing. Invested and constructed by Beijing Xinyashenhong Real Estate Development Co., Ltd. and managed by Beijing Silk Street Garment Market Co., Ltd., Silk Street is built along Line 1, Beijing Subway
Line 1, Beijing Subway
Line 1 of the Beijing Subway is the longest, oldest and busiest line of Beijing's mass transit rail network. It runs underneath Chang'an Avenue, the city's grand east-west thoroughfare, right through the heart of Beijing with stops on either side of Tiananmen Square...
next to Guomao
Guomao
Guomao is an area in Beijing close to Dabeiyao and in the vicinity of the Beijing central business district. The Chinese World Trade Center is located there."Guomao" is the abbreviation for the Chinese name of the China World Trade Center ....
(China World Trade Centre) with a direct basement link to Yonganli subway station (Exit A).
History
The Beijing Daily in June 2009 published an article confirming that in the last years of the Qing DynastyQing Dynasty
The Qing Dynasty was the last dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912 with a brief, abortive restoration in 1917. It was preceded by the Ming Dynasty and followed by the Republic of China....
Xiushui Street (秀水街) had originally been Chou Shui Street (臭水街), "Smelly Water Alley" when it was simply a mud path outside the Jianguo Gate.
The original outdoor Xiushui Market (a.k.a. Silk Alley) was located in Xiushui Dongjie, south-east of Ritan near the First Embassy Area of Beijing. The shopping alley consisted of 410 stalls selling mostly knock-off luxury brand-name garments, silk products and tourist souvenirs. It attracted 20,000 locals and foreigners on weekends and reaped a total annual sales volume of 100 million yuan (US$12.5m). After 20 years of business, the old market was ordered to close down for demolition on January 6, 2005, due to fire-safety hazards, security issues and the absence of land permits from individual landlords. The application for demolition was filed on July 2004 by the Beijing Urban Planning Bureau, the Chaoyang Public Engineering Committee, the Chaoyang Department of Public Security and Fire Fighting, and the Chaoyang Foreign Liaison Office.
On-going Intellectual Property Rights Disputes
One of the political incentives behind the transfer of the old Xiushui Market to the current Silk Street establishment was related to the unregulated sales of fake goods according to Yin Xiaobo, an assistant to the General Manager of the Economic Management Center of the JianGuoMenWai Community in Chaoyang District, BeijingChaoyang District, Beijing
Chaoyang District is a district of Beijing, China.Chaoyang is home to the majority of Beijing's many foreign embassies, the well-known Sanlitun bar street, as well as Beijing's growing CBD. The Olympic Park, built for the 2008 Summer Olympics, is also in Chaoyang...
. The new Silk Street complex was viewed as a more effective battleground in regulating and eradicating trademark infringements among private retailers. On November 23, 2004, the Beijing Administrative Bureau for Industry and Commerce and Beijing Commercial Bureau listed the new Silk Street as one of nine streamlined markets in Beijing in accordance with "Strengthening Market Supervision and Crackdown on False Commodities." Since the grand opening on March 19, 2005, Silk Street has conducted reforms in an attempt to regulate and crack down on violations of IPR in the market. Despite the efforts, counterfeits were still found inside the shopping center. As a result, five global brand-name giants, which included Prada
Prada
Prada S.p.A. is an Italian fashion label specializing in luxury goods for men and women , founded by Mario Prada.-Foundations:...
, Chanel
Chanel
Chanel S.A. is a French fashion house founded by the couturier Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel, well established in haute couture, specializing in luxury goods . She gained the name "Coco" while maintaining a career as a singer at a café in France...
, Louis Vuitton
Louis Vuitton
Louis Vuitton Malletier – commonly referred to as Louis Vuitton , or shortened to LV – is a French fashion house founded in 1854 by Louis Vuitton. The label is well known for its LV monogram, which is featured on most products, ranging from luxury trunks and leather goods to ready-to-wear, shoes,...
, Gucci
Gucci
The House of Gucci, better known simply as Gucci , is an Italian fashion and leather goods label, part of the Gucci Group, which is owned by French company PPR...
and Burberry
Burberry
Burberry Group plc is a British luxury fashion house, manufacturing clothing, fragrance, and fashion accessories. Its distinctive tartan pattern has become one of its most widely copied trademarks. Burberry is most famous for its iconic trench coat, which was invented by founder Thomas Burberry...
were granted compensation of 20,000 yuan (US$2500) each from the landlord and five of its stall holders on April 14, 2006. On June 7, 2006, a deal was signed with European luxury name brands promising to evict tenants found violating trademark rights. The Intellectual Property Rights Protection Fund of 30 million yuan (US$3.8m) collected from its tenants was established by Silk Street in a collective effort to curb infringements of trademark rights. On August 30, 2006, 30 vendors received 10 million yuan (US$1.3m) in rent refunds from that fund as a reward for respecting IPR protection laws. An estimated 80 per cent of vendors at Silk Street have acquired trademark authorization as of August 2006.
Other Beijing shopping areas
- The SanlitunSanlitunSanlitun is an area of the Chaoyang District, Beijing containing many popular bar streets and international stores.The area has been under almost constant regeneration since the late 20th century as part of a city-wide project of economic regrowth...
district hosts a slightly more downmarket clothing market, Yashou Clothes Market, where the same rules of price-haggling apply. The rest of Sanlitun has now been redeveloped from bars to clothing and restaurants. - The Yabaolu district caters mainly to Russian traders buying medium quantities wholesale, but "Alien Street Market" is a cheaper, Russian-speaking, version of Silk Street.
- XidanXidanXidan is a major traditional commercial area in Beijing, China. It is located in the Xicheng District.The Xidan commercial district incorporates the Xidan Culture Square, North Xidan Street, as well as many supermarkets and department stores...
and WangfujingWangfujingWángfǔjǐng , located in Dongcheng District, Beijing, is one of the Chinese capital's most famous shopping streets. Much of the road is off-limits to cars and other motor vehicles, and it is not rare to see the entire street full of people. Since the middle of the Ming Dynasty there have been...
are the two major traditional commercial areas for department stores - with little or no English spoken. - HouhaiHouhaiHouhai is a lake and its surrounding district in central Beijing, one of the three parts of Shichahai. In recent years it has become famous for nightlife because it is home to many popular restaurants, bars, and cafes....
is for restaurants and bars, not shops, but has a back street Yandai xiejie "Tobacco pouch slanted alley" which sells art and craft type souvenirs as Nanluoguxiang.