At the beginning of July 2018, Stuttgart-based fashion retailer Breuninger announced it was introducing mobile payment systems to all eleven stores in a move to improve the customer shopping experience.

In doing so, Breuninger had a very specific customer group in mind: Chinese tourists.

The fashion house has revealed that foreign visitors account for annual sales worth tens of millions of euros – half of these foreign customers come from China where mobile payments are part of everyday life. Moreover, it has been proven that the Chinese are likely to spend more if they have familiar payment methods at their fingertips.

„Big Spender“ from the Far East

Breuninger is not the only company to benefit from Chinese tourism. For several years now, the number of Chinese tourists travelling to Germany on holiday – and more specifically to shop – has been rising steadily. According to the German National Tourist Board, nearly 1.6 million Chinese tourists visited Germany in 2017.

To date, 131 million Chinese people have enjoyed a holiday abroad. The countries of Europe top the list of preferred destinations among Chinese tourists: Indeed, they are among the top-ten countries where visitors from the Far East spend the most money on average. Particularly popular destinations include France, the UK, Italy and Germany. The latter is the most important “Bleisure” destination (business trips with leisure activities included) for Chinese tourists travelling to Europe.

Smartphone instead of cash

From a German perspective, Chinese payment habits are something of a peculiarity. Given that mobile payments are almost part of everyday life in China, very few Chinese people actually use cash these days. One of the most prominent cashless payment providers on the market is Alipay with around 700 million active users. Two in three Chinese people pay their bills by smartphone and a payment app. And nine out of ten Chinese tourists admit that they spend more money when they can rely on familiar payment methods. Companies willing to implement familiar technologies for Chinese tourists early on, can gain a competitive edge by increasing Chinese footfall and boosting sales.