Ensuring adequate commercial facilities, innovating consumer scenarios, and optimizing the shopping environment – Making local shopping more convenient
When it comes to community consumption, it directly impacts the quality of residents’ lives while simultaneously connecting various businesses. Services like buying breakfast, shipping packages, and repairing appliances contribute to a seamless flow in urban and rural economies. Different regions and departments are working to enhance urban and rural community service functions, aiming to cultivate robust community commerce that caters to the public’s needs. The pressing question remains: how can we further optimize community services through innovative consumer scenarios, improve the shopping environment, and diversify consumption models to unlock greater potential in community spending? Recently, our reporters explored this topic in various locations.
Improving consumption conditions and diversifying community shopping options
Early on a weekend, Li Meiling, who lives in the Tiexi community of Tianyuan District in Zhuzhou, Hunan, pops into a breakfast shop right outside her door. Afterward, she visits a nearby market to pick up vegetables and fruits, and then stops by a barbershop at the entrance of her community for a haircut. “The commercial facilities right at my doorstep are so convenient!” Li shared.
Her neighbor, Chen Dama, heads straight to the community elderly service center every morning. The center offers a lounge, music hall, and therapy room, and features a senior dining area that provides meals at reasonable prices—10 or 12 yuan—with a variety of options for community seniors.
If she craves fresh vegetables, it’s just a quick trip down to the community grocery store. For fitness, haircuts, or laundry, the community center offers a one-stop platform for all daily service needs. Community consumption serves the residents right at their doorsteps, focusing on fulfilling their basic and quality living requirements. This type of consumption is characterized by convenience, immediacy, frequency, and diversity, making it an essential aspect of daily life. The robust demand for community consumption presents a vast and untapped market.
In June of this year, the National Development and Reform Commission, along with the Ministry of Commerce and other departments, launched measures to create new consumption scenarios and foster new growth points. A key initiative highlights the importance of cultivating community shopping environments and optimizing consumption conditions in urban and rural settings.
New service models in community consumption are emerging rapidly. This year, innovations have sprung up, such as community gyms, daytime care centers, and in-home elderly care services. According to data from Meituan, over the past six months, searches for “community fitness” surged by 180%, while “day care” searches increased by 87%, with relevant orders rising by 72%. Moreover, searches for “home care services” skyrocketed by more than 240%.
Various regions and departments are actively working to improve community shopping landscapes. Within a 5-10 minute walking distance, essential service categories such as shopping, dining, housekeeping, delivery, and repairs are being standardized. Smart retail terminals are also being introduced to enhance convenience. Within a 15-minute walk from home, cultural, entertainment, leisure, social, health, and fitness services are being tailored to meet the diverse needs of the community, ensuring that the community shopping experience is both enjoyable and fulfilling.
Utilizing existing resources to enhance community services
The strategy calls for “supporting communities in revitalizing existing vacant spaces” and encourages transforming underused facilities into embedded community service points. Many areas are making the most of vacant or surplus spaces, such as old factories, warehouses, and unused land, to convert them into comprehensive community service centers and neighborhood hubs.
In Hefei’s Shushan District, resident Tao Renhao has witnessed the transformation of a 2,000-square-meter old factory that once belonged to the Hefei Chemical Machinery Plant, where he worked for 36 years. After the factory relocated in the ’90s, it sat idle until May 2023, when it was repurposed into the “Xiangzhang Yayu 1958 Party and Community Service Center.” This center now boasts a calligraphy and painting room, a dance studio, and offers after-school classes for children, alongside various commercial facilities that support educational, recreational, and community engagement activities.
“Our goal is to create a place where residents feel welcome to come and stay. We collected community feedback beforehand, preserving the original industrial style while incorporating modern elements for enhanced functionality,” said Men Chuanhe, deputy secretary of the Party Committee at Keqi Community in Nanjing.
In cities like Beijing, some street communities have identified vacant spaces to offer free areas for small businesses and services such as repairs. In Shenzhen, various neighborhoods are converting unused land into public spaces to create high-quality consumer environments.
Professor Chen Rongzhuo from Central China Normal University emphasized the need for regions to harmonize urban renewal initiatives while maximizing the use of existing facilities and encouraging a multi-functional approach to community spaces, aligning commercial development with residential needs.
Strengthening policy support to enhance community consumer experiences
In Shandong’s Liaocheng Economic and Technological Development Zone, a breakfast shop named Qiyun Wuhu Steamed Dumplings has customers lining up every morning.
“The quick processing of enterprise permits here allowed us to start operations swiftly, which really motivates us to serve the community,” said store manager Jiang Jingfei.
“This year, we’re adapting our community initiatives to focus on high-demand business types to create a smoother environment for enterprise operations. We established a streamlined process for restaurant permits, reducing costs and energizing dining options,” added Wang Wei, deputy director of the Administrative Approval Service Department.
The Ministry of Commerce and thirteen other departments released a plan in July for creating efficient local living circles, proposing improvements to the business environment, service optimization for enterprises, and the promotion of electronic certifications. Many regions are improving their community consumption frameworks by enhancing commercial regulations, streamlining the store opening process, and implementing commitment-based systems for construction and safety checks.
Professor Chen stated, “Promoting community consumption is a systemic effort that requires collaboration between departments, local governments, society, and businesses. We need to accelerate the improvement of community service infrastructure, foster innovative services, and continuously enrich quality offerings, expanding new consumer scenarios to make shopping closer to home even more accessible.”
Industry experts suggest reinforcing policy measures that align urban-rural community service systems and plans for 15-minute service zones while fostering collaborative municipal environments. Efforts should focus on engaging businesses to operate responsibly and leveraging resources to promote innovation across various commercial and service models, ultimately enhancing the convenience, quality, and intelligence in community consumption.
