- Costco opened a new store in Shenzhen, China, in January.
- Thousands of Hong Kong residents have since flocked to the store in search of discounts.
- More than 15,000 Hong Kong members have signed up for the store, Costco's CFO said, per Bloomberg.
A new Costco store caused quite a stir when it opened its doors in Shenzhen, China, last month, with tens of thousands of people queuing for hours to enter, Bloomberg reported.
Among the droves of discount shoppers were many Hong Kongers, enticed across the boundary with mainland China by the store's discount prices.
More than 15,000 Hong Kong members have signed up for the Shenzhen store since it opened its doors, Richard Galanti, Costco's chief financial officer, told Bloomberg.
It seems the discount shopping hysteria gripping the special administrative region has started to catch the attention of some travel companies.
One travel agency is offering visitors a three-hour shopping trip to the Shenzhen store, complete with a stay at a luxury five-star hotel, a global Costco membership card, and three buffets — all for just HK$608, which is around $78.
China Travel Service Holdings Hong Kong Ltd. even started advertising shuttle buses from Hong Kong to the store for 65 yuan, or about $9, a trip, Bloomberg reported.
The Shenzhen Costco has around 4,000 products for sale, and a global Gold Star membership costs around 299 yuan, Time Out reported.
The store is the sixth Costco to open in mainland China. The first one opened in Shanghai in 2019 to similarly excitable crowds.
Hong Kong's slowing economy and sky-high property prices could be behind its residents' search for discount prices.
Many well-paid locals and expatriates have also left the city in recent years, weakening its collective spending power, the Bloomberg report said.
