Many people flock to Sanya for not just the beaches, but also the duty free shop. Well, Nanjing now has its own too. But is the 1960s Rolls Royce on display just inside the front door the most interesting thing therein? Not quite.
In the past few days has opened the Silk Road Cross-Border Duty Free & Bonded Brand Store just across the Yangtze River Bridge on the southern periphery of Nanjing’s Pukou District.
Suspiciously located behind the fake Apple shop beside Gate 3 of the gigantuan Rsun home improvement mall, the shop which spans two floors was doing a fair bit of business when The Nanjinger paid a visit yesterday morning.
Inside downstairs, it’s all a bit TKMax. On the shelves which have a somewhat cobbled together feel, bags by Versace, shoes from Armani and Boss Tshirts join names now everyday items for many Nanjingers; Gucci, Prada, Moschino, MK, Dolce & Habbana, Burberry, Fendi and many more.
Upstairs, the baby and snacks section is spacious and packed with imported milk powder, much unavailable in Nanjing elsewhere. Also therein, the wonderful Pringles in the form of their Hot & Spicy and Bloody Mary flavours in themselves make the trip worth it.
But best of all, there’s beer, and it’s not German. Some of the usual suspects from Belgium which abound in Nanjing are however, joined by some nice offerings from Portugal and Denmark (and that’s obviously not Carlsberg). From the former, a 1 litre bottle of Tagus is priced at just ¥16.5.
There is though a caution; pay attention to the expiry date on food and drink stuffs. What you are buying is perhaps cheap for a reason other than a zero or reduced tax rate.
Star items are possibly the multitude of imported face masks (the cosmetic treatment variety) which yesterday were not quite flying off the shelves. Well, they were more popular certainly than the wine with a name which sounds more like an inappropriate dance. And we suppose, last but not least, the “anti-coffee-&-cigarette-stain” toothpaste by Tanc is also worth a mention.
For a second, but just a second, it reminds of being back in an international airport’s duty free shop on the way back home to China.
