NANCHANG, Nov. 8 (Xinhua) -- Markets have served local people in China for thousands of years. Now they are enjoying a revival among young people, offering far more than commodities.
As dusk fell, the Taoxichuan art district in Jingdezhen, China's porcelain capital in Jiangxi Province in the east of the country, lit up as more than 1,000 stalls began welcoming visitors.
Tao Yue has visited the market for three years, traveling from Nanchang, the provincial capital about 200 kilometers away. She described it as a much-anticipated destination.
"Apart from appreciating an array of creative products, you can also talk to the stallholders and learn why they came to Jingdezhen in the first place, and how a porcelain product was designed and colored," said the 25-year-old woman. "Gradually, you learn many stories behind the cups and plates. That is the charm of the market."
The art district opened in October 2016 with just 55 stalls. Since then, it has attracted around 28,000 stallholders in total, with an average age of 28.
Xiong Jinpeng, who graduated from university in 2023, was drawn by the idea that "life is but a journey, and I want to take a chance and be my own boss." His stall now averages roughly 40,000 yuan (about 5,991 U.S. dollars) in monthly sales, while he has also built a steady stream of online orders.
Yang Fan, a stallholder born in the 1990s, said the market offers more than ceramics: it offers a trendy and elegant lifestyle. "The market is not merely a place for buying and selling. It is also a venue for people to connect with each other."
Jingdezhen is not the only place where markets are becoming trendy destinations for young people. About 1,300 kilometers away in north China's Tianjin Municipality, a "go slow festival" held last month featured cosplay and a float parade. It also showcased intangible cultural heritage products such as Tianjin-style kites and sugar painting, as well as handmade goods like carved wooden pots.
Elsewhere across China, events such as the book fair in downtown Beijing, the Yellow River market in east China's Shandong Province and the old market creative street in northwest China's Shaanxi Province have offered a diverse range of products, from handicrafts and food to pet supplies. They have become "emotional charging stations" for young people.
Markets, regularly held for commodity trading, have a long history in China dating back thousands of years. In ancient times, people lived in scattered areas with limited transport, so they would gather at an agreed time and place to exchange agricultural products and handicrafts. Today, the custom of "going to the market" has been passed down through generations in many rural areas and remains an important bond connecting local people.
Xu Guangjian, a professor at the School of Public Administration and Policy at Renmin University of China, noted that markets are also a continuation of traditional Chinese culture and an expression of an attitude toward life, offering emotional value.
In the digital age, online text and images often lack the sense of touch, smell and the authentic feel of human interaction, while markets bring people back to face-to-face encounters.
"Behind the evolution of markets lies people's aspiration for offline social interaction," he said. "Markets have built high-quality urban and rural 'public living rooms' for people to exchange ideas."
Li Yifan, born in the 1990s, is a frequent market-goer. "What we look for in markets are things with their own stories, originality and ideas. Buying something you like is itself a form of emotional satisfaction."
A State Council work plan issued in January called for supporting emotion- and experience-oriented services. A plan for expanding consumption during the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030), rolled out in July, named experience-oriented consumption as a priority for cultivating new business models and scenarios.
To transform people's enthusiasm for markets into lasting economic vitality, many places have introduced policies to support their organization. In Shanghai, parks and disused factories have been used as spaces for young people to set up booths. In Nanchang, consumption vouchers were issued to attract market-goers.
The Wanshou Palace historical and cultural district in Nanchang has attracted more than 120 million visits since opening in 2021, with the highest daily passenger flow exceeding 320,000.
Hu Yan, promotion director of the district, told Xinhua that the district has kept introducing local cultural and creative brands and has given them preferential policies and subsidies.
"Thanks to the market, Wanshou Palace is not just a tourist attraction, but also a place where you feel the pulse of this city," said a tourist named Nie Liang.
(Source: Xinhua)