Chinese tourists flood into the UK during Golden Week holiday

More Chinese shoppers spent money in the United Kingdom during China's Golden Week holiday than in any other country in the region, according to Alipay, China's leading mobile payment platform.

The latest data from the company showed the UK processed the highest volume of Alipay transactions among nations in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, an area known as the EMEA, putting it ahead of other big hitters, including Germany, France and Italy.

Golden Week is a Chinese national holiday during which many people have time off between Oct 1 and Oct 7. It is a time when millions of Chinese people travel and shop, offering retailers a golden opportunity to increase sales.

The UK, which was in second place last year behind Germany, saw its total transaction volume increase during Golden Week in 2018 by 3.5 times, compared to the period in 2017. The UK benefitted from 15 percent of total Chinese tourist spending throughout the EMEA. The EMEA area also dominated the global list of Chinese spending during the holiday in terms of the highest total spend per user.

Shoppers using Alipay spent an average of 281 pounds ($369) each in the UK during the week, up from the global average of 220 pounds.

Roland Palmer, head of Alipay in the EMEA region, said: "Europe is becoming an increasingly popular tourist destination for Chinese consumers. We have seen strong growth in spend increases during this year's Golden Week, particularly in France, Italy, the UK, and Germany.The UK is performing really well in the region and coming first in Europe this year in terms of number of transactions is very encouraging for local retailers."

During Golden Week 2018, Alipay partnered with a number of retailers to develop specific marketing tactics tailored for Chinese shoppers, and to enable retailers to embrace mobile payments.This included cooperation at the designer goods outlet park known as Bicester Village, an attraction that is second only to Buckingham Palace among Chinese tourists visiting the UK. As part of the partnership, more than half of Bicester Village stores became "Alipay-enabled", including Burberry, Coach, Gucci, Prada, and Polo Ralph Lauren.

In Bicester Village, the average spend by Chinese tourists during Golden Week was more than 50 percent higher than it was in the UK as a whole, making Bicester the number one outlet in the world among Chinese outbound tourists,in terms of total spending value during Golden Week.

Additionally, for the first time outside China, Alipay launched its unique in-app order-and-pay service in London's Chinatown restaurants in time for Golden Week. This proved a popular destination, with 7.5 percent of all Alipay transactions in the UK taking place there.

Alipay's data also suggested mobile payments are not just for millennials – people reaching adulthood early in the 21st century – the number of overseas Alipay users in their 50s doubled during Golden Week 2018, compared to last year.

"This proves that it's not just millennials who want the speed and personalization of mobile payments; all generations are starting to adopt a mostly cashless lifestyle," Palmer said.