BLOGGING IN BEIJING #11: Shopping at Wal-Mart
If you ask the typical Beijinger "Where I can I buy good electronics?", they will direct you to one of two places: Zhongguancun (JONG-gwan-soon) or Bai Nao Hui (Buy-Now-HWAY). Both places are hard-core, heated bargaining areas where you have to be on your game, or you will get majorly ripped off and possibly buy something fake for a very expensive price.
Zhongguancun is in the northwest part of Beijing in the Haidian District. It is the name of both the subway stop and the street. I went there to buy my mobile phone and electronic translator. Literally EVERY small storefront sells electronics - back to back to back to back...etc. The only stores that aren't electronics are restaurants or food stands. They also have malls, which have the feel of electronics conventions - open rooms of many floors with tons of dealers.
Bai Nao Hui is a 6-story mall of electronics in the Chaoyang District near where I live, close to the Chaoyangmen subway stop. I went there before, and their prices are pretty good. But again, "Bai Nao Hui" is only the name of the building with many independent dealers, much different than going to "Best Buy."
But let's stop for a second. If you want to buy high quality, authentic electronics at a reasonable price with no bargaining needed, where would you go in the United States?
Well, I might go to Wal-Mart.
I went to Wal-Mart for the first time last night, and I will definitely be back. Just like in the United States, it is your one-stop shop for items you can't find in your neighborhood. I went there to buy a cable to connect my computer to my TV. But an all-region DVD player was only 288 RMB ($40 USD), so I picked that up instead. If it didn't work, I could take it back, just like in the U.S. But taking back items that you bargained for at local markets may be a little more difficult.
The store is actually in a big open basement with old white tile, but looks eerily similar to a state-side Wally World. Many of their signs say "200% Satisfaction Guaranteed." Unfortunately, 200% of zero is still zero. Just like back in Texas, the average wait in line was probably 15 minutes. I was given my receipt (shou-jiu), and then directed to Customer Service to obtain an invoice (fa-piao), which is the official form for tax deductions. But there was only one person at Customer Service, and the guy in front of me had 10 receipts in which he wanted invoices, so I hit the road.
SIDE-NOTE: China has officially banned www.YouTube.com access in China. Therefore, I am searching for another way to upload videos to show on this Blog.
Zhongguancun is in the northwest part of Beijing in the Haidian District. It is the name of both the subway stop and the street. I went there to buy my mobile phone and electronic translator. Literally EVERY small storefront sells electronics - back to back to back to back...etc. The only stores that aren't electronics are restaurants or food stands. They also have malls, which have the feel of electronics conventions - open rooms of many floors with tons of dealers.
Bai Nao Hui is a 6-story mall of electronics in the Chaoyang District near where I live, close to the Chaoyangmen subway stop. I went there before, and their prices are pretty good. But again, "Bai Nao Hui" is only the name of the building with many independent dealers, much different than going to "Best Buy."
But let's stop for a second. If you want to buy high quality, authentic electronics at a reasonable price with no bargaining needed, where would you go in the United States?
Well, I might go to Wal-Mart.
I went to Wal-Mart for the first time last night, and I will definitely be back. Just like in the United States, it is your one-stop shop for items you can't find in your neighborhood. I went there to buy a cable to connect my computer to my TV. But an all-region DVD player was only 288 RMB ($40 USD), so I picked that up instead. If it didn't work, I could take it back, just like in the U.S. But taking back items that you bargained for at local markets may be a little more difficult.
The store is actually in a big open basement with old white tile, but looks eerily similar to a state-side Wally World. Many of their signs say "200% Satisfaction Guaranteed." Unfortunately, 200% of zero is still zero. Just like back in Texas, the average wait in line was probably 15 minutes. I was given my receipt (shou-jiu), and then directed to Customer Service to obtain an invoice (fa-piao), which is the official form for tax deductions. But there was only one person at Customer Service, and the guy in front of me had 10 receipts in which he wanted invoices, so I hit the road.
SIDE-NOTE: China has officially banned www.YouTube.com access in China. Therefore, I am searching for another way to upload videos to show on this Blog.
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