Taobao to open PapaHome, its first offline store in HK

Mainland's e-commerce platform Taobao will partner with local handyman services company Papabo to open its first physical store in Hong Kong on Saturday (Feb 22) at Tsim Sha Tsui. 

Located on the second floor of China Hong Kong City, the 25,000-square-foot store, PapaHome, will feature over 10,000 furniture and home decoration items, as well as home customization services and a variety of renovation materials.

PapaHome will adopt an online-emerge-offline model, allowing customers to scan a product's QR code to access its information and purchase the item on Taobao.

The store will also introduce an AI customization system that measures customers' height and body shape, providing personalized recommendations for furniture customization.

Additionally, the store will launch a promotion where the first order placed by a newly registered user on the Taobao platform will be exempt from delivery fees, return fees, and service charges.

The first 50 customers who visit the store on the opening day will receive a coupon worth 100 yuan, valid for purchases on Taobao for five days, until next Wednesday (Feb 26).