At 7 pm, the Panjiayuan second-hand market in Chaoyang District, Beijing was crowded with people.
In the courtyard, security personnel dressed as "guards with knives" are patrolling routinely; from time to time, there are wind and screams from the market radio; bunches of lampposts are shaking back and forth on the ground, and the chaotic flashlight light adds a few more. Divided into a thrilling atmosphere... Looking down at the ground, different kinds of goods bring people back to the real world, attracting people to listen, tell and continue the "them" story.
On the evening of April 2, the "Night Appreciation of Treasures and Ghost Market Treasures" event at the Panjiayuan Second-hand Goods Market in Beijing ushered in the second market opening day.
Photo by Yi Haifei, China News Service
This is another opening day of the Panjiayuan Second-hand Goods Market "Appreciation of Treasures at Night · Exploring Treasures in the Ghost Market" event.
Today, every Friday evening from 7 pm to Saturday morning at 4 am, the "ghost market" of Panjiayuan opens regularly.
There are also new ways to play the night economy
In recent years, in order to develop a "business, tourism, cultural and sports integration development" night economic form, Beijing has started from transportation, tourism, sports, and catering to prosper the night economy and promote consumption growth.
Zhang Yue, deputy general manager of Beijing Panjiayuan Second-hand Goods Market Co., Ltd., introduced to reporters that Panjiayuan Second-hand Goods Market is upgrading and innovating through the "ghost market", responding to the call for the development of Beijing's night economy, and providing citizens with a new place for night entertainment.
So, as a new attraction of the night economy, what are the special features of Panjiayuan's "ghost market" worth visiting?
Entering the gate of the Panjiayuan Second-hand Goods Market, the first thing that attracts visitors is the "wandering" guards. They are in groups, dressed in blue clothes.
Interested tourists can interact with them to take pictures, and even visit the "ghost market" with them.
Walking with the guards-this setting brings a full sense of security to tourists and also increases the fun of playing.
On the evening of April 2, security guards dressed as guards patrolling the "ghost city".
Photo by Yi Haifei, China News Service
In addition to security guards dressed as guards, the market also set up scenes such as "touching the golden captain here" landscape stone, opening the coffin to robber the tomb, and other scenes: the dim lighting combined with the simulated skeletons makes the back feel chilly.
The reporter saw that these tomb robbers and horror-themed landscapes attracted a lot of young tourists to check in.
But for many experienced players, "ghost market" is not an unfamiliar term.
The "ghost market" culture that "opens in the middle of the night and disappears at dawn" is the collective memory of many literati.
According to historical records, the "ghost market" was already popular in the Song Dynasty, and the "ghost market" tradition in old Beijing can be traced back to the late Qing Dynasty and the beginning of the Republic of China.
Zhang Yue said that in the middle and late 1980s, scattered stalls spontaneously formed by the people appeared on a piece of idle land to be built. By the beginning of 1992, there were nearly dozens of stalls.
With the continuous expansion of scale, nearly a hundred stalls have become the embryonic form of Panjiayuan Market.
At that time, there was no restriction on the opening time of the market, and people began to occupy booths in the early morning, and people called it the "ghost market" over time.
In this "ghost market" upgrade, after investigating the existing night market in Beijing, the market decided to highlight traditional Chinese elements on the theme, reproduce ancient folk customs and customs, and create a unique historical atmosphere: like two blessing pavilions at the door, dressed as The security guards patrolling the market in the Qing Dynasty, and the ghost masks and props with the theme of this week's Qingming Festival are all in order to make the tourists' play process more immersive and experience.
At the same time, this upgrade has also strengthened the control over the seller's goods.
The market hopes that the "ghost market" is not a market with thousands of stalls, but the stall owner of each stall comes here to make friends with his own story.
Strolling in the field, you can see children carrying lanterns running freely in the open space.
The staff told us that the market has set up stalls at the gate of the West Gate and in front of the "ghost city" landmark-the archway, for tourists to receive free paper lanterns and other souvenirs.
At present, citizens can set up stalls in the "ghost market" for free. Before setting up the stalls, the market managers will screen the goods of each stall.
In order to provide tourists with a comfortable shopping experience, the market will also remind sellers not to sell goods that are banned by the country and that do not meet the nostalgic theme.
At this time, Mr. He was carrying a black plastic bag and wandering in front of the stalls.
Mr. He told reporters that the plastic bag contained a bugle he bought for 100 yuan (RMB).
He said: "I used to be a soldier. When I was in the army, daily activities such as getting up and turning off the lights were used to transmit information through the bugle. I have military satchels and other equipment at home, and this bugle is just the right package. When I go home, I think Tie it with a red string and hang it on the wall." He introduced that he has been shopping for goods for decades.
"Like today's bugle, when you encounter something you like, buy it if it suits you", said Mr. He.
"We hope to provide visitors with a story scene, and everyone will tell the story of Panjiayuan with us," said Zhang Yue.
People who bought and sold second-hand goods in the "ghost market" on the evening of April 2.
Photo by Yi Haifei, China News Service
Become a "net celebrity" antique
Zhang Yue said that to visit the "ghost market" in Panjiayuan, a flashlight is an indispensable equipment.
At the same time, the collection industry has its own rules: you can't repeatedly test the reserve price, and you can't negotiate the price without buying.
"Listen more, read more, buy if you want" is Zhang Yue's eight-character guide for tourists who come to Panjiayuan.
These seemingly contradictory eight characters reflect the great wisdom in Taohuo.
The first half of the sentence is intended to call on buyers to compare and think more, and not to impulsive consumption; the second half is to remind people to "make a deal when they should make a move" and not to miss their beloved things in hesitation.
Walking among the stalls in the "ghost market", it is not difficult to see people who are silently observing. Some of them are waiting for the opportunity to take action, while others are learning the experience of choosing goods.
There are also short video bloggers holding up equipment, recording, or live broadcasting, sharing their experience with more people with images.
On the evening of April 2, a buyer took a flashlight in front of the "Ghost Market" booth to carefully check the goods.
Photo by Yi Haifei, China News Service
Liu Cong is also one of many recorders.
Unlike most short video bloggers, his identity is not a buyer or tourist, but a seller here.
Liu Cong's shop specializes in jade, and it is located on the roadside of the "ghost market" site.
The upgrade of the "ghost market" brought more tourists to the market, and his shops became prosperous at night.
When the reporter walked into Liu Cong's shop, he was editing and processing the short video he had just recorded.
Liu Cong introduced that Panjiayuan established a live broadcast base last year, and he was the first store to settle in Douyin.
Up to now, his Douyin account has published more than 150 short videos, with the highest playback volume of more than 15 million times.
In the short video he released, there are introductions to the qualities of different jade stones, and there are also sitcoms in which he takes selfies.
The reporter saw that he had more than 50,000 likes for a sitcom released in November last year.
"The brand of Panjiayuan has brought us a lot of traffic. The purpose of making short videos is not only to promote our own store, but also to record and introduce the method of selecting goods, so that everyone can buy with confidence," said Liu Cong.
The display of selections on social platforms has won him a lot of fans. Customers from all over the country often come to Panjiayuan to find him, and some "old fans" look for his home to buy jade.
Liu Cong introduced that consumers of different ages have different aesthetics when choosing jade.
Young people like small and exquisite jadeware, and they pay attention to the coexistence of workmanship and simplicity; the older generation likes heavy and antique jadeware, and they pursue a feeling of nostalgia in objects.
On the evening of April 2, a customer selected goods in the Panjiayuan Cultural and Creative Store.
Photo by Yi Haifei, China News Service
Iterating new formats of nostalgia
During the opening of the "Ghost Market", the cultural and creative shops in the Panjiayuan Flea Market are also open at night.
There are large items such as porcelain and purple sand in the cultural and creative store, as well as small items such as keychains and refrigerator stickers.
Xie Sha, head of the preparatory group of Panjiayuan Cultural and Creative Company, introduced to reporters that in order to better integrate traditional culture with modern craftsmanship, Panjiayuan Cultural and Creative Company, in addition to its own R&D and production, also cooperated with intangible heritage craftsmen from Longquan and hand-painted by Jingdezhen. Development by a professional team such as masters.
"We have a WeChat public account and an official Taobao store, and the online and offline business conditions are good. The quality assurance of the official store has won trust, and the affordable prices have also attracted many consumers," Xie Sha said.
Buying and selling not only extends the life of things, but also connects people's emotions.
Liu Cong said that before the epidemic, foreign consumers could be seen in the market every day.
At that time, he called children with poor English into the store to communicate with foreign friends and improve his oral English.
"Foreigners are very happy to talk to their children and are willing to do some simple teaching. In the process, the children's English naturally improves."
Wei Genhua has been selling goods in Panjiayuan since 1998 and parked a tricycle next to his stall.
When it rained lightly that night, he took some of the objects that were afraid of water on the tricycle.
Over the past two decades, from outdoor equipment to porcelain wares, his main types of goods have changed, but his feelings for this garden have not changed.
He also gained a lot of "year-old pay".
On the evening of April 2, Wei Genhua took a rest in front of the booth.
Due to the light rain, he has put away some of the goods on the stall.
Photo by Yi Haifei, China News Service
He introduced that among the friends he made because of this job, the youngest is in his 20s and the oldest is in his 70s.
He has also established good relationships with customers from Germany, Britain, Switzerland and South Korea.
"Scarce categories are liked by consumers. For example, this jade seal engraved with snails is small in size but the workmanship is not simple." Wei Genhua said.
Since the market opens in the evening, after about ten o'clock, the "ghost market" has become the home of young people.
The buyer, Ms. Hu, is 25 years old this year. She has been in collections since she was 20, and she likes porcelain collections the most.
"I think the biggest advantage of a second-hand goods market like Panjiayuan is that it is visible and tangible. Compared with buying second-hand goods online, it is more reassuring. I hope that there will be more people in the'ghost market' in the future. It will definitely be more fun," she said.
Kou Zhonghao, 28, became interested in collecting since he was 9 years old.
According to him, there is a wall of collections in his home.
He believes that one of the meanings of the existence of a second-hand goods market like Panjiayuan is to provide recreation and nostalgia for the older generation, and to add interest to life.
He was very happy to see many people taking their family and friends to visit the "ghost market", "I took my love to stroll around. This is our common hobby." He said that he saw many people bringing children to bring traditional traditions. The culture is better passed on in this way.
As a buyer, he hopes that sellers will strengthen self-discipline and market management in place to live up to the trust of consumers.
"The upgraded'ghost market' has just begun operations. It will make some theme changes based on the effects of weekly feedback, and slowly find the fit point between the market, merchants, and shoppers." Zhang Yue said, Panjiayuan is Where there are stories, in the future, traditional festivals will continue to create theme scenes, and will provide more refined and personalized scene experiences, attracting more people to tell the "ghost city" story.
Author: Xujingduyan