Shanghai accelerates growth of garden economy
In a move to formalize and expand its burgeoning garden economy, Shanghai released its first-ever Garden Economy Cooperation Opportunity List on April 20.
As the nation's first city-level garden economy opportunity list, the Shanghai Garden Economy Cooperation Opportunity List aims to foster in-depth cooperation with garden economy operators, project leads, and brand owners.
Unveiled at the 2026 Shanghai Garden Economy Conference in Jing'an district, the list spans multiple spaces across the city, including 15 parks and green spaces in Changning district and a 60-hectare urban park cluster in Fengxian district.
Cooperation models range from naming rights and scenario co-creation to co-branded products and content partnerships.
Shanghai's authorities have stated that the city will continue to open parks, green spaces, and commercial public spaces to support new business forms and models in the garden economy.
As a supporting event of the 2026 Shanghai International Flower Show, the Shanghai Garden Economy Conference focused on building a sustainable, market-driven garden economy ecosystem through deeper cross-sector collaboration.
Since its opening on April 18, the 2026 Shanghai International Flower Show has delivered strong results in driving foot traffic and consumption.
On the first weekend after the flower show opened, the Shanghai Suhewan Mixc World shopping center — a sub-venue of the flower show in Jing'an district — recorded a daily footfall of 125,000 visits, a 250 percent year-on-year increase. Sales rose 231 percent year-on-year, reaching the highest level since the mall opened three years ago.
At the main venue in Huangpu district, the three gardens and three flower routes in the Yuyuan Garden area recorded more than 300,000 visits on opening day.
Running through May 10, the flower show is partnering with 34 commercial areas to host more than 150 events, with total participation expected to exceed 10 million visits.
Source: Shanghai Observer
