New World Department Store China Limited (“NWDS” or the “Company”; Hong Kong stock code: 825), one of the largest owners and operators of department stores in the PRC, is pleased to announce that the Shanghai-Hong Kong New World Department Store-Baoshan Branch Store ("Shanghai Baoshan Branch Store") had its soft opening on 22 January 2010. To celebrate the opening of Shanghai Baoshan Branch Store, ‘The 1st NWDS Spokesperson’ Contest - Eastern Region Semi-Final was also successfully held at this store on 24 January 2010.

On the day of the store’s opening, the management from NWDS and the town’s government officials hosted the ribbon-cutting ceremony, marking the presence of the first Living Gallery in Shanghai Baoshan District. Once the ribbon-cutting ceremony finished, the long-awaited customers rushed in to start shopping in this new store, creating a bustling scene. Each floor of Shanghai Baoshan Branch Store has its unique characteristic. At that day the basement ‘Dining Galleria’ has already been crowded with lots of nearby residents to try its wide choice of delicacies from different food stalls and famous restaurants. The trendy ladies’ shoes and cosmetics on first floor attracted a number of female customers, whilst the second floor with diversified popular brands attracted crowds of youngster. These youngsters were passing through different brand concessionaires to mix and match clothings that best present their personal styles. Besides, the new store successfully drew parents to bring their children to the cartoon-themed children’s paradise on third floor. The floor had been filled with laughter from children on the previous weekend, they simply love the place and linger on. On the other hand, the household items zone, ￥10 Shop and brand outlet were located on the fifth floor. This zone had attracted and accumulated a long queue of shoppers which made the store eventually separated the customers into groups to enter the zone. The overwhelming response created these boisterous scenes in the new store. For the interior design of Shanghai Baoshan Branch Store, it imitated the nature environment. As the customers walked along the store through escalators, greenery can be found everywhere and brought about a refreshing feel to the customers. Mosaic decoration in nature theme were hand-made by the designer team and hanged on walls, creating a cozy shopping atmosphere for all. Spacious areas are retained on each floor and lift lobby, especially including some chairs for shoppers to relax, showing heartfelt care to the customers.

To celebrate the opening of Shanghai Baoshan Branch Store, ‘The 1st NWDS Spokesperson’ Contest - Eastern Region Semi-Final was successfully held at this store on 24 January 2010. The champion, 1st runner-up and 2nd runner-up of the female group were born, they were Zhang Jieyun from Shanghai, Hou Xin from Shanghai and Wu Shunbing from Shanghai respectively; while for the male group, the champion was Zhang Zhicheng from Shanghai, 1st runner-up was Pun Qinquan from Taizhou and 2nd runner-up was Li Wanlu from Shanghai. Regional Semi-Finals have already been held successfully in Northeastern district, Northern district, Southwestern District and Eastern District. Central China will be the last region to hold the semi-final, which will be started in this April. The contest will then enter its final stage, unveiling the competition for the Company’s spokesperson.

The Eastern Region Semi-Final kicked off amidst the dynamic Jiangnan-style music, introducing the first group of contestants. Dressing in traditional Chinese clothing and showcasing Jiangnan-style props, they marched in the stage pairs by pairs. This part of the program demonstrated the heritage of Eastern China on the one hand, and by using a series of vibrant music from past to present, it allowed the audience to travel through different eras in this brand-new Living Gallery’s spacious atrium. When the upbeat pop music was on, the second group of contestants walked in the runway with orange red outfits that symbolized the Living Gallery, demonstrating the lively image after NWDS revamped its brand. In the follow-by self-introduction session, all the contestants wore in purple that represented the Fashion Gallery and they delivered unique viewpoints on their aspirations for being the NWDS’ spokesperson. Among the 20 contestants, one disabled contestant can even overcome her inborn disability in communication to express her unique opinions, proving all of the contestants were of very high standard. Afterwards, there were also a talent show and a mini drama. The talent show was divided into 3 themes: “Chinese Traditional Performance”, “Hot and Vibrant Dance” and “09 Greatest Hit Songs”. Contestants performed in various kinds of dance and sang different popular songs that fully exhibited their talents in all aspects of stage performances, tying in with the contest theme - “Be Stylish．Be True．With a New Character”. Coming to the end of the contest, a mini drama themed in the hottest-ever Shanghai World Expo was performed. The storyline revolved around the experiences of a group of volunteers in the Shanghai World Expo. All the contestants acted to their best on stage, aiming to create a great impression in front of the judging panels. At the end of this mini drama, firecrackers burst out and all contestants ran offstage to distribute CNY festive sweets. This gesture of earlier CNY blessings to the customers created the climax of the event.

Panel of Judges of Eastern Region Semi-Final consisted of Mr. David Lin, Executive Director and COO of NWDS; Ms. Song Mengzhe, Styling Consultant; Ms Wu Qiaoning, Stylist; Ms. Li Jiani, Artist; Ms. Wang Hung and Mr. Zhao Xinping, selected platinum VIP member of NWDS. Ratings from panel of judges contributed 60% of the total marks of each contestant, while on-line polling of Sohu from the public and customers’ votes received in-store during 20 December 2009 to 5 January 2010 accounted for 20% each. Overwhelming responses were received from the on-line and in-store polling with over 850,000 online-votes and 46,000 votes were collected respectively.

Mr. Adrian Cheng, Executive Director of NWDS, the Chief of this rebranding program said, ‘The performance of Eastern Region Semi-Final contestants was extraordinary, similar to the excellent achievements of our rebranding program. The Wuxi store was first to be revolutionized into a Fashion Gallery in trendy style with a distinguished character, proactively brought in exclusive fashion and accessories brands that soon became popular shopping spot among the stylish customers. The brand-new Shanghai Baoshan Branch Store appears as a Living Gallery that provides “one-stop shopping” services to the customers. With its diversified nature elements and spacious relaxation areas, customers can immerse into a new shopping environment which targets people of all ages and both genders and catering their needs in terms of “Clothing”, “Dining”, “Living”, “Travelling” and “Entertainment”. This in turns becomes a new landmark in the retail market of Eastern China region.’

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