Located at the geographical center of Shenzhen, Futian District takes up only 4% of the city’s land. However, it owns the most concentrated business area in Shenzhen – the Futian Central Business District (Futian CBD).

The Futian CBD covers an area of 2 million square meters, which includes 800,000 square meters of shopping center space. It is home to both old shopping malls, such as Coco Park, Excellence INTOWN, and Wongtee Plaza, and new commercial centers including Ping An International Finance Center and One Avenue. Over the past decades, the Futian CBD has been continually upgraded to incorporate different businesses ranging from trending restaurants and beauty shops to avant-garde stores.

Photos by courtesy of Shenzhen Commerce Bureau except otherwise stated

The Ping An International Finance Center, the tallest building in Shenzhen, is also the second-tallest building in China and the fourth-tallest skyscraper in the world. Located in the central commercial area of Futian, it is a feature of the Futian CBD, a landmark building of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and a must-visit destination for every visitor to Shenzhen. The 116th floor of the skyscraper is a sightseeing platform. Here the designers drew inspiration from changing clouds and came up with a space that takes visitors to a futuristic world and brings hope for the future amid the busy city life.

Ping An International Finance Center

Unlike most business complexes, Shum Yip UpperHills LOFT is comprised of multiple standalone buildings. Its iconic red, orange and yellow colors interplay with the blue sky and white clouds of the city, creating an intense vibe of art and culture and making it a popular site for taking photos. The unique architectural style has also attracted Galeries Lafayette and other international upscale brands to the complex.

In addition to exceptional shopping experiences, visitors can also start a nature walk from the shopping complex on a 1,200-meter-long bridge, which connects Lianhua Hill and Bijia Hill, goes through the complex and incorporates nature into the urban facility.

Here are some of the shopping categories with some of their featured stores in the Futian CBD.

1. Health

Cycling is an increasing popular sport in Shenzhen. Brompton Junction, located at One Avenue, is UK foldable bicycle manufacturer Brompton’s first store in South China and has become a social space for Shenzhen’s cycling lovers. With a traditional open workshop in the store, visitors can observe how professional maintainers work to keep bicycles in good condition and thus have a closer look at the sophisticated parts of Brompton bicycles and its manufacturing techniques.

The storefront of Brompton Junction.

2. Beauty

Harmay, known as “a warehouse of cosmetic products sold at the same prices as tax-free products,” has also opened its first South China store at One Avenue. The store is defined by an unconventional industrial style combined with pipelines as a main feature, symbolizing an unyielding attitude to mainstream aesthetic tastes. In the store, consumers can not only find topnotch brands including SK-II and La Mer, but also niche brands such as L`Artisan Parfumeur and Penhaligons.

3. Happiness

In addition to health and beauty, visitors can also buy “happiness” at the Futian CBD. Qpokee, a brand committed to creating happiness, opened its first South China store in Coco Park. Because of its ability to help people relax, it is often featured on the list of trending stores in Shenzhen.

Coco Park

4. Art

Although a haven for shoppers, the Futian CBD also brings artistic and cultural experience to its visitors.

If you’re a fan of pop art, don’t miss C Future City, a shopping mall that provides an art museum experience. The place is dotted by early artworks created by 20 esteemed artists across the world and more than 2,000 special plants. Art installations that are ideal for taking photos are also set up in the mall.

C Future City

The teamLab art collective, whose works are hits in cities including Tokyo, Beijing, New York, London, Paris, Singapore, Silicon Valley and Melbourne, has also brought an immersive exhibition to the shopping mall.

A scene at the teamLab exhibition at C Future City.

Covering an area of 1,800 square meters, the exhibition consists of two areas that present 10 of the art collective’s most popular works in the world.

The scenarios created by teamLab, which incorporate nature, are not only perfect for taking photos, but also allow both adults and children to experience the fun of “creating the future together.” Being immersive in the artistic experience, visitors also experience unbounded inspiration and imagination from the exhibition.

One Avenue, a super shopping center at the Futian CBD, not only features high-rise developments, but also houses an 800-meter-long street for art-installations, cultural experience spaces and entertaining fountains. The street, known as “One Boulevard,” reflects the concept of “an artistic city” and creates a people-friendly open business space.

Residents visit a flower fair at One Avenue during the Spring Festival holiday of 2023.

Since its opening, many exhibitions and cultural events have been held at One Boulevard. The open business space is not only an experimental practice of brick-and-mortar businesses, but is also a response to modern urbanites’ need for a high-quality urban life.

Amid the fast-pace work and life of Shenzhen, the Futian CBD provides a Shangri-La for the city’s busy residents, allowing people to get away from their daily life without the need of driving to distant mountains.