Flagship Expo franchise shop opens in Beijing

The flagship 2010 Shanghai World Expo store selling franchised products of the attraction opened in Wangfujing Street in Beijing Tuesday, Xinhua News Agency reported.

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Covering an area of more than 800 square meters, the flagship store is in the Wangfujing Gongmei Building, a shopping mall featuring artworks and handicrafts. The building also successfully operated the flagship franchise store of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

More than 5,000 types of official expo-themed souvenirs such as badges, porcelains, toys and handicrafts are available in this store, Xinhua said.

The flagship shop in Wangfujing evolved from a smaller store that opened last July.

An executive from Beijing Gongmei Group, the company operating the shopping mall, said the flagship store in Beijing will sell the latest expo-themed products simultaneously with its counterpart in Shanghai, which opened on January 20.

The 2010 Shanghai World Expo will take place from May 1 to October 31 and is expected to attract 70 million visitors from home and abroad.