Chongqing- As night fell, private cars drove into Chongqing Beibin Road and parked nearly at Liujia Wharf; the vendors opened the trunk and took out all sorts of staff to set up their stalls. They came together to sell all kinds of goods during the National Day holiday, namely the car boot sale. 

Like car boot sales, many famous foreign tourist cities and towns have a similar street stall economy, including garage sales, farmer's markets, flea markets, weekend markets, Christmas markets, etc.

A car boot sale market in Chongqing. (Photo provided to iChongqing)

A street stall economy is formed by obtaining a source of income through stalls, serving as a marginal economy in cities. It has been a key factor affecting the cityscape. Still, it has unique advantages and can alleviate employment pressure to a certain extent in the context of the financial crisis. 

Mainly targeting young people, the car boot sale pursues fashion and uses idle land like squares and blocks to boost the night economy, adding leisure space and consumption vitality, said Luo Zibo, senior consultant of Chongqing Tourism Economic Development.

In Luo's opinion, the car boot sale is a popular market that needs to be close to people's daily lives. With the support of relevant policies and conditions, the car boot sale should have strong vitality and development prospects.

Pet treat business

Mr. Tong is one of the vendors who set up a stall named "SHUAS," selling his handmade pet treats since this June. As a former medical beauty professional worker, he first started his stall as a part-time job but later resigned to become a full-time stall owner.

SHUAS store with beautiful decoration. (Photo provided to iChongqing)

"Different from catering, pet treats are not in high demand, but the highlight on customers' trust," he said. Pet treats cost around a dozen yuan per serving, which is relatively cheap, so starting a business without fixed customers is difficult.

"Sometimes, I only made dozens of yuan daily, not even a single business. Later it started to get better, with two or three hundred yuan profit a day," Tong said frankly that he could pay for himself after setting up the stall for about two months.

As the stall's income is far from the previous salary, why does he remain committed to the full-time stall job? Tong said he comes with the idea of starting a new business.

"I believe car boot sale is a promising industry. Most importantly, I like pets very much, and I'm so happy to see cats and dogs having the snacks we make," he said. "Having accumulated a stable source of customers, pet treats can establish a long-term supply and demand relationship, so it is possible to reach considerable income in the future." 

"Forest Yoga" themed market. (Photo provided to iChongqing)

Building brand IP with cultural attributes

Analysts said that all the celebrated car boot sales in Chongqing are essential to building brand intellectual property (IP) with cultural attributes. For example, beautifully designed signboards can be found at the market entrance, and it's easy to find IP marketing and engagement in social media. 

How do these market organizers make money? "For stall owners, we only charge a small management fee to provide warehouse, water, electricity, and cleaning services," said a car boot sale market manager. "Our income mainly comes from government subsidies and third-party commercial activities."

Good management is crucial for running a successful market brand. "We have office vehicles at each market location for patrol and staff on-site for management and emergency handling at stalls," said the manager. 

As catering stalls account for the market's majority, relevant production and operation licenses and health certificates are necessary when the stall owner signs up. Staff is also arranged at each location to sample food and back it up in case of food safety disputes.

(Yang Qinmei, as an intern, also contributed to this report.)