Chinese tourists visiting Italy will soon be able to purchase both online and in-store through their WeChat Pay app, thanks to a new partnership signed with Digital Retex, Tencent Trusted Partner, and DOCOMO Digital.

Chinese consumers completed more than one million transactions per minute in 2017, with more than 980 million monthly active users and a market penetration of 93 per cent in the largest cities.

According to the latest data released by Istat-Confturismo, Italy last year welcomed 3.79 million Chinese visitors – an increase of more than five per cent year-on-year. Over the next five years, more than 20 million tourists are estimated to visit Europe each year.

Fausto Caprini, CEO of Digital Retex comments: “For the very first time, WeChat Pay will be available in Italy to purchase goods in store. This app is the preferred in-store method of payment by Chinese shoppers. Retailers who quickly adapt to the Chinese consumer purchasing and payment habits will be able to win over the competition through the creation of a long-lasting relationship between their own brand and the shopper.”

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