Tourism investors bullish on Sichuan: West Village in Chengdu
The Third China (Sichuan) International Tourism Investment Conference, jointly sponsored by Sichuan Provincial People’s Government, the Investment Association of China and China Council for International Investment Promotion, and undertaken by Sichuan Provincial Tourism Development Commission and Sichuan Provincial Bureau of Investment Promotion, will open on July 26.
As the event approaches, Sichuan once again comes under the spotlight as a hot tourism investment destination, with the construction and operation of many of its projects garnering extensive attention.
Take Chengdu for example. The capital city has two of the showpieces of tourism investment in Sichuan: West Village and Andaman Village.
Both complexes are characterized by unique architectural styles and advanced management philosophies.
China.org.cn will present the two projects in two seperate articles. Here's the article for West Village.
West Village Courtyard: carving out a new segment of the tourism market with a “Travel Plus Cultural and Creative Industries”development pattern
West Village Courtyard is located on the North Beisen Road in Qingyang District, Chengdu. With an investment of 1.45 billion yuan from Chengdu Beisen Investment Group, it became operational at the end of 2014.
Like conventional tourist attractions and creative industry parks, West Village Courtyard has had recreational and catering amenities attached to its facilities for cultural and sports experience. What distinguishes it from others is that it is a cluster of businesses championing creative lifestyles, featuring a courtyard-style building complex and distinctive culture-based commerce.
The unique architectural style has lent West Village a flavor of ease, leisure and comfort, a flavor that characterizes its host city Chengdu. It is an ideal place to escape from the bustle and hustle in its immediate proximity.
In West Village Courtyard, Makers’Community, a workshop for hand-making original, custom-made products, is a must-go. Divided into sections for pottery, wooden, leather and photography products respectively, the community has found favor with many companies.
According to Zhu Liyuan, who oversees the workshop, the venture has been in the black since its first month of operation in the Courtyard. It has formed a strategic cooperation partnership with Chengdu West Village Commercial Service Co. Ltd to seek further expansion.
Du Xingping, Deputy General Manager of Chengdu West Village Commercial Service Co. Ltd, said that cultural and creative industries are emerging, yielding high value added. He attributed the decision of Beisen, which runs the well-known 798 Art Zone, to make the investment to Sichuan’s favorable tourism investment climate.
The West Village Courtyard is part of the third-phase construction of West Village.
With prominent figures in art, investment and architecture such as “Godfather of Chinese contemporary art”Li Xianting, Beisen Board Chairman Du Jian and architect Liu Jiakun working on it, the project has won a number of accolades.
In 2016, it became the first architecture independently designed by a Chinese to be showcased at the Central Pavilion at the 15th Venice Biennale of Architecture; in 2017, it won the Far Eastern Architectural Design Award for Outstanding Architecture.
West Village is prioritized in Chengdu government’s support for cultural and creative industries.
So far over 180 enterprises have entered the Village with its forms of business constantly optimizing and updating. It aims to develop into an environmental-friendly place for both production and living, and an emerging destination for cultural and creative industries-based tourism most typical of Chengdu, livable and attractive to culture and art enthusiasts.
Going forward, West Village will focus on tourism product R&D and roll out half-day or one-day tour featuring DIY activities and TCM treatment in the hope of becoming another calling card for cultural tourism in Chengdu.
