During the first three days of the five-day May Day holiday, Tianhe Road Business Circle attracted more than 600 million people.

Tianhe Road Business Circle. [Photo/WeChat account: tianhefabu]

Tianhe district is the liveliest district of Guangzhou's 11 districts, and Tianhe Road is the most prosperous road in Tianhe.

Tianhe Road Business Circle covers an area of 4.5 square kilometers and its commercial area totals 2.4 million sq km. It is home to 13 large-scale business malls, six electronic product centers, three underground business centers, and two cultural and sports activity venues.

An activity at the Tianhe Road Business Circle during the May Day holiday. [Photo/WeChat account: tianhefabu]

In 2017, the total merchandise sales of Tianhe Road Business Circle exceeded 1 trillion yuan ($145 billion), and its daily passenger flow peaked at 4 million people, becoming as the first trillion-yuan business circle in China.

Since 2012, Tianhe district began to upgrade the business district along Tianhe Road. After 10 years of improvement and development, the proportion of the business circle has been adjusted. Currently, 57 percent of the circle is dedicated to retail businesses, 24 percent to catering businesses, 9 percent to business support, 8 percent to leisure tourism, and 2 percent to arts and culture.

In the development plan to build an international consumption center in Guangzhou (2022-25), the city proposed that it will integrate the business resources of the Tianhe Road Business Circle and its surrounding areas, optimize the circle's development space, and promote its further transformation and upgrading.

In 2021, Tianhe district built a smart business circle consumer service system by utilizing virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and ultra-high-definition video. It also added intelligent convenience stores and vending machines.

In 2022, Tianhe Road Business Circle was selected as the first national demonstration smart business circle, while Zhengjia Square, located in the circle, was selected as a national demonstration smart shopping center.

Digital upgrades have enabled Tianhe Road Business Circle to create a smart consumption scenario, which also drives market development.