China Resources (CR) Vanguard Supermarket (Gongbei) will close March 1 for approximately three years while the Guójì Dàshà (International Building) is renovated and a 28-floor structure is added on.

It was announced on Feb 11 that the 127-m (417-ft) new International Building complex will have commercial, office, and hotel services on 13 hectares (32 acres) of floor space.

CR Vanguard (华润万家Huárùn Wànjiā), the first one-stop shopping mall in Zhuhai, is still popular after 18 years. It will reopen at the same address, 1019 South Yingbin Road on the corner with Qiaoguang Road, with a much improved operating environment.

While the Gongbei shop is closed, an alternative -- Vanguard Xiawan (夏湾) -- will open in June some 3 km (nearly 2 miles) away at Zhong'an Century Square, 258 Gangchang Road, offering a total shopping area of about 1.3 hectares (3.2 acres).

Founded in Hong Kong in 1984, State-owned Vanguard arrived in the Chinese mainland in 1991. CR acquired Zhuhai's Wanjia Department Store and renamed it CR Vanguard in 2001.

Over the years, its instantly recognizable green and yellow sign has attracted local residents and expats alike. Throughout Zhuhai, Vanguard has six hypermarkets, 119 standard supermarkets, five Tesco Express outlets, and six 24-hour convenience stores. The large department store in Gongbei, however, was the first and most popular shopping place next to the Macao border.

CR Vanguard (Gongbei)

Vanguard's warehouse stores, convenient shopping, many affordable goods, and leisure, entertainment, and catering services revolutionized the mode of shopping. 

Pre-closing sale

The once-largest Vanguard in South China has had strong sales throughout the years and is considered the champion of Vanguard stores in the region. Statistics show that the Gongbei shop yielded more than 6 billion yuan ($888 million) in sales from 2001 to 2018.

Huge grocery discounts are on offer until Feb 28, by which time the store should be ready for closure, according to Chang Qijun, senior manager of the administrative department of the Zhuhai branch of CR Vanguard (South Division). He said that all 1,320 employees will be relocated to other stores.

Proposed Zhuhai International Tower [Photos courtesy WeChat ID: zhuhaifabu]