In a city that does not sleep, there’s so much life going on at dawn in the largest electronic markets in China – Huaqiangbei. Few visitors and locals get to experience the secret and bustling electronic markets at dawn that opens at midnight and fades out of existence as the sun starts to rise.
The mysterious and chaotic dawn markets in Shenzhen are hidden behind Aihua electronic market, both sides of the road are packed with stalls and stalls, fully loaded with all kinds of electronic gadgets at a small portion of the prices you would get at Huaqiangbei electronic markets in the daytime. From time to time there’re customers coming from the dark, stopping in front of the stalls, checked the goods, and bargained with the vendors.
Many treasure hunters got their phones and tablets at unbelievable rates and left happily. The chaotic and bustling electronic markets last several hours at dawn till 4 or 5 am then disappear as if they were never in existence.
Lying beneath “the Silicone Valley of Hardware” and the modern metropolis, electronic dawn market in China is rarely known to people as it only exists in the midnight of Huaqiangbei.
With the clock ticking to 00:00 am, vendors started to arrive with cartons and cartons of electronic gadgets, or few pieces of fabrics to put the goods on and few chairs. With time passing by, more and more stalls were opened, and treasure hunters started to come, and the mysterious dawn market was in full swing.
Electronic gadgets on sale were full Huaqiangbei characteristics, most were antiques or out of date electronics, you can even find cellular phones that were a big hit a decade ago.
The surviving of dawn markets relies more on the low prices of electronics. For example, plug and cable were sold at ￥2 each, earphones at ￥3, while some other phone accessories at ￥5 or even sold by weight like ￥40 per gram, all grades of mobile phones and tables ranging from ￥500-1000, attracting penny saving consumers and those treasure hunters.
Some businessmen even buy from the dawn markets, get the electronics refurbished then resell at a much higher price.
The origins of dawn markets in China
Legend has it that dawn market originated from antiques industry in Beijing. Declining wealthy families used to sell off family properties in the dark to avoid losing faces, and customers used to come with lanterns. It was a rule of thumb that lanterns could only used to check products rather than the sellers. Gradually torches took place of lanterns.
Apart from the use of torches, there’re also other rules of thumbs that all customers are supposed to follow.
* Don’t ask where the goods come from
* Don’t ask if the goods are real or fake
* No refund or change
Whatever, seasonable buyers can usually find good deals in China dawn markets. There’re people spending ￥25 for a real Swiss watch, and people spending ￥100 for a complete set of iphone parts, then assembled a well-functioned iPhone that worth thousands.
Though at 2 or 3 am, the electronic dawn market in China was bustling with exciting buyers.
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