Industry Structure

The retailing industry is composed of a great variety of shops and merchandise and the size of stores varies. Generally, the following are the most common forms of retailers in Hong Kong:

  1. Department Store
    Department store is a sizeable retailer which sells merchandise of different brands and categories. Customers can purchase different brands of clothes, electrical appliances, and personal consumables at a one-stop shop. The operation scale and establishment of the department store are very large but the number of branches is relatively smaller.

  2. Chain Specialty Store
    Specialty store sells specific kinds of products such as electrical appliances or clothes, and targets particular groups of customers. The chain specialty stores are retail shops that are operated and managed by the same corporation, and sell homogeneous products. Although a chain store is smaller than a department store, the number of branch stores is far greater.

  3. Supermarket
    Supermarket is one of the most common types of retail stores in Hong Kong which is self-served and sells a comprehensive range of products including food and daily necessities. Nowadays, most supermarkets are chain stores with many branches. Some companies may even operate quite a number of branches in the same district.

  4. Convenience Store
    Convenience store is a little retail shop which operates round the clock. It mainly sells food and daily necessities. Generally, convenience stores are chain stores and the size of each outlet is small.

  5. Shopping Centre
    Large-scale shopping centres are generally located at multi-storey commercial buildings or housing estates. Inside these enormous centres are different kinds of retail shops selling very diversified goods. Besides, some shopping centres, fitted out with different food stalls, recreational facilities and entertainment, e.g., cinema, are popular places for shopping and spending leisure time.

  6. Others
    In addition to the aforesaid retailers, there are many other types of retailing settings in Hong Kong, such as warehouse-store, mini-retailing stores, bazaars and direct sale service, etc. Although they may be smaller in scale, they create plenty of employment opportunities in Hong Kong.


Generally, staff in the industry can be divided into Sales Staff and Non-Sales Staff based on their job nature. People who are interested in joining the industry can apply for either sales or non-sales positions according to their interests and qualifications.


Top