Yuyuan Garden area has long been an attraction for foreigners, thanks to its traditional architecture and old-style buildings, but soon it will also become a new shopping mecca, with a touch of the modern.

One of the roads in the tourist-friendly area will be reshaped as a shopping street selling food and daily necessities, embellished with typical alien flavors.

The 60-meter-long Wenchang Road, which starts from Fangbang Road in the south and ends at the Yuyuan Garden's Central Square in the north, and is currently a wholesale market for jewelry and traditional Chinese artifacts, will soon undergo a face-lift, accor-ding to Shanghai Yuyuan Wholesale Department Co. Ltd.

All the 18 tenants now doing business on the street are required to move out of the mart within 10 days as the their leasing contracts have expired.

This will pave the way for the face-lift project, which will include building an arch cover above the street. The road surface will also be changed from concrete to marble, Wang Yongzu, an official with Yuyuan Wholesale, revealed.

The street will reopen by the end of September.

"It's a move to adjust the commodity variety and levels in the Yuyuan Garden area. Also we want to add some Western element to the area full of Chinese folk style," Wang said. "The reshaped street will feature overseas products, targeting the middle market."

Wang said the company is talking to some popular brands for the street's 18 slots of 20 square meters each.

Belgian chocolates, French food, Taiwan kitchenware and wedding gowns, European cosmetics, and sports brands like Adidas and Nike are expected to be available, Wang said.

( eastday.com August 4, 2002)