Food vendors battle for right to sell products

The bidding war among people wanting to sell food at one of the city's most popular and profitable temple fairs was even crazier than usual when it was held on Tuesday.

More than 90 would-be stall owners battled for the 34 available locations at the Ditan Park temple fair, which is set to run from Feb 2 to Feb 9.

The organizers changed the bidding rules this year, making the process into a marathon.

This time, bidders did battle stall by stall. When a particular site reached the maximum price set beforehand, bids were closed and all of those prepared to pay that price were effectively put into a hat and the lucky winner picked. The bidding process was overseen by organizers and staff members from a notary office.

"In the past, the auction finished at around 10 am but the bidders were still competing for the first stall at 10 am this time," said Cao Qi, a member of staff from the park's management office.

The bidding, which started at 8:30 am continued until into the night.

"It was fairer than before but it took a lot of time," one bidder complained.

Typically, around half of the 91 registered bidders battled for each stall.

Bidding for the first stall, for example, started at 15,000 yuan but soon surged to 115,000 yuan, which was its top price. Some 41 bidders then signaled that they would like to take the stall for that price and lined up to register, each getting a ball with a number. The balls were then put into a lottery-style machine and the winner was randomly selected.

Gu Shengli, the famous barbecue kebab seller known for being the top bidder at five consecutive temple fairs, offered 300,000 yuan for the most expensive stall last year. This time, he got a stall for 85,000 yuan.

"It was much cheaper than last year, now I have less pressure and can concentrate on my product," Gu told METRO on Tuesday afternoon. He said he also plans to attend other temple fairs throughout the city.

Zhang Jinsong, the event's spokesperson, said organizers changed to the bidding process to try to bring some sanity back to the event.

"We just didn't want the price to become too irrational," Zhang said. "Before, it was difficult for bidders to make money because the rent was too high."

Temple fairs in Beijing are traditional events usually held between the first and seventh day of the lunar calendar's first month.

Ditan Park, which is at the north end of downtown Beijing near the Lama Temple subway station, is one of the top temple fairs. The fair has been held for the past 26 years, ever since the annual activity was resumed in the park.

During Spring Festival last year, more than 25,000 visitors attended each day.