It's been malls a-go-go here recently. What with all the summer sales and recent openings, our poor credit cards have been suffering. It’s not over yet though, with the new China View in Sanlitun, Lane Crawford on Financial Street and the China Central Place Mall nearing completion, some serious self-restraint is called for. In order to distract ourselves, we’ve been scouting out development in the existing malls, and it’s all looking rosy!

Ever since Hong Kong company MTR took over the running and refurbishment of the Ginza Mall at Dongzhimen, it’s been glitzier and better than ever. New stores keep popping up left, right and center, and not a Wanko in sight! We’re excited about the new fashion accessories chain Twice, which has opened a larger store there, enabling Beijing’s magpies to get their bling fix. We’re also thrilled with the arrival of Jurlique on the third floor. Yes it’s petite and tiny, but as many a high-end spa will testify, their products are fantastic.

In other mall news, initial rumblings of discontent seem to have died down over at the new Soho Shangdu. Tenants in the new shopping complex were apparently disgruntled by the management’s inability to promote the new stores, and some completely refused to open their doors until the situation resolved itself. Thankfully, all issues seem to have died down, and all’s going swimmingly. Consumers can be reassured that we now have the option of widespread 45 and 50 percent discounts in many outlets.

Another mall where things are powering on ahead is The Place. Eyebrows were raised when the complex opened – sure, it looked great, but the vacant stores weren’t terribly reassuring. Thankfully, the mall is now bustling, and the north building – once eerily empty – has now been padded out with fancy stores, including the new Thann store on floor 3.

For the mall-averse it’s not been looking too bad either. We’re still regulars at Peacock at Wanda Plaza, whose summer selection just keeps getting better and better. Even their umbrellas (RMB 80, which double up as handy parasols) keep drawing admirers. I’m loath to let the secret out of the bag, but I’m also tired of endlessly repeating where I get my stuff, so there you go. Enjoy.

Another new boutique in Wanda is Beatrix, which is celebrating its recent arrival with an impressive set of discounts on stock. We’re not quite so tempted by the RMB 138 lace-tastic shirts, but the RMB 218 silk dresses and RMB 48 accessories are fantastic. Fingers crossed this promotion runs for a bit longer.

Finally, the people at Plastered are determined to keep fashion fun with the upcoming launch of their Olympics-inspired T-shirt collection. And in keeping with the Olympics-style theme of the designs (conceived in cooperation with Haobuhao design), the presentation is going to be rather sporty too, with the models limbering up to do the 100m dash down the catwalk in true sprint style. Hopefully they’ll slow down enough for us to see the designs themselves, which are rather good. To check out the T-shirt launch, get along to the Nanluoguxiang Performance Festival on September 15 at 7pm.