The Qingming Festival holiday coincides with the perfect season for spring outings, prompting many residents to go on trips with family and friends. This "spring outing" trend has also boosted sales at outdoor gear stores, with tents and backpacks being hot items both in physical stores and online. However, many budget travelers say it’s hard to find shops that rent out outdoor gear.
"The weather is only this good during this time of year. I drive to the suburbs for outings almost every week, so I need to have all my outdoor gear ready." Yesterday, at an outdoor gear specialty store near Jiedao Kou, Miss Liu, who was shopping for a windbreaker, plans to go on an outing with friends during the Qingming Festival holiday. Since last month, she has purchased a tent, windbreaker, and hiking boots, spending over a thousand yuan. "Since early March, regular gear such as hiking shoes, windbreakers, backpacks, tents, and sleeping bags has been selling well. On good days, we can get around 20 orders a day, with sales up by 30% compared to normal times," said a sales assistant at an outdoor gear specialty store in Guanggu. Outdoor gear is not only bought by "outdoor enthusiasts"—this year, ordinary citizens are also keen on buying it. Tents and windbreakers with nice designs sell particularly well. Customers don’t require high levels of professionalism—the gear just needs to be usable for a picnic at East Lake or barbecues in the forest park.
Buying a full set of outdoor gear costs at least several hundred yuan. Many budget travelers have considered renting instead, but they’ve found it difficult to locate stores that rent outdoor gear. Many outdoor gear specialty stores in Wuhan only sell and do not offer rentals or any rent-to-buy services.
"The prime time for outdoor gear rentals is only on weekends and holidays; the idle rate is quite high during regular days. After each return, the gear needs to be washed and disinfected before it can be rented out again, so specialty stores generally rarely offer rentals," said Mr. Yuan, owner of an outdoor gear specialty store on Lumo Road in Wuchang. Currently, many community forums have ads for travel gear rentals, with prices ranging from 50 to 100 yuan per day. During peak rental periods, daily income can reach up to a thousand yuan. But if the items are damaged, disputes often arise between the business and the renter regarding liability and compensation amounts.