First look: Shanghai Village

Situated in the hottest location right now - next to the highly anticipated Shanghai Disneyland (where tickets have been sold out for the first two weeks) - Shanghai Village strategically positions itself as a 'new shopping experience' for the city's retail lovers.

The village, located in the heart of the Shanghai International Tourism and Resorts Zone (sexily acronymed to SITRZ), is made up of three sweeping crescents that all face a watery expanse dubbed Wishing Star Lake. (All the names are going to be like this around Disneyland aren't they?) The buildings are heavily influenced by 1920s Art Deco, with the architecture reflecting elements of New York, Paris, Milan, Vienna and of course Shanghai.

These European-style buildings house a mix of 140 boutiques displaying international and local brands, although when we visited on the official opening day of May 19 many of the units were yet to open. As of Wednesday 25 there will be 80 boutiques open to the public, with more on the way soon.

Among the big brands like Armani, COACH and Kate Spade New York, there are alternatives such as Chuang x Yi (Made by China), where buyers hand pick and stock clothes and accessories by China’s up and coming designers, including Shanghai-based Helen Lee. The selection might not be hot off the runway, but we're promised it's no more than two seasons old.

As per Yi Ou Lai tradition (and in line with offerings at Suzhou Village), the focus is on the range of boutiques and the entire shopping experience. You can even pamper yourself further by trying out their hands-free shopping service (at 50RMB per day), where boutique assistants will pack your purchases and have them waiting for you at the Guest Welcome Centre (just phone them 15 minutes before you need them) - perfect if you want to avoid working on your arm muscles, or if you don't want other shoppers to see your stash.

Even the bathrooms at Shanghai Village compete for attention, with each of the five drawing decorative inspiration from a prominent Art Deco artist (O'Keeffe, Balla, Chini, Delaunay and Klimt). Having diligently checked them all out, we settled on the O'Keeffe bathroom as our favourite, with pink walls and fancy make-up mirrors on top of the individual cubicles. We're sure O'Keeffe would be thrilled.

Also worth checking out if your credit card needs a break are the four HAUS exhibitions and workspaces that present an exploration of fashion’s transformation through technology and travel.

We visited YOUNIT, the multi-purpose workspace and shop that allows consumers to be more involved with the design and fashion production procedure. A guide will walk you through the entire process (although certain areas will not be accessible to the public when students from the Marangoni Institute of Fashion are working their magic there on weekends).

Although it remains to be seen if the claims of discounts of up to 75 percent off are true (we didn't spot such big cuts on our visit), Shanghai Village still offers a good getaway from the hustle and bustle of Shanghai for die-hard shopping fans. We'd recommend planning a visit once more of the boutiques and dining options have officially opened, not to mention the magical kingdom next door.

Shanghai Village is at 88 Shengdi Dong Lu, Pudong New Area (open 10am-8pm Mon-Fri; 9am-9pm Sat-Sun and public holidays).