Since WeChat added a payment platform to its app back in 2013, Chinese shoppers have been keen to adopt mobile payment methods – and they’re doing so at a much faster pace than the rest of the world. In fact, 81% of consumers nationwide use their mobile to shop.

Shanghai has signed a historic agreement with media conglomerate Tencent, to turn the Chinese megapolis into a tech-enabled smart city. But within the futuristic plans is a familiar presence; the entire operation will run on China’s most popular social network, WeChat.

From messaging to social media to a marketplace to browsing the internet, WeChat is the app the does everything. While Western companies and app developers race to unbundle their services into efficient single-purpose apps, WeChat continues to add feature after feature.

Do physical stores matter any more in China? When Topshop launched in China in 2014 it didn’t bother with bricks and mortar. Instead, taking cues from its Gen Y customers (who spend up to 30% of their day online), it partnered with an established fashion website. Is this non-traditional route proving a hit?