AN’S roasted goose restaurant in Bao’an District has witnessed its turnover increase over four times this month from March when the business took a hit from the COVID flare-ups, Shenzhen Economic Daily reported.

The 86-year-old shop owner surnamed An told the reporter that she was relieved to see her sales rebound. After the government started handing out 100 million yuan (US$14.78 million) worth of consumption vouchers April 28, many customers asked the restaurant if the coupons could be used to pay, An said.

The family-owned eatery has been running for four generations, marking over 40 years in business. Many of the store’s Cantonese-style decor and dozens of its prize certificates on the wall have turned yellow over the years.

An’s family usually starts the day purchasing geese from neighboring city Qingyuan around 1 or 2 a.m. and then transporting them back to Shenzhen at around 4 to 5 a.m. After plucking the geese’s feathers, experienced masters would use traditional processes roasting the geese in the wood kiln for 45 minutes.

In normal times, the restaurant has a high season at the end of the year, with up to 100 geese sold per day, with average daily sales volume of 30 to 40 geese.

However, this March, despite 2,000 orders for frontline workers, the business was still severely affected by the COVID flare-up and the eatery could barely survive.

The family saw a silver lining with the government’s distribution of shopping vouchers. “Our daily revenue kept growing during the May Day holiday, with over 40 geese sold out every day,” An’s daughter-in-law said.

The government’s move has boosted local consumption. Data from e-commerce platform Meituan showed that from April 28 to Monday, transactions went up in Longhua, Shajing, Xili, Minzhi and Fuyong by 17.18%, 20.95%, 16.97%, 16.13% and 18.24% month on month, respectively. (Xia Yuanjie)