Shaolin Temple Launches E-commerce Site

Shaolin Temple, regarded as the site where Chinese martial arts originated, has opened an online store on Alibaba.com's Taobao retail site.

"Shaolin Stage of Joy" features a host of items for purchase, including Shaolin sweatbands (29 yuan, US$4.22), Zen rock garden sets (95 yuan) and collectible sets priced as high as 9,999 yuan. The site is designed only for Chinese consumers, and has no English version or international shipping yet. Shaolin's official Web site does not yet link to the online store.

The site soft-launched in late May, and continues efforts by the famed temple to capitalize on the increasing popularity of Chinese culture, martial arts, and the Shaolin brand itself. Taobao is China's most popular retail site, owned by the Hong Kong-listed Alibaba.com Group. A separate private entity, Shaolin Joy Co., is handling the company's merchandising, with the temple receiving some of the proceeds for maintenance of the monks and grounds.

Shaolin Joy Co. established the store on its own and without assistance, a Taobao representative said by e-mail.

The temple, in central China's Henan province, is a popular tourist destination, but is sometimes criticized for being too commercial, in contrast to its image as a place for meditation and intense physical training. Almost a kilometer of shops selling Buddhist items, Shaolin philosophy and training books, and replica weapons line the approach to the site.