Fujian aircraft carrier-themed merchandise present at the gift shops in Shanghai's Jiangnan Shipyard on November 12, 2025. Photo: Zhao Yusha/GT

Merchandise themed around the Fujian aircraft carrier has proved hugely popular, with nearly 1,000 items sold in ten days at the gift shop in Shanghai's Jiangnan Shipyard - where the vessel was built - around the time of its commissioning last week.

Official Chinese media on November 7 said that the country's third aircraft carrier, the electromagnetic catapults-equipped Fujian, was officially commissioned on November 5, marking China's entry into a three-carrier era, as experts highlighted the significant capability boosts that the Fujian will give to the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA).

When a Global Times reporter visited Jiangnan Shipyard on Wednesday, a staff member said that in recent days, souvenirs themed after the Fujian aircraft carrier had become a hit among visitors. The gift shop, however, was unprepared for the surge in demand, as the shipyard is not open to the public and receives visitors only through group appointments owing to its classified nature. From November 3 to Wednesday, a total of 918 Fujian aircraft carrier-related souvenirs were sold, generating 123,000 yuan ($17,300), Yuan Ming, an employee at the gift shop, told the Global Times. Best-sellers included a Fujian-themed baseball cap and a remote-controlled model of the carrier, Yuan said.

On Chinese e-commerce platform Taobao, sales of Fujian aircraft carrier-themed merchandise are rising. One shop selling a building block model of the carrier, priced at 720 yuan, said sales doubled in the past week. A Fujian-branded baseball cap was also popular, with around 100 sold during the same period, according to Taobao.