Toys of the Beijing 2022 mascot, panda Bing Dwen Dwen, are seen during a flower ceremony fat the 2022 Winter Olympic Games. (Photo by Sergei BobylevTASS via Getty Images) Police are punishing Chinese traders for cashing in by reselling scarce dolls of Olympics mascot Bing Dwen Dwen at up to 10 times retail price.Buyers stood in line overnight in freezing weather and emptied store shelves after the Winter Games opened Feb.
4. News reports say factory employees were called back from their Lunar New Year holiday to make more panda mascots.Three people in Beijing were sentenced to unspecified "administrative penalties" for reselling souvenirs at prices deemed too high, police announced.
Punishment can include detention, fines and confiscation of goods.Plush toys of Bing Dwen Dwen, a panda in a clear plastic suit, sold for 192 yuan ($30) at the Gongmei Emporium in central Beijing.
The shop on the Wangfujing pedestrian mall and other authorized outlets also sell Olympics-themed pens, badges and other souvenirs.Customers standing in line included traders who bought for clients or to resell at higher prices."It started to be sold a long time ago but didn’t generate a buzz," said a customer at Gongmei who would give only her surname, Zhu. "Now the media are promoting it."Gongmei and other shops posted signs saying they had as a few as 300 Bing Dwen Dwen dolls per day and buyers were allowed one each.