Children who are 30 something and single are worrying their parents and went to the Shanghai People's Park to advertise. Almost 500 seniors and parents went to the park.
These old people sit in the park with their umbrellas and sheets of paper indicating their children's credentials. The park looked similar to a wet market but with people being advertised as commodities.
As many young Chinese are postponing marriage, matchmakers' markets are gaining popularity in Shanghai, Beijing, Chengdu and Nanjing.
According to the national census, the average marrying age for males is now 34.5 and 32 for females. This is a big change from 2010 when the average marrying age for males was 31 years old and 28 years old for women.
A woman with a pseudonym of Wang Tianli is a parent of an unmarried woman.
She said, "Needless to say, the man must own an apartment, either through his own efforts or with his parents' assistance. If not, his family doesn't lay enough importance on the son's wedding and my daughter won't receive the respect due to her."
Wang's daughter earns 3,000 yuan a month. She has not settled down because she finds it hard to look for a partner who earns more than her because she doesn't want to change her quality of life.
According to the survey done by the dating site, Baihe, most women want to marry someone who earns twice as much as theirs. However, male respondents said that they would want a spouse who earns as much as they do.
"She enjoys her single life and is a fervent traveler. She said she doesn't want to share her money with someone with a lower income because it would affect her quality of life," Wu said.
To that, an eavesdropper said, "Then why does a man need to share his income with a woman?"