Children have fun at the Beijing Chaoyang International Customs Festival. Most of the city's temple fairs have enjoyed good business during the holiday break. Zou Hong / China Daily

Beijing's traditional temple fairs, already a hit with revelers, have this year proved a major marketplace for local enterprises to boost revenues and reputations.

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About 4 million people visited one of the capital's 12 most famous fairs this year, roughly the same as 2010, official statistics show. Yet, total commercial incomes grew by 3.5 percent year-on-year to 41.37 million yuan, Beijing Times reported.

Ditan Park Temple Fair, which is now in its 26th year and is regarded as the busiest in the capital, attracted 1.2 tourists between Feb 2 and 9, said organizers. It boasts 474 booths selling snacks and traditional crafts.

"Stuff relating to the Year of Rabbit, such as bunny hats and masks, have been the most popular products," said Zhang Jinsong, spokesman for the fair. "In addition to commercial profits created in the park, an economical belt surrounding the park has formed, which has contributed a lot to the restaurants and parking lots nearby."

Ma Gaofeng, lobby manager at the nearby Jindingxuan, a dim sum restaurant with about 20 branches citywide, said custom had virtually doubled during the week of the temple fair.

"Usually, customers don't have to wait for tables during off-peak times," he said, "but during the fair, dozens of customers have had to wait, even after 2 pm."

As well as making profits, several honored brands contacted by METRO said they had focused on corporate image promotion with their stalls.

Huang Yunsheng, a manager at Donglaishun, a century-old restaurant close to the west gate of Ditan Park that is known for its instant-boiled mutton, said turnover during the Spring Festival holiday has increased by 50 percent on last year.

Its stall at the fair has served an average of 2,000 customers a day, while the restaurant can normally accommodate only 200 to 300 people during peak times. However, Huang said the restaurant, which has more than 100 branches nationwide, cares more about promoting its image than revenue.

"We've done a lot of work with staff training and facilities, while food safety is our most important concern," he said. "As a large proportion of the customers are tourists from outside Beijing, temple fairs are a good opportunity to do some self-promotion."

Zhao Qingjie, chief designer of Beijing-based Clay Figurines Zhang, a 200-year-old folk art brand which has been running booths at fairs in Ditan Park and Fengtai Cultural Center, said the clay Tu'erye (Grandpa Rabbit) statuette has been a bestseller this year.

"The popularity is really beyond expectation," said Zhao. "About 500 pairs, at 80 yuan a pair, are being sold every day. We normally sell 60 to 70 pairs per day at the store."

Like Huang at Donglaishun, Zhao said the biggest attraction for taking part in temple fairs is not to make money but to push the brand.

"I keep on introducing customers to the legend of Grandpa Rabbit and telling his story of wiping out the plague to protect residents," he added.

"Some of the tourists are foreigners. We hope these promotions will help with our plans to explore international markets."

China Daily