Food
Sales of hypermarkets in Taiwan are expected to hit a new high of more than NT$180 billion (US$33 billion) this year as chain operators have made great efforts to develop e-commerce platforms to boost sales, according to the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA).
In addition, the MOEA said that these hypermarket chain operators have worked with renowned brands in a wide range of industries, such as fashion items, restaurants and telecom service providers, to broaden their production lines, a move which is expected to attract more consumers.
The ministry added that since the government launched short-term economic stimulus measures in November to encourage consumers to buy energy-efficient home appliances, hypermarket operators have been among the beneficiaries.
In 2014, revenue of Taiwan’s hypermarket business stood at NT$175.8 billion, up 2.5 percent from a year earlier, the ministry added.
On the back of their plans to add outlets countrywide, hypermarket operators in Taiwan witnessed their operations improve further in the first 10 months of this year, posting NT$153.9 billion in sales during the period, up 4.5 percent from a year earlier, statistics compiled by the MOEA showed
Carrefour, the largest hypermarket operator in Taiwan, added 12 stores to its chain in the first 10 months of this year to boost its total outlets to 82 since the French retailer has intensified efforts to open smaller-sized stores in urban neighborhoods to take advantage of proximity to consumers, the MOEA said.
RT-Mart (大潤發) ranked as the second largest hypermarket operator in Taiwan, running 26 outlets as of the end of October, unchanged from the end of 2014, ahead of A. Mart (愛買), which operated 20 outlets islandwide as of the end of October, up one from the end of 2014.
Costco came in fourth, operating 11 outlets in Taiwan as of the end of October, up one from the end of 2014, followed by Taisuco (台糖量販), a retail business division of state-owned Taiwan Sugar Corp. (台糖), which operated five stores as of the end of October, unchanged from the end of last year.
A total of 145 hypermarket outlets operated in Taiwan as of the end of October, up 14 from the end of 2014.
The ministry said that the local hypermarket business accounted for 16.2 percent of sales posted by Taiwan’s retail industry in the first 10 months of this year, compared with 15.9 percent recorded in 2014.
