TT: Why is it that for the Western palate most Taiwanese bakery items don't taste authentic -- are key ingredients missing?
Wendel: The techniques they use for baking are fundamentally very different. I wouldn't say that the Taiwanese make bad bread, it's just very different to what we are used to in the West. For example, they often use ready-made mix where you just add water and yeast. I use unprocessed freshly ground flour and pure grains imported from Germany and we mix it all ourselves to give it our own unique flavor. This means that not only does our bread taste very different and more authentic, but it is also much healthier.
TT: What percentage of your clientele is from abroad and how do you keep your core customers coming back?
Wendel: Actually only 35 percent of my clientele are now foreigners. When the bakery first opened foreigners made up about 80 percent, but now more and more Taiwanese are coming in. I think that a lot of my Taiwanese customers are initially curious about our products and also about me specifically as a "laowai" (
The Taiwanese are also increasingly paying more attention to a healthy diet. So our bread is ideal for this new healthy living, as we only use natural ingredients, no additives, sugar or fat compared with Taiwanese bread with can have up to 30 percent fat and sugar. Our customers keep coming back because they know we consistently provide a good product.
TT: Have you ever thought about expanding beyond your Tienmou store?
Wendel: We initially chose Tienmou because of the high concentration of foreigners and also the village atmosphere here. The people here are also more outgoing and willing to try new things than is true of other areas of Taipei.
But one of the reasons that I have not gone back to Germany yet is because I still see potential for growth in this market. I would like to open another branch in downtown Taipei, but I'm still looking for the right location.
But my ultimate goal is to keep this traditional German-style bakery true to its roots. And you can only really do that on a small scale, when you have everything under control.I don't want to open a big franchise because it wouldn't be possible to maintain the same quality of product. Now everything is hand-made and that's how I want to keep it.
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