Chuan Lian Enterprise Co Ltd (全聯實業), which operates the nation’s largest supermarket chain, Pxmart (全聯福利中心), yesterday said it has formed a partnership with Taipei EasyCard Corp (悠遊卡公司), in a bid to boost sales and contribute an extra 10 percent to the company’s annual sales next year.
EasyCard holders can now pay for goods purchased at more than 700 Pxmart outlets nationwide.
Before that, consumers could only use cash, or swipe their CTBC Bank (中信銀行) credit cards at Pxmart.
Photo: CNA
“This micropayment service offers consumers, especially our 7.5 million members, a more convenient way to pay at Pxmart,” Chuan Lian general manager Tony Tsai (蔡篤昌) told a media briefing.
Sales generated by EasyCard transactions are set to account for 6 percent of company revenue in the preliminary stage, expanding to 10 percent next year, Tsai said.
In addition, Chuan Lian might expand the cooperation with EasyCard to a deposit program and a reward collection program from the second quarter of next year to create more synergy, Tsai added.
To provide more ways to pay, Chuan Lian plans to enable consumers to purchase items with Taishin International Bank (台新銀行) credit cards from January next year.
Asked about the negative impact from the latest oil scandal involving Ting Hsin International Group (頂新集團), Tsai said the company has seen revenue from oil products sold in Pxmarts drop after the incident broke on Wednesday last week, with sales of certain brands down 50 percent.
Tsai said Chuan Lian has taken down problematic oil products from Pxmart outlets’ shelves for two months, indicating that the company obtained the related information ahead of the public.
Chuan Lian chairman Lin Ming-hsiung (林敏雄) further criticized Ting Hsin for its actions, which he said have broken the nation’s reputation as a “kingdom of delicacies.”
However, Chuan Lian does not plan to refuse to sell unproblematic products related to the Ting Hsin group, adding that the company is set to follow government instructions in the issue.
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