Eslite Spectrum Corp (誠品生活), a subsidiary of the Eslite Group (誠品集團) that focuses on operating department stores, plans to open its second store in Hong Kong early next year as part of the group’s broader overseas expansion plan.
The group opened its first bookstore in Hong Kong — its first overseas store — in the second half of 2012, a two-floor location in Causeway Bay’s Hysan Place (希慎廣場).
Taking over a space originally planned for Wing On Department Stores (HK) Ltd (永安百貨), Eslite Spectrum will have two stories of lettable floor area spanning more than 4,552.25m2 in Cityplaza for its second store in Hong Kong.
“We are excited to be working with an original and trend-setting brand such as Eslite Spectrum, and we are confident that our shared creative vision will bring about a refreshing shopping center experience for our visitors at Cityplaza,” Alvin Kong (江璣若), retail director at Swire Properties Ltd (太古地產), one of the territory’s biggest developers and the operator of Cityplaza, said in a statement on Thursday.
Cityplaza has undergone a HK$100 million (US$12.9 million) facelift that upgraded its facilities, enhanced interior finishing and introduced more than 30 local and international retail brands, the statement said.
Swire Properties said Eslite’s lifestyle bookstore and shopping complex might further enhance Cityplaza’s trade mix and quality retail offerings, reinforcing the mall’s position as the largest shopping and entertainment center in Hong Kong.
Eslite Spectrum said it hopes the new store would continue to bring the energy of reading and cultural creativity to the territory.
Eslite Spectrum president Mercy Wu (吳旻潔), who is also vice chairwoman of the Eslite Group, last year said that the group plans to launch two or three outlets in Taiwan and at least one store in an overseas market per year, most likely in China and Hong Kong.
The group is scheduled to open two stores in China later this year in Suzhou and Shanghai.
The group is also ready to open its first boutique hotel in Taipei’s Songshan Cultural and Creative Park, with a media opening of the 104-room facility on Friday next week.
Eslite Spectrum reported consolidated sales in the first month of the year of NT$304.79 million (US$9.69 million), slightly up 0.01 percent from a year earlier. Its overall revenue for last year stood at NT$3.51 billion, up 2.07 percent from 2013, company data showed.
The company posted a net profit of NT$239.85 million, or NT$5.32 per share, for the first nine months of last year, up from a net income of NT$234.14 million, or NT$5.24 per share, recorded in the same period in 2013, statistics said.
After several years flying high as Asia’s best Nvidia Corp proxy, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is increasingly vying with other artificial intelligence (AI) stocks for investor attention. Stock traders are chasing a wider array of beneficiaries as mainstream usage of AI creates demand for hardware beyond the most-advanced chips TSMC makes for Nvidia. Subthemes from the deepening memory crunch to advances in robotics are also luring bids. At the same time, investment caps on single stocks are pushing funds to diversify, while retail investors long familiar with TSMC through its US depositary receipts are being offered a broader set of
UNDER MICROSCOPE: Taiwan detained three people who allegedly conspired to buy servers in Taiwan and export them using fraudulent documentation, prosecutors said Nvidia Corp chief executive officer Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) on Saturday urged Super Micro Computer Inc to tighten up on compliance after Taiwan detained three people this week for allegedly making fraudulent declarations about artificial intelligence (AI) servers made by its US partner. The development marked the nation’s first crackdown on semiconductor smuggling, which grew after the US slapped restrictions on exports of high-end chips such as Nvidia AI accelerators to China. Nvidia is “rigorous” in explaining regulations to all of its partners, Huang told reporters after arriving in Taipei. “Ultimately Super Micro has to run their own company,” he said in response to
TECH RELIANCE: Growth is increasingly reflecting an unequal K-shaped distribution, where technology sectors outperform and other industries struggle, an expert said Standard Chartered Bank has significantly raised its forecast for Taiwan’s economic growth to 9.5 percent this year, up from 7.6 percent previously, citing surging artificial intelligence (AI) demand driving exports, semiconductor production and investment. The upgrade reflects a sustained AI supercycle that continues to fuel demand for advanced chips and technology infrastructure, which form the backbone of Taiwan’s exports, the bank said in a report this week. “We raise our 2026 growth forecast to reflect a much stronger-than-expected first-quarter GDP figure,” Standard Chartered senior economist for greater China and Asia Tommy Wu (胡東安) said in the report. Driven largely by a 35.3 percent
Two of Taiwan’s international carriers, Starlux Airlines Co (星宇航空) and EVA Airways Corp (長榮航空), have retained the five-star airline rating awarded by international airline review organization Skytrax. Starlux was awarded the distinction for a second consecutive year, while EVA Air received it for the 11th straight year, Skytrax said in statements released yesterday and on Thursday last week, respectively. The five-star rating is considered one of the airline industry's highest honors and is awarded following professional audits of airline product and frontline service standards, Skytrax said. The ratings are based on in-depth assessments using unified global quality standards rather than customer review scores
RSS