President Chain Store Corp (PCSC, 統一超商), the nation’s largest convenience store operator, yesterday said it would introduce new automated coffee machines at some of its outlets to boost coffee sales and operational efficiency.
The company plans to install the machines at 720 of its 7-Eleven outlets by the end of this year to take advantage of opportunities in the coffee sector in Taiwan, where people drink 2.85 billion cups a year, President Chain Store said.
The company had 6,683 stores as of the end of last month, company data showed.
Photo: David Chang/ EPA-EFE
The company said it was replacing the old machines at more than 10 percent of its convenience stores, as coffee shop numbers have grown 1.6 times over the past 10 years, and consumers are placing more emphasis on personalization and premium coffee flavors, the company said.
For example, City Prima specialty coffee is twice as expensive as City coffee drinks, but sales for City Prima have increased more than 40 percent a year, indicating that consumers are willing to pay more for quality, President Chain Store said, citing sales data for medium lattes at 7-Eleven stores.
President Chain Store said it has taken note of the trend, and aims to expand sales and its market share with more co-branded projects and by promoting coffee culture.
The company tested the new coffee machines last quarter and was satisfied with their performance, it said, adding that they are expected to boost sales of specialty coffee by 30 percent this year.
President Chain Store reported record-high monthly revenue last month, with consolidated sales of NT$26.61 billion (US$880.02 million), up 2.38 percent month-on-month and 12.32 percent year-on-year.
The company said it expects revenue to remain healthy this month amid a recovery in consumer spending, coupled with the effect of holiday sales and special back-to-school promotions.
Stephen Garrett, a 27-year-old graduate student, always thought he would study in China, but first the country’s restrictive COVID-19 policies made it nearly impossible and now he has other concerns. The cost is one deterrent, but Garrett is more worried about restrictions on academic freedom and the personal risk of being stranded in China. He is not alone. Only about 700 American students are studying at Chinese universities, down from a peak of nearly 25,000 a decade ago, while there are nearly 300,000 Chinese students at US schools. Some young Americans are discouraged from investing their time in China by what they see
MAJOR DROP: CEO Tim Cook, who is visiting Hanoi, pledged the firm was committed to Vietnam after its smartphone shipments declined 9.6% annually in the first quarter Apple Inc yesterday said it would increase spending on suppliers in Vietnam, a key production hub, as CEO Tim Cook arrived in the country for a two-day visit. The iPhone maker announced the news in a statement on its Web site, but gave no details of how much it would spend or where the money would go. Cook is expected to meet programmers, content creators and students during his visit, online newspaper VnExpress reported. The visit comes as US President Joe Biden’s administration seeks to ramp up Vietnam’s role in the global tech supply chain to reduce the US’ dependence on China. Images on
New apartments in Taiwan’s major cities are getting smaller, while old apartments are increasingly occupied by older people, many of whom live alone, government data showed. The phenomenon has to do with sharpening unaffordable property prices and an aging population, property brokers said. Apartments with one bedroom that are two years old or older have gained a noticeable presence in the nation’s six special municipalities as well as Hsinchu county and city in the past five years, Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房產集團) found, citing data from the government’s real-price transaction platform. In Taipei, apartments with one bedroom accounted for 19 percent of deals last
US CONSCULTANT: The US Department of Commerce’s Ursula Burns is a rarely seen US government consultant to be put forward to sit on the board, nominated as an independent director Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday nominated 10 candidates for its new board of directors, including Ursula Burns from the US Department of Commerce. It is rare that TSMC has nominated a US government consultant to sit on its board. Burns was nominated as one of seven independent directors. She is vice chair of the department’s Advisory Council on Supply Chain Competitiveness. Burns is to stand for election at TSMC’s annual shareholders’ meeting on June 4 along with the rest of the candidates. TSMC chairman Mark Liu (劉德音) was not on the list after in December last