Cosmetics have long been one of the “golden pillars” of revenue for department stores in Taiwan. With rows of beauty counters and a full lineup of brands, they once served as a powerful draw for customers. However, since last year, the halo surrounding the sector has begun to fade. It is not an isolated issue affecting one retailer — it is a widespread phenomenon across department stores in Taiwan.
Department store executives admit that business is tough, but they also stress that the root cause is not a drop in Taiwan’s spending power or a surge in outbound travel. Instead, a closer look at the performance of drugstores reveals a different picture: Mass-market, shelf-based cosmetics continue to thrive.
That shift reflects a broader structural transformation, driven by channel reconfiguration and evolving consumer behavior.
The core reason behind the decline of department store cosmetics counters is not the products, but rather the loss of focus of the purchasing environment. Traditional beauty counters emphasize brand image and personalized service, but to today’s consumers, the “being sold to” experience feels increasingly out of touch.
With greater information transparency and more robust review systems, shoppers are fully capable of making purchasing decisions independently, without relying on sales associates.
Furthermore, post-COVID-19 pandemic hygiene concerns have not fully subsided, making the self-serve, shelf-based purchasing model feel safer and more convenient.
The rise of social media and beauty influencers has also fueled the growth of drugstore brands, enabling them to rapidly build trust and break through traditional brand hierarchy through peer recommendations and social media influencer-driven marketing.
What appears to be a product-level sales fluctuation is a deeper issue involving channel strategy and business logic. Department stores are not merely facing a downturn in cosmetics counters — they are grappling with the breakdown of an entire business model based on “exclusive venues and high-contact service.”
As a new generation of consumers matures, their definition of “experience” is also evolving. No longer seeking personalized, face-to-face pampering, they prefer freedom of choice and a sense of control — shopping without interruption.
That necessitates a complete overhaul of the traditional department store design philosophy. Instead of clinging to high-priced counters, stores should consider creating more flexible beauty retail spaces, or even introducing drugstore-style concept stores to broaden their product range and pricing tiers to meet diverse consumer needs.
From an industry strategy perspective, if department stores hope to reclaim dominance in cosmetics retail, they must break free from the outdated model of “renting a place as a point of sale” and take a more active role in brand management, leveraging data to understand customer profiles, optimizing product assortment and display strategies.
In addition, more effort must be made in designing the customer’s “journey,” so that shoppers do not just enter department stores to buy things, but to experience, explore and even socialize.
Such a transformation is not merely a cosmetic department facelift — it is a crucial litmus test for the reinvention of department stores as a whole. In an era of fragmented sales channels and shifting consumption habits, those who pivot first might well emerge as leaders in the next commercial landscape.
Roger Lo is a freelancer.
Translated by Lin Lee-kai
A gap appears to be emerging between Washington’s foreign policy elites and the broader American public on how the United States should respond to China’s rise. From my vantage working at a think tank in Washington, DC, and through regular travel around the United States, I increasingly experience two distinct discussions. This divergence — between America’s elite hawkishness and public caution — may become one of the least appreciated and most consequential external factors influencing Taiwan’s security environment in the years ahead. Within the American policy community, the dominant view of China has grown unmistakably tough. Many members of Congress, as
After declaring Iran’s military “gone,” US President Donald Trump appealed to the UK, France, Japan and South Korea — as well as China, Iran’s strategic partner — to send minesweepers and naval forces to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. When allies balked, the request turned into a warning: NATO would face “a very bad” future if it refused. The prevailing wisdom is that Trump faces a credibility problem: having spent years insulting allies, he finds they would not rally when he needs them. That is true, but superficial, as though a structural collapse could be caused by wounded feelings. Something
Former Taipei mayor and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) founding chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) was sentenced to 17 years in prison on Thursday, making headlines across major media. However, another case linked to the TPP — the indictment of Chinese immigrant Xu Chunying (徐春鶯) for alleged violations of the Anti-Infiltration Act (反滲透法) on Tuesday — has also stirred up heated discussions. Born in Shanghai, Xu became a resident of Taiwan through marriage in 1993. Currently the director of the Taiwan New Immigrant Development Association, she was elected to serve as legislator-at-large for the TPP in 2023, but was later charged with involvement
Out of 64 participating universities in this year’s Stars Program — through which schools directly recommend their top students to universities for admission — only 19 filled their admissions quotas. There were 922 vacancies, down more than 200 from last year; top universities had 37 unfilled places, 40 fewer than last year. The original purpose of the Stars Program was to expand admissions to a wider range of students. However, certain departments at elite universities that failed to meet their admissions quotas are not improving. Vacancies at top universities are linked to students’ program preferences on their applications, but inappropriate admission
RSS