Don Quijote, the biggest discount store in Japan, is opening its first store in Taiwan today.
The three-story Don Don Donki store in Taipei’s Ximending (西門町) area, which operates 24 hours a day, has already created 400 jobs, the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) said in a press release.
Many Taiwanese, including Taipei Deputy Mayor Vivian Huang (黃珊珊), consider a trip to Don Quijote an essential stop in Japan.
Photo courtesy of Department of Investment Services, Ministry of Economic Affairs
“I have been to Don Quijote at least 10 times myself,” Huang said yesterday at a news conference announcing the store’s opening. “They are rendering an important service, because we cannot travel outside of Taiwan at the moment.”
“There are a lot of Don Quijote fans in Taipei and by going to the store they can get a ‘mock travel’ experience,” she said.
Huang credited the Invest in Taipei Office (ITO) for assisting Don Quijote in opening its doors in Taiwan amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The ITO and the MOEA were with the company every step of the way, from forming the Taiwanese company to selecting the location,” Huang said. “As a result, we have [today’s] opening and jobs for many Taiwanese workers.”
A media tour through the store yesterday showed that more than 2,000 Japanese snacks will be available, along with fruit and seafood imported from Japan.
Other products for sale include cosmetics and skincare products, groceries, discount items and even adult entertainment products.
The COVID-19 pandemic is the reason Don Quijote decided to open a branch in Taiwan, said Mitsuyoshi Takeuchi, head of the Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macau business for Pan Pacific International Holdings Corp, the parent company of the Don Quijote chain.
“In the past Taiwanese travelers would go to Don Quijote in Japan to pick up authentic products; now they can get the products they were used to picking up in Japan in Taiwan any time,” Takeuchi said.
The Taiwanese outlet is to focus on products, such as Japanese snacks, that are not commonly available in Taiwan.
Takeuchi said there is fierce retail competition in Taiwan.
“To compete with Pxmart [全聯實業] and Carrefour, we have to keep innovating with new stores and new services, such as delivery or e-commerce,” he said.
Beijing’s continued provocations in the Taiwan Strait reveal its intention to unilaterally change the “status quo” in the area, the US Department of State said on Saturday, calling for a peaceful resolution to cross-strait issues. The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) reported that four China Coast Guard patrol vessels entered restricted and prohibited waters near Kinmen County on Friday and again on Saturday. A State Department spokesperson said that Washington was aware of the incidents, and urged all parties to exercise restraint and refrain from unilaterally changing the “status quo.” “Maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait is in line with our [the
EXTENDED RANGE: Hsiung Sheng missiles, 100 of which might be deployed by the end of the year, could reach Chinese command posts and airport runways, a source said A NT$16.9 billion (US$534.93 million) project to upgrade the military’s missile defense systems would be completed this year, allowing the deployment of at least 100 long-range Hsiung Sheng missiles and providing more deterrence against China, military sources said on Saturday. Hsiung Sheng missiles are an extended-range version of the Hsiung Feng IIE (HF-2E) surface-to-surface cruise missile, and are believed to have a range of up to 1,200km, which would allow them to hit targets well inside China. They went into mass production in 2022, the sources said. The project is part of a special budget for the Ministry of National Defense aimed at
READY TO WORK: Taiwan is eager to cooperate and is hopeful that like-minded states will continue to advocate for its inclusion in regional organizations, Lai said Maintaining the “status quo” in the Taiwan Strait, and peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region must be a top priority, president-elect William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday after meeting with a delegation of US academics. Leaders of the G7, US President Joe Biden and other international heads of state have voiced concerns about the situation in the Strait, as stability in the region is necessary for a safe, peaceful and prosperous world, Lai said. The vice president, who is to be inaugurated in May, welcomed the delegation and thanked them for their support for Taiwan and issues concerning the Strait. The international community
COOPERATION: Two crewmembers from a Chinese fishing boat that sank off Kinmen were rescued, two were found dead and another two were still missing at press time The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) was yesterday working with Chinese rescuers to find two missing crewmembers from a Chinese fishing boat that sank southwest of Kinmen County yesterday, killing two crew. The joint operation managed to rescue two of the boat’s six crewmembers, but two were already dead when they were pulled from the water, the agency said in a statement. Rescuers are still searching for two others from the Min Long Yu 61222, a boat registered in China’s Fujian Province that capsized and sank 1.03 nautical miles (1.9km) southwest of Dongding Island (東碇), it added. CGA Director-General Chou Mei-wu (周美伍) told a