The past decade has seen a rise in the number of single-person households in the nation — a trend that has attracted the interest of businesses, which have been providing more services catering to those living alone.
Taiwan had 2.747 million single-person households as of the end of last year, accounting for 32.09 percent of all households, up from 2.023 million in 2007, Ministry of the Interior statistics showed.
Singles are most prevalent in urban areas, with single-person households accounting for 34.92 percent, 34.51 percent and 34.25 percent of all households in Taipei, New Taipei City and Kaohsiung respectively last year.
Photo: CNA
Ministry data also showed that about 40 percent of people between the ages of 30 and 39 were unmarried in 2015.
Businesses are starting to take notice of this consumer group.
Yang Chien-te (楊乾德), a farmer in Pingtung County’s Gaoshu Township (高樹), has started producing a new variant of papaya that weighs only about half as much as those commonly found in markets.
At NT$80 (US$2.64) a piece, the price is on the high side, but Yang said it has become popular breakfast fare among people living alone who like its size.
Recipe books for people living alone have also become popular, especially for women in the 40-to-44 age group, said Books.com.tw, the nation’s largest online bookstore.
Books on solo travel sell well, too, with about 80 percent of the buyers being women, it said.
For example, Chinese translations of picture books by Japanese female author Naoko Takagi, who has published about 30 books on living alone since 2003, have been popular in the past decade.
However, single people admit there are inconveniences and awkward moments.
A 30-year-old public servant, surnamed Wang, who rents an apartment with her elder sister in Taipei, said she and her sister both dine out since they have different work shifts.
Wang said finding someone to have dinner with is not easy, because married coworkers have to go home, while unmarried ones might have a date or other arrangements.
So “single friendly restaurants are a salvation” for us unmarried people, she said.
Chang Hua-chen (張華宸), a barbecue restaurant owner, said he was inspired to open his single-friendly eatery after being discriminated against at a barbecue restaurant.
He never thought his restaurant would become popular among singles, but nearly 40 percent of all customers are singletons, Chang said.
Shen Yu-wei (沈佑威), a spicy hotpot restaurant owner, said single customers normally spend 50 minutes eating a meal, while two customers might spend an hour and a half.
While single customers do not take as much time dining, they spend on average more than customers in a group, Shen said.
“About 30 percent of our monthly revenue, which is nearly NT$1 million, comes from single customers,” he said.
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