Taiwanese, Turkish textile brands meet

Deniz Çiyan ISTANBUL – Hürriyet Daily News

Managers of Taiwanese department stores and shopping malls came together with representatives of Turkish textile brands in Istanbul on Sept. 24 as part of an attempt by the East Asian territory to attract Turkish brands to its market.

Chen Wen Long, the deputy general of Tonlin department store, told the Hürriyet Daily News that the price-quality ratio of the Turkish brands was reasonable and that they could be sold in Taiwan.

“If you go to Taiwan and see the market there it will give you a better idea of the Taiwan market and what your brand can do,” said Chen, adding that the Turkish brands should organize a fair in Taiwan to promote the recognition of Turkey and Turkish brands.

The 2013 Taipei Trade Mission to the 16th Asia Pacific Retail Convention and Exhibition (APRCE), which took place between Sept. 23 and 26 in Istanbul, met representatives of Turkish brands Vakko, Beymen, LC WAIKIKI, Linens and Karaca Home.

The meeting, organized by the Taiwan Trade Center in Istanbul, was an opportunity to get to know Turkish brands and invite them to enter the Taiwanese market, said Huang Chin Wen, the president of the Pacific SOGO Department Store.

‘Taiwan has most shopping malls’

Huang told the Daily News that while Taiwan had a population of just 23 million people, it also had the most shopping malls in the world.

The Taiwanese are better acquainted with European and American brands, but department stores and shopping malls are looking for new brands to promote in the country’s market, Huang said.

The manager of the 101 Taipei Financial Center Corporation, Sun Ching Yuan, told the Daily News that while China implemented a 17 percent VAT, Taiwan charged just a 5 percent VAT.

“As the taxes in Taiwan are cheaper than in China, people from China come to our country to buy luxury brands. You could also enter this market,” said Sun.