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Feb 13, 2010

Taiwan Beer in China

Taiwan beer production base to be set up in China

May I be the first to say that this plan will be a financial disaster for Taiwan Beer. The Chinese beer market is saturated with low cost producers, and the consumers concerned about quality or "image" are going to go for more international beers, ales or dark lagers. Taiwan Beer stands no chance of making any money with this investment.

And this is coming from someone who drank Taiwan Beer almost exclusively for a very long time.

Export your beer in the US beyond California, dumbasses. Better investment than this stupid plant that's apparently being built in a wave of China fever.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Taiwan Beer should try first to be at least as good as the European ones (which is really far to be the case) before starting to export in Europe or the US.

Richard said...

I agree. I'm in the US, and I want my Taiwan Beer! Although, Taiwan Beer can be found in Washington as well (and I believe other states with decent Asian populations), but you just have to go to those Asian supermarkets like Ranch 99 or Uwajimaya to find it.

Anonymous said...

Why do people without money keep insisting on giving advice to those who do?

If you knew jack-shit about making a profit at business, perhaps you'd be operating your own successful business.

阿牛 said...

Perhaps you're right! But I'd be willing to bet on just how bad of a bet this is on Taiwan Beer's part.

ioksin said...

The company is still semi-state-run, so perhaps making profit is not their primary concern. The company is also sponsoring 100 million RMB in the Asian Games in Guangzhou--that's NT$500 million.

ioksin said...

I think judging what's a good beer and what's not as good is rather subjective. I know a lot of people in Taiwan prefer Taiwan Beer over European beers, and most European beers--except for Heineken and probably Guinness--don't sell very well in Taiwan. There are some good US beers, but something like Bud Light, which I think is not much more than just carbonated water, still sells. A lot of Europeans like actually like local beers, and each local European beer has a unique taste and could taste very different from each other. So for the Taiwan Beer to sell in Europe or in the US, is try to convince consumers why they should drink Taiwan Beer, and not to lose Taiwan Beer's originality in an attempt to be "as good as the European ones", because no matter how close Taiwan Beer can taste like European ones (the question again: which kind of European beer?) it would be just imitation, and not either European beer or Taiwanese beer.

阿牛 said...

iok-sin,

Well said. Taiwan beer can hold its own when doing its own thing, though I'll add that for me, innovations like Strong Red and Strong Black were most welcome, and the results were unique.

Unknown said...

Taiwan Beer is ok if it's the best you can afford.