What’s most interesting about this report, compared to others like the Best Global Taiwan Brands award, is that it ranks homegrown brands against global brands. On top of that, consumer recognition for the brands in Taiwan can be analyzed against consumer recognition in other APAC markets. So not only can you compare consumer recognition for PX Mart and Carrefour in Taiwan for example, but you can also compare consumer recognition of Carrefour in Taiwan to that in China, or any other APAC market. If you want to know more about how the data was gathered then follow this link to the methodology.
The report cites opinions from brand experts in Taiwan such as Eric Chang (CEO of McCann Worldgroup Taiwan) and myself. As International PR & Marketing Project Manager at DDG branding agency in Taipei, my job is to make noise about Taiwanese brands on the world stage. You can read my comments about Taiwan’s top local brands and Taiwan’s top mobile-friendly brands on Campaign Asia, which is one of my go to places for branding, marketing, and PR industry news.
Uni-President’s success at glocalization
Coming-in at ninth position, the homegrown brand most recognized by consumers in Taiwan is Uni-President. Headquartered in Tainan with subsidiaries in China and Thailand, it is slated as the largest food production company in Taiwan, and the thirteenth most recognized brand in China too. Its success in Taiwan comes on the back of local partnerships with a number of global brands including Starbucks, 7-Eleven, and Carrefour.
What would I point to as the secret to its success in building consumer recognition? Glocalization, which is the simultaneous occurrence of both universalizing and particularizing tendencies in contemporary social, political, and economic systems (as defined by Encyclopedia Britannica). The original champions of this model were Japanese brands who mastered the art of turning cultural products into global brands. Consider gaming brands such as Nintendo and Sega, and how they reinvented Japanese cultural products such as anime and manga in order to appeal not just to Japanese consumers, but consumers all around the globe.
As the Taiwan partner of 7-Eleven and Carrefour, Uni-President has powerful retail sales channels, guaranteeing the food manufacturer plenty of brand recognition among consumers. Next time you shop at 7-Eleven for instant noodles, orange juice, or whatever else, see if you notice the little, red Uni-President logo on the packaging. According to the World Instant Noodles Association, Taiwan consumed 820 million servings of instant noodles in 2017, which means that last year there were probably hundreds of millions of brand interactions between Uni-President and Taiwanese consumers through instant noodles alone.
While successful global partnerships enhance the Uni-President brand, it builds consumer recognition for its global partner brands through localization efforts. The matcha offerings on the menu at Starbucks in Taiwan since 2002 are a prime example of its prevailing localization efforts; green tea is a familiar flavor for Taiwanese consumers, and it brings an enticingly local twist to Starbucks’ lattes and frappuccinos. Starbucks Taiwan’s matcha products weren’t just a big hit in Taiwan, in fact they took off at Starbucks all over the globe.
Now you know about Uni-President’s global recognition, does it make you think more highly of the Uni-President brand? If so, then that is the effect of glocalization in branding. Making global success reflects positively on consumer recognition in the domestic market, and vice versa.
Shocking insights on global technology brands in Taiwan
Across the whole of Asia, Samsung places first in Asia’s Top 1000 Brands, narrowly ahead of Apple in second place. However, Taiwan is a different story, where the effect to which Apple outperforms its closest competitors in the technology industry is shocking. In Taiwan, Apple places first, while Samsung places all the way down in eighth, behind the likes of Sony, Panasonic, and Hitachi.
Apple’s success could be attributed to its flagship store, which opened in Taipei last year, offering Taiwanese consumers an unparalleled retail experience. Rumors suggest that Apple may be planning to open a second store in Taipei next year, which would double down on the success garnered at its flagship store. Apple’s retail upgrade was a long time coming, considering that it previously relied solely on third party retailers in Taiwan. The Samsung retail experience in Taipei is relatively poor, represented by small, insignificant stores dotted around the city, which is not dissimilar to the situation that Apple found itself in just a few years ago.
Homegrown technology brands such as ASUS didn’t even make it into the top one-hundred, which is surprising to say that many are global leaders in the gaming hardware market. Taiwan has a huge demand for gaming, and Taiwanese brands like ASUS could make big gains. Seemingly, they have a lot to learn from Apple about how retail experience can boost brand performance, consumer recognition, and ultimately impact their bottom line.
The other homegrown brands in the top one-hundred are:
(23) Carplus — vehicle rental, leasing, and chauffeur services.
(24) Chunghwa Telecom — national telecommunications company.
(26) T-cat — logistics company.
(27) COSMED — cosmetics retailer.
(34) 55688 — taxi app.
(37) I Mei — food production company and retailer.
(42) Mei Ri C — fruit juice product by Wei Chuan.
(43) Wei Chuan — food production company.
(47) CPC — national petroleum corporation.
(50) PX Mart — supermarket chain.
(59) Taiwan Beer — national beer production company.
(65) Kuang Chuan — food production company.
(66) Formosa Petrochemical — petrochemical production company.
(73) EVA Air — Taiwan-based airline.
(76) Y.E.S Mineral Water — deep ocean mineral production company.
(85) Cathay Life Insurance — financial services.
(95) 85 Degrees C — food production company and retailer.
(99) KYMCO — scooters and automotive.
(100) Wei Lih — food production company.
(Feature photo by Jayson Delos Santos from Pexels)
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