Tobacco Asia

28 tobaccoasia / Issue 1, 2017 March / April A century of monopoly After China's Qing dynasty had ceded the island of Formosa (modern Taiwan) to Japan in 1895, the new rulers introduced an informal state mo- nopoly on all tobacco and alcohol products three years later. In 1901, that monopoly was officially incorporated as "Monopoly Bureau of the Taiwan Governor's Office", effectively the precursor entity of current Taiwan Tobacco & Liquor Corporation (TTL), which is still state-owned. To this day oc- cupying the original premises, a beautiful art nouveau edifice in downtown Taipei, TTL remains Taiwan's only domestic manufacturer of tobacco products. End of an era opens market In 2002, the state monopoly system that had en- dured for almost a century was eliminated, the sudden market liberation triggering a strong push by foreign tobacco companies to secure market shares and setting up local manufacturing plants or distribution networks. "Japan Tobacco International (JTI), Impe- rial Tobacco (IMP), British American Tobacco (BAT), and Philip Morris International (PMI) are our main market competitors," said Roger Tien, manager of TTL's department of international business. "But we are aware that some cigarette brands of Korea's KT&G Corporation are now also becoming popular. Though their market share is still negligible, they might become a threat [to TTL] in the future." Surrendering market shares After TTL lost its cushy monopoly, it had to re- linquish considerable market share to its newly emerged competitors. But the company still claims to presently hold on to about 27%. "As more and more multinationals entered the market, some consumers, especially young people, were attracted by their world-renowned brands," Tien explained the development. At present, most of TTL's loyal consumers are of the older genera- tion - and they are gradually fading out. "In order to counteract that predicament, we've launched two new brands in 2015, Vesta and Mars. Their taste and package designs are different from our By Thomas Schmid Taiwan: A Tough, Mature Market When Taiwan's state tobacco monopoly was abolished in 2002, competition between the local TTL Corp. and foreign tobacco companies started heating up. But a plethora of tough regulations make the country a difficult place to handle for everybody. The historical premises of the original "Monopoly Bureau of the Taiwan Governor's Office" in downtown Taipei remain the beautiful headquarters of Taiwan Tobacco & Liquor Corporation to this day. La Rose 520 menthol 520 slims Courtesy of Taiwan Tobacco & Liquor Corporation Courtesy of Taiwan Tobacco & Liquor Corporation

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