Cosmed, Starbucks target further expansion after reaching 600 stores

Taipei, May 24 (CNA) Cosmed and Starbucks Taiwan will continue their retail expansion after hitting a milestone of 600 stores for each brand nationwide Sunday, with parent company Uni-President Group Chairman Lo Chih-hsien (羅智先) declaring that the company is already gearing up to establish "the next 600 outlets."

Lo made the remarks at the grand opening ceremony of a new mega-combination store in Taipei's Nangang District, situated opposite the Nangang Station. The location marks the simultaneous launch of both Cosmed's 600th outlet and Starbucks Taiwan's 600th branch.

Named "Yuen-Hsiu" (愿秀), the flagship store honors the group's late founder Kao Ching-yuen (高清愿) and his daughter, Kao Hsiu-ling (高秀玲), who is Lo's wife and heads Uni-President's beauty and wellness businesses.

The venue was jointly launched by Cosmed, Starbucks, and 7-Eleven, which are all subsidiaries of Uni-President Group, Taiwan's largest food and retail conglomerate.

With both Cosmed and Starbucks hitting the 600-store mark in Taiwan, Lo expressed immense optimism regarding future market capacity.

Citing a recent industry report indicating that Taiwan now has over 5,000 coffee shops, Lo observed that "there is still a very long way to go" in strategic retail channel development.

Addressing market concerns about Starbucks' profitability despite its growing footprint, Lo clarified that the coffee chain's earnings have never actually declined.

He explained that fluctuations in financial reports primarily reflect rising royalty payments adjusted for inflation, as licensing fees increase periodically.

Excluding these royalty-related adjustments, Starbucks' profits have continued to grow steadily, Lo said.

Sunday's opening also marks the first time that Cosmed, a fully domestic brand, has overtaken its major foreign-backed competitor Watsons in total store count, making it Taiwan's largest drugstore chain by number of outlets.

Downplaying the fierce rivalry, Lo remarked, "We haven't permanently surpassed them; Watsons is just temporarily lagging a little behind in this ongoing process. Everyone will continue to work hard."

Lo added that future expansion plans will depend heavily on regional demand, with both large- and small-format stores under consideration, depending on real estate availability and suitable landlords.

The newly unveiled Yuen-Hsiu outlet reflects a strategic shift toward next-generation beauty and lifestyle trends, debuting exclusive counter sections dedicated to trending Korean cosmetics brands, according to Kao Hsiu-ling, who also attended the ceremony.

Kao highlighted that Cosmed has experienced robust growth not only in cosmetics and daily necessities but also in pharmaceutical products, a trend directly driven by Taiwan's rapidly aging population.

Moving forward, she said the company will continue aggressively introducing trend-aligned, innovative products to meet evolving consumer demand, while aiming to offer shoppers an enriched sense of novelty and interactive experiences.