Coffee to Hot Up on Taiwan Stock Exchange
The popular Taiwanese coffee chain, 85ºC Café, is expected to be listed on the country’s stock exchange by the end of the year, according to reports.
Owned by Gourmet Master Co. Ltd. of the Cayman Islands, the chain operates coffee outlets in both its home market as well as in China, Australia and the US, serving coffee, tea and baked goods.
Following its opening in 2005, the coffee chain has grown in both popularity and strength, becoming particularly renowned for its unique salted coffee.
Having gained approval from a review board of the Taiwan stock exchange, Gourmet Master’s gross margin is said to have exceeded 50 per cent in 2009, with its situation bolstered by increasing demand in the Chinese market where it secured a foothold in 2007. At present, Taiwan generates around 52 per cent of the Cayman Islands-based business’s total revenue, with China representing a 40 per cent share.
According to the Taiwanese exchange, a considerable number of foreign investors have expressed interest in initial listings, which the Exchange views as a result of years of efforts to entice them into using the island to raise funds as a means of boosting Taiwan’s international presence.
In other related news, Taiwan has become the first country to launch a so-called ‘gastro-diplomacy’ drive around its national cuisine in the UK and elsewhere. Taiwan’s consulate in London is hopeful that it will make local dishes such as “stinky tofu” and an omelette based on oysters star performers of the initiative. Both are said to differentiate the country’s cuisine from that of neighbouring China.