Korean Brands Increasing Popularity in Taiwan Fast Moving Consumer Good and Beauty Market

Korean Brands Increasing Popularity in Taiwan Fast Moving Consumer Good and Beauty Market

Innovative product on health and convenience, professional endorsement and riding on festival are key to success

TAIPEI, Taiwan, June 28, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- It's no secret all things Korean are hot in Taiwan. Korean dramas have set the stage for a preference of many things Korean among Taiwanese consumers. Whether its shampoo, facial moisturizer, instant noodles or lipstick, leveraging that affinity will create rewards for advertisers who aim to deepen Korean branding in Taiwan.

Taiwan has half the population and a third of the geographical size of South Korea. Taiwanese consumers are living longer and they want healthier lifestyles. A willingness to try new brands and products was also affirmed by 79% of respondents, according to Nielsen.

"With more Taiwanese traveling to South Korea for holiday and Korean dramas taking prime time slots in Taiwan, Korean brands are poised to win over Taiwan consumers in the eye of the K-storm," said Desmond Wang, Managing Director, Nielsen Taiwan.

Two Holidays Rake In Major Revenue

The Chinese New Year Festival and the Ghost Festival/Mid-Autumn Festival and its run-up month are the most lucrative periods for fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) on the island. In 2017, the festivals, measured over the months of January, February, August and September, contributed higher portion of full-year sales for categories, especially for biscuits, soft drink and instant noodles, according to the latest Nielsen report on Taiwan's FMCG market.

Health Conscious With Potential

The latest consumer trends in Taiwan embracing healthy dietary choices and intelligent beauty care are key to driving future business opportunities. Half (51%) of Taiwanese respondents aged 12 to 65 surveyed said they would give priority to purchase products that were natural or organic, according to the latest Nielsen Life Index.

In the food and drinks area, 88% of Taiwanese respondents try to avoid artificial sweeteners in their purchases, while 89% and 91% try to avoid genetically modified organisms and artificial preservatives, respectively. 

"Products highlighting natural, organic or added-free ingredients showed faster growth rates in 2017 than compared to a year ago," said Wang.

Stamp of Expertise Sets Professional Tone

In health and beauty, branding that emphasizes a line of professional products or certification lend credibility, for example, to hair and skin care products. Professionally-recommended body lotion products grew 46.6% while total body lotion market grew only 5.1%, according to Nielsen Retail Measurement for the MAT period ending April 2018.

Small is the New Big in Convenience

Also, trending big, according to Nielsen, are small-sized packaging and small premium brands. In the food segment, the growth rate of small pack-size outperformed in its category, such as rice sold in bags of less than 3 kilograms or soy sauce of less than 600-mililiter bottles.

Social Media Brings Opportunities

Among the most connected of consumers in Asia, Taiwanese consumers are digital buyers.

Taiwan's 2017 FMCG market grew 3.1%, but the growth rate for the online market outpaced the overall rate at 18.2%. Similar growth dynamics are seen in the Taiwan's beauty care market, making online a channel to leverage for brand executives.

In particular, the dynamics of information sharing among friends in a social media network creates opportunities, particularly for smaller brands, through this channel. 

"Social media has become an indispensable element in getting the attention of the consumer in Taiwan's beauty market. Connected-spenders are the digital consumers of the future," said Wang.

Taiwan consumers are besotted with the K-storm from their northern Asian neighbor. By channeling the interest in all-natural, professionally-backed brands and being part of a social media buzz -- Korean brands can thrive and win.

About Nielsen

Nielsen Holdings plc (NYSE: NLSN) is a global performance management company that provides a comprehensive understanding of what consumers Watch and Buy. Nielsen's Watch segment provides media and advertising clients with Total Audience measurement services across all devices where content -- video, audio and text -- is consumed. The Buy segment offers consumer packaged goods manufacturers and retailers the industry's only global view of retail performance measurement. By integrating information from its Watch and Buy segments and other data sources, Nielsen provides its clients with both world-class measurement as well as analytics that help improve performance. Nielsen, an S&P 500 company, has operations in over 100 countries that cover more than 90% of the world's population. For more information, visit www.nielsen.com.

SOURCE Nielsen