Everyone's first choice
In addition to his Chungshan North Road location, Chen operates a second Bing Go in Hsinchuang that caters to the Southeast Asian workers in Hsinchuang and Taishan. Though the two stores stock everything from shampoo to drinks and snacks, the Filipino workers who comprise their customer base don't have a lot to spend. What they do have tends to go largely on instant noodles and canned goods, sales of which account for about 50% of the stores' revenues.
"Saturday and Sunday have been accounting for about 70% of my business since the day I opened," says Chen. Though that's remained unchanged, Chen notes that he's seeing more and more Taiwanese customers.
Chen says that Taiwanese are drawn to his stores by his prices. Take toothpaste, for example. A tube of mainland-China manufactured Colgate toothpaste sells for different prices in the Philippines and Taiwan. By comparing prices, these shops are able to import goods to Taiwan at lower cost and then sell them more cheaply. Dried mangoes offer another example. By purchasing the same dried mangoes directly from the Philippines, Chen can sell them much more cheaply than local supermarkets.
Taiwanese are also attracted by the unusual nature of some of the products. Many become Bing Go customers after sampling soda crackers, dried mango, or the popular Filipino banana chips and fruit drinks.
The Philippines abound with tropical plants, and produces large volumes of pineapple, mango, and coconut. These in turn are widely used to produce dried mango, canned fruits, and juices, as well as in ice creams and everyday dishes.
Filipino fruit juices, for example, are quite different from their Taiwanese counterparts. Whereas Taiwanese juices tend to be light, low-calorie concoctions, the Filipino juices are thick and flavorful beverages that contain a great deal more sugar and many more calories. Filipinos also commonly use fruit in sodas, including the kumquat and lemon sodas that have recently been selling well in Taiwan. The availability of mixed-fruit juices, cookies with unusual fruit fillings, and fruit powders further reflects the remarkable diversity of fruits available in the Philippines.
St Christopher's Church is at the heart of Taipei's Filipino district, but over the years the area has gradually begun to serve commercial and social functions as well. Business is always good at the Bing Go market, which paved the way for this development. The photo shows Filipino workers watching TV in front of Bing Go on a Sunday afternoon after Mass.