Best usages and practices in Taiwan

Comparison shopping is strongly advised in Taiwan to stretch one's dollar. Unfortunately honesty is often in short supply among retailers, sales clerks and even medical staff, which, coupled with rampant ignorance, makes your effort to get maximum value for money an uphill battle.

I was told by the receptionist at an opthalmologist that their eye drops are imported, exclusive. Actually I later found the same drops at a drugstore for substantially less and at even cheaper price at another drug store only steps away. So I ended up paying only 50% of the price relative to that of the eye clinic.

An American Tourister suitcase is generally cheaper online in Taiwan but sometimes can be bought for even less if you browse low-end retailers near the Taipei train station.

Never trust most sales clerks in Taiwan who will say anything to close a deal. Also most sales clerks in Taiwan are not very knowledgeable about products and generally can not offer optimal advice.

Always take accuracy of news content in Taiwan with grain of salt. Unfortunately there is scant dedication in journalism in Taiwan, where many reporters are lazy, sloppy to translate, rewrite or even pirate content from other sources (whose source could also be equally questionable).

Cable TV channels in Taiwan generally replay identical content throughout the day with little investigative, original reporting and plenty of superficial content taken from overseas and online sources, to cut cost and labor input.

Thank you Hauthomme. However, these are not really local best usage or practices.

What do people in Taiwan do good and what best practice should we exported abroad?

There are likely similar farmers' markets in cities globally but Taipei has 2 that I patronize and find very convenient and a bountiful source of agricultural products. For a densely populated city as Taipei, having such easy access to a variety of farm products as greens, honey, teas, fruits, specialty or boutique vegetables is amazing, especially considering that most of the suppliers come from rural Taiwan. Despite relatively high realty prices and scarcity of open urban land in Taipei, the city authorities have managed to set up in spacious venue weekend farmers' markets.

Also there are outdoor markets in Taipei selling a range of sundries, foods, produce, greens daily as well as weekends at competitive prices, enabling easy shopping for people in adjacent neighborhoods. Such markets would likely be strictly regulated in some western cities or banned due to disagreement from special interest groups as supermarkets.

Is the point of posting here to suggest "good practices" in Taiwan to "export" abroad?
I didn't realize I am a consultant whose opinions are sought for "export"?
Actually I am merely pointing out the reality to raise awareness for those in Taiwan or considering visiting the island, which is also valuable "advice".

Sounds to me you need to visit Asia, where most practices are copied from the West for better or worse.

China has its own version of Amazon, so does Taiwan. And such copying is repeated across industries.

Taiwan's economy and foreign exchange source rely on the export sector, which obliges the nation to copy what it thinks works in OEM, ODM etc.

The island nation was also once colonized by Japan so still reeks of Japanese influences in mindset, culture etc.

Taiwan is always looking for foreign means to improve its own quality of life.   

To look to Taiwan for "good practices"  to export abroad may be akin to looking for Ferraris in the slums of Mumbai.

Incidentally it also depends on what you mean by "do good".

There were about 6,000 supercars sold yearly in Taiwan in 2017 if I recall correctly.

Taiwan is a tiny island nation about the size of Vancouver Is. in Canada and yet likely has one of the highest per-capita ownership of supercars globally.

Is this due to successful entrepreneurship or bloated ego or exhibitionism or stereotypical nouveau rich tendency?     

After all most Taiwanese in the 1970s and earlier were struggling economically.

Should Taiwan's per-capita supercar ownership be "exported abroad" as practice worthy of emulation?

What is a "supercar"?

Typical examples include Ferrari and Lamborghini which are produced in relatively small volumes and design for 2 passengers with excessively powerful engines that propelled the car usually to 60 miles an hour in less than 6 seconds. These cars generally cost over a hundred thousand US dollars and as much as a million.

That would be useless in Taiwan. What good is the ability to get to 60mph in 6 seconds when the blue truck at the light in front of you cannot get to 60 in 6 hours?

You don't seem to know the mindset among the rich in Taiwan who crave to show off with too many dollars burning holes in their pockets.

I have not enountered any Taiwanese like Hauthomme describes above - and not too many "supercars" (my daughter calls the "pancakes" due to the shape) either.

A good practice for foreigners in Taiwan, at least those who don't read or speak Chinese well, is frequenting buffet restaurants, where you see is what you get. They are also usually cheap, charging a lump sum or by weight, and often vegetarian.
Another good practice is inviting local friends to their favourite restaurant - and let them do the ordering. This way, a good meal for three can be had for the price of one dish in Europe.

hauthomme wrote:

You don't seem to know the mindset among the rich in Taiwan who crave to show off with too many dollars burning holes in their pockets.

I doubt that is exclusive to Taiwan.