台啤 不只是啤酒

■ 高福曼、包陽明、柯智慧、何亞萍（政治大學IMBA學生）、張力元（政治大學IMBA兼任教授）
Taiwan Tobacco and Liquor Corporation was established in 1901 by the Japanese as the Taiwan Government General Monopoly Bureau. The monopoly has recently been restructured as a corporation with a government mandate for privatization. The state owned enterprise, now called Taiwan Tobacco and Liquor Corporation (TTL), remains the largest domestic producer and distributor of tobacco and alcohol products. Currently, the Taiwan beer market generates sales close to US$ 1 billion annually. TTL’s share at over US$ 800 million is approximately 80% of the total market share. Tsingtao, Taiwan’s largest beer importer, holds about an 8% market share with almost US$ 78 million in year 2004 sales. With each percentage market share worth nearly US$ 10 million annually, Kirin, Heineken, San Miguel, Miller, Budweiser, and Corona have stepped up their marketing campaigns to build brand loyalty.
TTL’s goal is to build its domestic market share to the 90% level. Martin Tsai, the Vice President of the company, has been assigned by Morgan Hwang, the Chairman of the company, to spearhead plans for increased competitiveness. The cornerstone of Tsai’s plan is to revitalize Taiwan Beer, one of TTL’s most lucrative products. In addition, VP Tsai has worked to modernize sales, marketing, and product development. The TTL Directors advocate the adoption of modern and flexible marketing strategies and support privatization efforts to boost profits and market position. On the other hand, there are a large number of employees that prefer a go-slow policy with a minimum number of changes to the company to guarantee their jobs as government workers.
Products
Beer accounts for the largest part of TTL’s alcoholic beverage sales. TTL predominantly manufactures and distributes a German style lager, draft beer and light beer. The company recently introduced Gold Medal Taiwan Beer, which has a lighter and less bitter taste, a flavor designed to target the younger generation and female consumers. TTL has seen strong sales since the product hit the market in April 2003, reaching approximately US$300,000 in sales each day. Management claims that the new Gold Medal Taiwan Beer has helped TTL recapture a 4% market share previously lost to competitors.
Corporate Structure and Vision
Unlike private companies focusing on shareholder value or profits, state owned enterprises in Taiwan operate under a cumbersome bureaucracy. However, internal personnel changes have made it easier for TTL to respond to consumer needs and operate more like a privately held company. Managers no longer push goods down the channel as they did during the monopoly days. The new consumer centric vision for TTL promotes listening and responding to demands, preserving brand equity, and promoting product value and position.
Competitors
TTL’s beer market share fell to approximately 75% after foreign companies entered the local market during the early 1990’s. Currently, Tsingtao Beer is a significant competitor. The China-based company supplies many local restaurants and competes with Taiwan Beer and other imported beers in terms of price, freshness and taste.
Sales, Marketing and Distribution
From TTL’s point-of-view, their competitive advantage is the freshness of their product. TTL continues to strictly monitor the production dates stamped on all beer cans and bottles and any products older than 15 days are removed from shelves and sent back to the factory. With production facilities located across Taiwan, TTL has the ability to quickly distribute beer. The distribution network consists of 15 branches and 100 distribution centers that sell directly to 40,000 retailers. Among this number are 500 large retailers that sell Taiwan Beer at wholesale prices directly to restaurants.
TTL’s distribution fleet is responsible for the physical distribution between production plants, branches and dispatching offices. The actual delivery of products to wholesalers and retailers are performed by third party freight carriers and trucking companies through open tender bids. For draft beer, TTL uses contract distributors that provide trucks with refrigeration.
OEM Production and Microbreweries
TTL exports semi-finished beer to Japan, which is then processed and distributed under the Kirin label. After market liberalization in January 2002, the Taiwan government accepted 16 licenses for beer brewing. Among these are licences for Tsingtao’s brewery in Ping Tung and Pier Beer’s microbrewery in Kaohsiung. To date, local production of competing beer brands has had little impact on the market. However, craft beer from microbreweries is predicted to capture 15% of the total market, or nearly US$ 150 million in sales per year.
Export Opportunities
Export markets are of great interest to TTL and they intend to let market demand determine which taste or product they promote overseas. TTL plans to enter the China market using joint ventures after it completes privatization. The plan is to work with local distributors in the coastal provinces of China to establish the brand. However, problems with the use of the name Taiwan Beer may force the use another name, such as TTL Beer, to gain market access.
台灣菸酒公司成立於西元1901年。日據時期名為台灣總督府專賣局，現在則將改制為民營企業，是台灣最大菸酒製造及配銷公司。台灣啤酒市場年度銷售額將近10億美金，台灣菸酒就占近八成，超過八億美金。
最大的競爭對手青島啤酒在2004年以7800萬美元營收，約有8％市占率。因為市占率的每個百分點，代表接近1000萬美元的收益，無怪乎麒麟、海尼根、生力、米勒、百威和可樂那紛紛搶進。
台灣菸酒的目標是提升市占率至九成以上，前董事長黃營杉指派副總經理蔡木霖領導整個計畫，計畫的基礎是年輕、活力化台灣啤酒，這是公司最有利潤的產品之一。
此外，蔡木霖也負責革新銷售、行銷以及產品開發。公司主管認為新穎靈活的行銷策略以及公司民營化有助提升銷售額和市場定位。然而，很多員工偏好漸進改革，保障公務人員的工作權。
產品
啤酒占台灣菸酒生產的酒精飲料產品最大宗。公司主要生產及配銷一種德式啤酒，也販售生啤酒以及淡啤酒。
最近推出的金牌台灣啤酒，口味較淡，也較不苦，是特別為年輕世代和女性消費者設計。自2003年4月上市以來，每天約創造30萬美元的營業額。管理階層宣稱金牌台灣啤酒幫公司奪回4%的市占率。
企業組織和願景
不像私人企業專注在股東價值或利潤上，台灣國營企業以傳統的官僚制度營運。然而，歷來幾次人事更迭卻反而使台灣菸酒更能反應消費者需求，就如同私營企業經營。他們不像過去獨賣時期只是把產品放到通路上讓消費者購買，而能傾聽並回應供應商和消費者的需求、維護品牌權益，並提升產品價值和定位。
競爭者
90年代初期，因國外廠商入境，台灣菸酒公司的市場佔有率下跌至75%。 在所有競爭者當中，青島啤酒是最大對手。這家來自大陸的啤酒公司供應很多餐廳飲品，並且對他們在台灣市場前景看好，認為他們的價格、新鮮度和口味足和台啤以及其他進口啤酒匹敵。
銷售、行銷和配銷
台灣菸酒認為競爭優勢來自產品新鮮度。任何瓶裝或罐裝生啤酒只要超過製造日期15天，立即被撤架送回工廠。因台啤的生產設備在台灣，所以能迅速把產品送到經銷通路上。物流系統包括15個部門、100個發貨中心，直接送到四萬個零售商處。當中，約有四、五百個零售商進一步批發產品到各餐廳。
公司物流車隊負責工廠和各營業單位間產品運輸。批發商和零售商的中間運送，通常經由招標得標的物流業者負責。至於生啤酒產品，公司和簽約業者協議貨車必須配備冷藏設備來運送。
代工生產和小型酒廠
台灣菸酒目前提供半成品到日本，並用麒麟品牌販售。自2002年1月市場開放後，台灣政府已准許16張啤酒生產執照。其中包括青島在屏東的釀酒廠以及位於高雄的碼頭啤酒。到目前為止，本土生產啤酒對市場的衝擊相當小，但估計私人酒廠約有占總市場15%的成長潛力，接近一年1.5億美元。
出口機會
台灣菸酒對出口市場相當感興趣，並意圖根據海外市場需求推出符合的產品或口味。公司計劃在完成民營化後進軍大陸，初步計畫是和當地經銷商合作，先打進沿海省分市場。但也許不能直接以台灣啤酒的名稱上市，必須改名。
【衍生思考Further Thinking】
Taiwan beer is a great beer that is more than a product. The name alone holds brand equity that has been developed for over 80 years. The beer reflects the essence of the good life on Taiwan; eating food with friends, enjoying roadside snacks, watching sports, sharing the Chinese New Year with relatives, travelling to the mountains and beaches, occasions that seem incomplete without Taiwan beer.
The challenge remains though, as TTL continues to change structure and undergo privatization, how will management preserve the name, keep the local market, and grow the overseas market? Should TTL target the China market since the brands equity cannot be preserved there? Should management instead focus on moving Taiwan Beer into the global marketplace to compete directly against the Chinese beers that are already represented around the world?
台灣啤酒代表的意義絕不只啤酒本身，而是一個超過80年經營的品牌象徵，反映了台灣人的生活樂趣。諸如和朋友聚餐、享用路邊攤小吃、看球賽、新年團聚、上山下海旅行等場合中，啤酒都是不可或缺的元素。
可以想見的，台灣菸酒在組織重整和民營化過程中，仍會不斷遭遇挑戰，管理階層也必須不斷思考這些問題:是否保留品牌名稱是否維持台灣市場 是否向海外發展如果必須更名，是否到仍要到大陸發展 是否應該隨著大陸啤酒品牌，也朝國際市場發展？
（政大IMBA website:http://imba.nccu.edu.tw）
【2005/08/07 經濟日報】