著者

関沢 俊弘

出版者

Business History Society of Japan

雑誌

経営史学 (ISSN:03869113)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.46, no.1, pp.1_29-1_55, 2011 (Released:2014-09-10)

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Recent studies contend that Taiwanese small- and medium-sized enterprises not only were able to survive but thrive during Japanese colonial rule. However, the scarcity of primary historical sources has not led to further research in this area. This article analyzes the factors for the business failure of a Japanese enterprise, the Taiwan Canned Pineapple Co. (TCPC), which was the first packer in Taiwan, and through this case study, indirectly highlights the reasons for the resilience of Taiwanese enterprises.TCPC prospered in the early 1920s. However, when many Taiwanese packers entered the market from the mid-1920s, TCPC faced difficulties, even though it adopted the new business policy of focusing on the quantity rather than the quality of products. The causes of TCPC' s slump can be explained as follows.First, the measures taken by TCPC, such as processing by machinery and procurement of pineapples from its own plantation, were not appropriate for the condition of the market and the technology of the pineapple industry at that time. In particular, TCPC' s investment in the pineapple plantation, unlike the situation where most Taiwanese factories did not possess their own pineapple plantations, was a crucial factor for its poor business performance. In marked contrast to TCPC, Taiwanese factories also adopted a labor-intensive method of production, which further contributed to its success in the industry.Second, after the bankruptcy of Suzuki & Co. in 1927, TCPC did not involve trading companies and wholesalers as its shareholders and did not have close connection with them. TCPC, therefore, became disadvantaged not only in sales and marketing but also in financing.Third, the assistance which the Japanese colonial government (Taiwan Sotokufu) provided to TCPC, such as the disposal of government land and lending of machinery, did not help much in facilitating TCPC' s business.In conclusion, this case study shows that Japanese small- and medium-sized enterprises could not compete with Taiwanese enterprises in such labor- intensive light industries as the canned pineapple industry.