Taiwan courts luxury consumers

The “Made in Taiwan” brand has for years been dismissed as a sign of cheap and often poorly made goods.

But the island’s production lines are today full of luxury high-tech innovations, including a $10m custom-made yacht and the ultra-light Acer computer brand, which is poised to edge out the US Dell computer company this year as the world’s second-largest maker of PCs.

Stan Shih, Acer’s founder, is credited for transforming the “Made in Taiwan” label and says he convinced the island’s top industries to concentrate on giving the customers what they want.

Al Jazeera’s Steve Chao reports from Kaoshiung, Taiwan, where the new business model is making waves.