Tsai Ming-chang Calls for Momo to Return to Thousand-Dollar Stock; PChome's James Jen: 'It Puts Great Pressure on Me'

TAIPEI (Central News Agency, reporter He Xiu-ling, June 17) — PChome Online, facing intense e-commerce competition, continues to report losses. James Jen, Chairman of PChome Online, said the company thinks every day about achieving profitability tomorrow, and that its cash flow has already turned positive. 'The path ahead is no longer far,' he stated.

Regarding Tsai Ming-chang, Chairman of rival e-commerce company Momo (PChome Media), who recently declared that Momo's stock price would 'crawl back' to become a 'thousand-dollar stock,' Jen frankly admitted, 'The words of Mr. Tsai Ming-chang, my university classmate and longtime friend, naturally put great pressure on me.' However, he emphasized that he does not currently have the conditions to make similar declarations.

In 2024, Uni-President Enterprises participated in a private placement for PChome, becoming its single largest shareholder. Nevertheless, PChome reported another loss in the previous year. The market perceives that PChome's operations have not significantly improved since Uni-President's involvement. Uni-President's Chairman, Luo Zhi-xian, recently stated that the group will not evaluate PChome solely on its individual profitability but will focus on overall synergies.

PChome held its annual shareholders' meeting today. Jen said Luo has granted PChome more time to demonstrate operational results, but PChome itself has not lowered its standards. 'We think every day about achieving profitability tomorrow,' he said. He noted that the company's cash flow has turned positive, and although no financial forecasts can be made for the market, PChome continues to implement various improvement measures to move toward profitability.

Jen explained that operational improvements cannot yield immediate results through a single initiative. For example, recent OMO (Online-Merge-Offline) collaborations with Uni-President, such as the 'Super Express Delivery' and 'PChome GoPick' services, integrate online shopping, convenience store pickup, and membership economies to create more daily consumption scenarios. While initial sales volumes are small, consistent efforts gradually build consumer relationships and allow benefits to emerge over time.

Regarding Tsai Ming-chang's recent statement that Momo will 'crawl back' to become a thousand-dollar stock, in contrast to PChome's past stock price exceeding 500 NT dollars and its current price below 30 NT dollars, Jen admitted, 'The words of my university classmate and close friend, Mr. Tsai Ming-chang, naturally put great pressure on me.'

However, he stated he lacks the conditions to set similar goals. Returning to 500 NT dollars is naturally a management aspiration, but the e-commerce industry still faces challenges. The most critical task now is maintaining market position and innovation capability. As long as PChome continues to launch valuable services and improves performance, the stock price will naturally reflect these achievements.

On the development of the e-commerce industry, Jen noted that market competition is intensifying. Over the past two years, Taiwan's e-commerce companies have faced significant pressure. Following changes in U.S. policies, Chinese e-commerce platforms have flooded Asian and European markets with low-priced goods, with Taiwan being hit hardest. Price has become a key factor in consumer purchasing decisions, compressing the industry's overall profit margins.

Nonetheless, Jen believes Taiwan's e-commerce market still has development potential, supported by favorable conditions such as high trust between consumers and merchants, mature payment tools, and efficient logistics, indicating that the sector still has room for growth. (Edited by Pan Yi-jing)