The Story Behind 'Yuan-Hsiu' Store: Lin Tsang-hsi says inspiration came from wife's braised pork knuckles

(Central News Agency, Ho Hsiu-ling, Taipei, May 24) Uni-President's Cosmed and Starbucks have both reached the 600-store milestone, marked by the opening of the "Yuan-Hsiu" store, which coincides with the birthday of the late founder Kao Chin-yen. Chairman Lin Tsang-hsi said he named the store himself, laughing that the inspiration came while eating his wife Kao Hsiu-ling's signature braised pork knuckles at home. "Yuan" implies high aspirations, and "Hsiu" implies outstanding talent. He also expressed gratitude to his father-in-law, Kao Chin-yen, for giving Kao Hsiu-ling such a good name.

Regarding the origin of the name "Yuan-Hsiu," Lin attended the opening today and explained that because both brands reached 600 stores, it was a commemorative occasion, so he named it himself. "I remember it was a weekend, and my wife (Kao Hsiu-ling) had just made a pot of braised pork knuckles that I like. Suddenly, the inspiration popped up," Lin said. Since both "Yuan" and "Hsiu" are excellent characters, the store name was decided as "Yuan-Hsiu" at that time.

He stated that there is no need to over-interpret the "Hsiu" character in the store name as being taken from his wife's name, but rather "it just happened that this character existed, and we went with it." He laughed, saying, "I can only say thank you to her parents, and thank the founder (Kao Chin-yen) for giving her (Kao Hsiu-ling) a good name." This time, it was just a case of "discovering this name and borrowing flowers to offer to Buddha."

Lin said that choosing to open today was not deliberately arranged for the founder's birthday; it was mainly because the team's preparation schedule happened to be ready, though he laughed and added, "For such big days, we do check the lunar calendar a bit."

When asked about her thoughts on the store name, Kao Hsiu-ling choked up slightly, saying that when Lin proposed the name, she dared not accept it because she did not dare to be mentioned alongside the character "Yuan." She smiled at Lin and said, "I have been grateful for your kindness throughout my work," creating a warm atmosphere at the scene.