Japanese department store apologizes for 'China Taipei' announcement

A complaint has been filed against the Hankyu Umeda Main Store in Osaka after a Taiwanese customer reported hearing the announcement "China Taipei" over the public address system. The incident sparked dissatisfaction among Taiwanese netizens, leading to a formal complaint lodged by a Taiwanese-Japanese VTuber.

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Why did you call out 'China Taipei' when announcing for Taiwanese people? Are you sick? Do you know Hankyu has many Taiwanese customers?

The VTuber, known as Saya, shared the incident on X (formerly Twitter) in Japanese, urging the department store to respect the psychological feelings of its Taiwanese customers. Saya provided a template for a Japanese-worded complaint letter, asking the store to investigate the reason for using the term "China Taipei" and to improve future broadcasts and staff training.

Following the complaint, a manager from the Hankyu Umeda Main Store's Customer Service Promotion Department sent a letter of apology. The manager acknowledged that the store's response caused unpleasant feelings and expressed deep regret. The letter stated that the store's policy is to use "(traveler/guest) from Taiwan," but this was not properly implemented, leading to the customer's distress.

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We deeply apologize for the unpleasant feelings caused by our company's response this time.

The store assured that it would conduct thorough staff education and guidance to prevent similar incidents. The manager emphasized that the store's service provision is free of personal or political intentions and requested continued patronage. The incident has prompted discussions among Japanese netizens regarding the appropriate way to address Taiwanese customers.

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Regarding the matter you inquired about, we absolutely do not carry any personal intentions when providing services to customers. Furthermore, we absolutely do not carry any political intentions when providing services.