Yoshii Department Store

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Yoshii Department Store, also called Jijin Department Store and nicknamed “Five-story,” was a five-floor department store in Enteichō, Takao (now Yancheng District, Kaohsiung), Taiwan. It opened in 1938 and was the first department store in Kaohsiung. The store was founded by Yoshii Chōhei from Shiga, Japan. He came to Taiwan in 1908 and started selling Western goods in Taihoku (Taipei); later he moved to Takao to expand his business and opened five Takao branches. In 1921, a five-story building was built at the headquarters at Kotobukichō, which became Yoshii Department Store. The store withstood Allied bombing late in World War II, though it was damaged.

After the war, Huang Yao took over and operated it as Kaohsiung Department Store until Ta Shing Department Store opened nearby, leading to Yoshii’s closure. The building was sold to Hua Nan Bank and demolished in 1994. Ta Shing founder Wu Yao-ting later said his decision to start a competing store came after a negative experience shopping at Yoshii when he was 17.