Twenty years ago, young women selling betel were a common sight along Taiwan's roads. Now a shop in Taipei is taking a new approach to the traditional trade, creating their own brand of uniquely Taiwanese influencer -- proving that while people may be losing their taste for betelnut, they aren't losing their taste for betelnut beauties.
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00:00If you drive across Taiwan, you will notice women doing business along the country's
00:08highways.
00:10In a cultural phenomenon unique to Taiwan, these women, known as beetle nut beauties,
00:14wear revealing clothing to market beetle, an addictive cancer-causing stimulant harvested
00:19from palm trees.
00:20Over the last two decades, growing awareness of the health risks of using beetle, and government
00:40controls restricting how much skin beetle nut beauties can show, have seen their numbers
00:44drop sharply.
00:45Now, a shop and artist collective in Taipei called Baby Beetle Nut is bucking the trend
00:51by modernizing a very traditional industry.
01:12Baby Beetle Nut is taking the aesthetic of beetle nut beauties, the revealing photos,
01:16the fishnet tights, and the neon, and creating their own brand of uniquely Taiwanese influencer.
01:38It's a model that's made them famous in Taipei's nightlife scene and beyond.
01:42The beauties at Baby Beetle Nut attend events in Shanghai and Tokyo, and pop up in music
01:47videos for local artists.
02:09Their growing social media presence has seen Baby Beetle Nut's merchandise outsell their
02:14beetle.
02:15Traditional items like calendars.
02:31And new items like t-shirts and zines.
02:48And while they may be finding success online by working with local creatives, Baby Beetle
02:53Nut stays true to its roots, selling the same beetle, cigarettes, and drinks as kiosks around
02:59the country.
03:00But they're also finding new ways to keep a disappearing cultural phenomenon relevant
03:05and reduce the harm it causes by brewing beetle into beers and incorporating them into cocktails.
03:11The trick to success?
03:13They say the core of a business remains the same.
03:36While beetle nut shops may be disappearing from roadsides here in Taiwan, the women who
03:40had worked in them are still finding audiences online, proving that while people may be losing
03:45their taste for beetle, they haven't lost their taste for beetle nut beauties.
03:49Ryan Wu, Sandy Chee, and Bryn Thomas for Taiwan Plus.