Quirky 'cake towels' revitalize old family business

Lin Ying-sui's round cake bases, intricate cream decorations and fruit toppings may appear delectable at first glance, but a closer look reveals that they are not actual cakes. They are, in fact, cake-shaped towels ingeniously crafted by the Taiwan entrepreneur.

These nonedible "cakes" have not only enabled Lin to rescue his family's towel factory in Taiwan but also propelled the 56-year-old entrepreneur across the sea to venture into new markets on the Chinese mainland.

Drawing inspiration from the local culture of Fuzhou, Fujian province, Lin has created towel cakes that mimic local delicacies, trees and flowers in a move that has captured public attention and gained popularity.

His assortment of charming cake-shaped towels resembling pandas, the God of Wealth, cats, mooncakes and zongzi (a festive snack made from glutinous rice) have captivated audiences and attracted visitors at exhibitions.

Hailing from Huwei township in Yunlin, Taiwan, a renowned center for towel manufacturing, Lin's family-owned factory thrived for more than four decades. During the town's heyday, it boasted hundreds of towel factories. However, the influx of cheaper imported towels resulting from international trade in the early 2000s posed a significant challenge to local manufacturers.

Upon Lin's return to his hometown in 2005 after working in game art design in Chengdu, Sichuan province, he found that only 50 towel factories, including his family's, remained operational, all on the brink of closure.

Although Lin had never been keen on entering the towel industry himself, at that juncture, he had to assist his parents in revitalizing their family's towel factory.