FamilyMart on Tuesday (June 2) will be the first convenience store in Taiwan to sell Made-in-Taiwan face masks since the government relaxed restrictions on sales, while many of its rivals and supermarkets are set to follow suit later this week.

Now that the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) has lifted a ban on the commercial sale of masks, convenience stores and supermarkets have begun to announce rollouts. A government rationing system for face masks had been in place since Feb. 6, as panic buying had set in amid the outbreak of the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19).

FamilyMart will be the first of the four major convenience store chains in Taiwan to start selling surgical masks beginning on Tuesday (June 2). That day, it will begin selling boxes of 50 masks each for the price of NT$299 (US$9.98), which breaks down to NT$5.98 per mask, while membership holders will receive a discounted price of NT$249, or NT$4.98 per mask, reported SETN News.

The masks will be available at all 3,600 FamilyMarts across Taiwan, but the quantity is limited to 20,000 boxes. Meanwhile, 7-Eleven will begin to take pre-orders from Monday (June 1) to Saturday (June 6).

Similar to FamilyMart, 7-Eleven will sell boxes of 50 masks at a specially discounted price of NT$250 (regular price is NT$399), which equates to a price of NT$5 per mask. Customers who use digital payment apps, such as icash 2.0, icash pay, and OPEN??, will receive an additional 5 percent discount.

However, supplies are limited since 7-Eleven will only be offering pre-orders on 25,000 boxes in the first round, and customers are limited to only one box each. As for the two other convenience store chains, Hi-Life is planning to start selling masks on Tuesday, and OK-Mart will begin sales on Wednesday (June 3), but details on pricing and quantities have not yet been announced.

Cosmetics chain Poya was cited by CNA as saying that it will begin selling 1 million masks on Thursday (June 4). It will also sell the medical masks in boxes of 50 each at a price ranging between NT$5 to NT$7 per mask.

Meanwhile, Carrefour will begin selling masks on Monday in packages containing five to seven masks, with customers limited to one package each. Prices have not yet been announced.

Update: 06/01 2:44 p.m.

Hi-Life announced that it will begin selling 20,000 boxes of medical-grade face masks beginning on Tuesday. Like its competitors, it will sell boxes of 50 masks at a price of NT$299 per box, which comes to an average price of NT$5.98 per mask.

OK-Mart announced that it will begin taking preorders on Monday. The convenience store said that customers will be able to order children's and adult's sizes in packages of masks for the price of NT$25, or an average of NT$5 each, and be able to pick them up on Friday (June 5).

OK-Mart said that it will begin directly selling masks as soon as Wednesday (June 3). However, supplies will be limited as the first batch will consist of 20,000 boxes.

© Pakistan Press International, source Asianet-Pakistan