Lesson 2: Image Building

Brand building, aimed at promoting and enhancing the image and reputation of a product, is a fundamental step for every business.

Besides government support, through various resources, each enterprise in Tien Giang province is constantly striving to build its own image in order to enhance its competitiveness.

NATIONAL BRAND

Many businesses in Tien Giang province have made significant efforts over the years to improve their production processes according to the prescribed criteria in order to be evaluated and recognized as National Brands. Of course, achieving this status is not simple and requires overcoming a very strict set of evaluation criteria. However, Minh Hung Tien Giang Industrial Co., Ltd. (Phuoc Lap commune, Tan Phuoc district) has been repeatedly recognized as having a product brand that meets National Brand standards.

Representatives of Minh Hung Tien Giang Industrial Co., Ltd. receive the National Brand award in 2024.

Most recently, on November 4, 2024, the National Convention Center held the Announcement Ceremony for Products Achieving the Vietnam National Brand Award 2024 with the theme "Reaching Out into the Green Era". This was an opportunity to recognize and honor top-quality products with high scientific and technological content, a strong market reputation, and representing the Vietnam National Brand internationally. Minh Hung Tien Giang Industrial Co., Ltd. was once again honored on this occasion.

Furthermore, Minh Hung Tien Giang Industrial Co., Ltd. was recently awarded the National Quality Gold Award 2024. This award recognizes the company's efforts in applying standards and enhancing the competitiveness and quality of its products in the international market.

The award also honors activities that apply science and technology to increase productivity and quality, and enhance the competitiveness of businesses and the economy . This further motivates businesses to continue investing, innovating technology, and improving product quality.

For every business, having a product recognized as a National Brand or National Quality is a significant event, affirming the product's position with customers not only domestically but also internationally. Naturally, when a product is recognized as a National Brand or National Quality, its standing will be significantly enhanced.

According to Mr. Huynh Huu Thien, Marketing Director of Minh Hung Tien Giang Industrial Co., Ltd., this is an opportunity for the company to promote its brand and products to domestic and international markets. However, the core value is how the company must maintain national brand value and national quality to elevate the value of its products and bring Vietnamese values abroad. Therefore, the business itself must self-reflect and cannot compromise Vietnamese values.

Along with improving product quality and focusing on brand building to enhance its competitive position in the market, Nong Thuan Phat Trading Company Limited has also been building sustainable value for its products in the market.

After a period of dedicated production, business, and brand building efforts, the company has twice received the National Quality Award in the small and medium-sized enterprise sector. According to Mr. Nguyen Van Ung, the company's director, in terms of production and business, the company is focusing on organic fertilizers to meet the shift in consumer demand from inorganic to organic fertilizers, especially for high-value crops. Simultaneously, they are concentrating on building an additional production plant in Thanh My commune, Tan Phuoc district, with plans to put it into operation in the final months of 2025.

In addition, the company continues to build its brand, aiming to further enhance the product's position in the market. "The company also hopes to continue receiving support, attention, and recognition for businesses that comply well with state regulations, so that it has stronger motivation and more sustainable development," said Mr. Nguyen Van Ung.

CHOOSE A NICHE MARKET

Technological innovation, brand building, and choosing a unique approach to product distribution are effective strategies for production and business. Alluvia – a brand of Xuan Ron Cocoa Co., Ltd. (Binh Ninh commune, Cho Gao district) – has been pursuing this approach. Specializing in cocoa products, Alluvia currently has 15 stores in Vietnam and has opened a store in Cambodia.

Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Diep with products bearing the Alluvia brand.

Having been involved in the business for many years, Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Diep, Director of Xuan Ron Cocoa Co., Ltd., said that when people think of chocolate, they immediately think of products from Europe, America… and at most, Japan from Asia. Therefore, the great opportunity for Vietnamese chocolate lies in the niche market of producing handcrafted chocolates.

Therefore, Alluvia chose a niche path with differences in both flavor and packaging to attract customers. Accordingly, most stages of Alluvia's production, from drying, peeling, fermentation, molding, and packaging, are done by hand.

For the grinding and fermentation stages, this company uses European machinery and technology to ensure the finished product is soft and smooth. Furthermore, the packaging process is also meticulously cared for. Each product line of the brand portrays a different image of Vietnam and its people through the brushstrokes of an artist. These include a bustling Ho Chi Minh City, a golden rice harvest season in the Northwest, the ancient town of Hoi An, and sometimes even the image of a Vietnamese girl in an ao dai or lotus flowers...

Of course, the journey of building a brand, innovating technology, or pursuing a unique direction for each product line is a long one, and Alluvia is still striving every day. Defining the future direction, Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Diep emphasized that Alluvia Chocolate is not simply a premium chocolate brand, but also a symbol of commitment to providing the best chocolate experiences for customers. With the vision of becoming a globally beloved chocolate brand, Alluvia continuously strives to create unique and high-quality chocolate products.

Referring to the aspirations of bringing local agricultural products to the international market, Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Diep stated that Alluvia has also faced many challenges in transforming cocoa beans into high-quality chocolate in Vietnam. These challenges include researching and developing machinery for processing cocoa beans, as well as efforts to learn and implement international standard chocolate production techniques.

Despite these obstacles, Alluvia remains determined to increase the value of cocoa beans by transforming them into high-quality chocolate products. With the establishment of the Alluvia brand and the implementation of the "bean-to-bar" method, Alluvia has created high-quality chocolate bars using the finest cocoa beans from Cho Gao district (Tien Giang province). This method not only increases the value of cocoa beans but also contributes to promoting Vietnamese agricultural products in the international market.

Looking back on their journey, having studied at the Foreign Trade University together and pursued different careers after graduation, Nguyen Hai Yen and Nguyen Ngoc Diep ultimately found common ground and dedicated their careers to cocoa farming.

Alluvia started its business in 2014 by investing in its first cocoa bean processing machinery system from the Ho Chi Minh City University of Agriculture and Forestry, but it only had a very small capacity. Also in 2014, Alluvia participated for the first time in the VietFood International Exhibition specializing in Vietnamese food.

Over the course of more than 10 years, Alluvia has established itself as a leading brand with a wide range of cocoa-based products, sold both domestically and internationally. Alluvia's journey of building and fulfilling its dreams from cocoa beans continues.

Technological innovation and digital transformation are not only being promoted in the business sector, but are also gradually shifting in agricultural production, contributing to many benefits and helping the rural economy develop further.

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