CEO of Mobile World: We have fulfilled our promise to Apple

In 2025, Vietnam will officially become Apple's top market globally. The CEO of the Mobile World chain affirmed that this is a big milestone for the domestic mobile industry.

At 8am on September 19, domestic retailers officially opened sales of the iPhone 17 series in Vietnam. This is the first time Vietnamese customers buy new iPhones at the same time as global markets, among Apple's top markets such as Australia, Japan, and Singapore.

Not just a regular consumer technology product, the iPhone is a "strange" item, especially loved in Vietnam. But after nearly 20 years since the smartphone was launched, domestic iFans have just experienced queuing up and buying the device early.

The upgrade to "tier 1" is largely contributed by domestic retail partners, shifting the purchase of hand-carried iPhones to genuine options. In addition, there is the maturity of the market and the increasing income of Vietnamese customers.

At the opening event, Tri Thuc - Znews had an interview with Mr. Doan Van Hieu Em, CEO of The Gioi Di Dong and TopZone systems, about the significant changes in the iPhone business segment in Vietnam in recent years.

I saw you spent a lot of time talking with the CEO of Apple Vietnam and the company's representatives at today's event. What did you say to them?

We shared that the goal set 4 years ago when opening TopZone was almost completed. From the fact that The Gioi Di Dong and TopZone reached over 50% market share, the annual revenue of the Apple industry could reach over 1 billion dollars, the business has achieved it.

More than 300 people lined up to buy iPhone 17 on Nguyen Hue Walking Street. Photo: TopZone.

Finally, the closing move brought the Vietnamese market to "tier 1", selling on the same day as other countries.

Now, we have to set bigger goals for the following years. In the next 5 years, Mobile World must overcome new milestones. And in that, the Apple product line continues to play an important role.

Compared to its competitors, what makes Mobile World different in the iPhone 17 launch?

In this release, Vietnam is selling at the same time as countries like the US and Singapore, which is very special. With such a big opportunity, we set a goal to do something more groundbreaking. Like where we are standing here is also how TopZone represents Vietnam to Apple. The store space is designed to be imbued with national identity and spirit.

In terms of sales, The Gioi Di Dong has broken the record for pre-orders. The number has been increasing continuously. At the last time I updated, more than 100,000 customers had placed deposits for the iPhone 17 series.

At the point of sale on Nguyen Hue walking street, we plan to deliver 600 units to customers who pre-ordered and lined up the night before. In the next 3 days, the entire Mobile World chain is estimated to release more than 50,000 iPhone 17 units.

The orange iPhone 17 Pro Max is out of stock in Vietnam.

In a year when iPhone prices increased and the economy was in turmoil, The Gioi Di Dong still broke the record for deposits for new models. What led to this achievement?

First of all, it has to come from the product. This year, the iPhone 17 has many upgrades, different products. Apple customers are also often loyal users, upgrading every year.

In addition to selling "physical" products, we also provide soft services such as installment payment packages. This makes it easier for customers to buy high-value phones. This is also the main difference between Mobile World and competitors in the market.

Does the earlier iPhone sales create pressure for dealers to prepare quickly?

As you can see here, there are 300 lucky depositors who got to buy early. Last night, we opened 300 more slots for people to line up to buy the iPhone 17 Pro Max in orange. Despite the rush to prepare, the process still went smoothly and properly.

Upgrading to the group 1 market may lead to a "physical" Apple Store. Is Mobile World concerned about this issue?

I don’t. I believe Mobile World is doing its job well. We have launched a mono-store chain, TopZone. It’s like an Apple Store, but with a strong Vietnamese identity and spirit.

The system is well implemented, if it were Apple, I'm not sure why they need to open an Apple Store. Meanwhile, they can resonate with units like Mobile World, which has a standard mono-store option. I think they don't necessarily need to open a store in Vietnam.

Source: https://znews.vn/ceo-the-gioi-di-dong-chung-toi-da-thuc-hien-duoc-loi-hua-voi-apple-post1586530.html