Great opportunity for Vietnamese startup products to export to the US market

Bringing Vietnamese pride and culture to overseas Vietnamese

The demand for Vietnamese food among overseas Vietnamese in the US market is increasing, especially agricultural products and regional specialties. Sharing at the talk show "Golden opportunity for export startups", jointly organized by LNS International Corporation, CT Choice and Ca Men Production & Trading Co., Ltd. on November 15, Ms. Jolie Nguyen - Chairman of LNS International Corporation - said: The US is a potential market for Vietnamese products. According to statistics, there are currently about 7 million Vietnamese people living abroad, of which there are more than 3 million Vietnamese people in the US alone.

“In the US, there are currently many distribution channels for Vietnamese goods such as markets, supermarkets, and e-commerce platforms such as Amazon or Sayweee. It is worth noting that overseas Vietnamese in the US always want to use products from their homeland because for them, there are many products that, when mentioned, will remind them of their childhood, of the time they lived in Vietnam and bring national pride,” said Ms. Jolie Nguyen.

Ms. Jolie Nguyen - President of LNS International Corporation shares about opportunities and challenges when bringing products to the US

Meanwhile, according to Ms. Jolie Nguyen, Vietnamese products are currently popular with customers because of their quality and differences compared to other products on the market. This is an opportunity for Vietnamese businesses to expand exports.

Recognizing the potential of the large US market, Mr. Nguyen Duc Nhat Thuan - Founder of Ca Men - said: In June 2023, Ca Men signed an agreement with LNS International Corporation to officially export snakehead fish porridge products to the US. To date, Ca Men has exported 3 containers of snakehead fish porridge, with a total quantity of nearly 150,000 packages, achieving a revenue of nearly 5 billion VND.

Mr. Nguyen Duc Nhat Thuan - Founder of Ca Men shares about the journey of bringing snakehead fish porridge - a specialty of Quang Tri

export

Besides, according to Mr. Nguyen Duc Nhat Thuan, thanks to the story of official export to the US, Ca Men also has the opportunity to connect with partners who are exporters and importers of consumer goods to markets such as: Canada, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand.

In fact, besides Ca Men, there are many other startups exporting Vietnamese specialties and agricultural products to the US. Duy Anh Foods is an example. Although he did not disclose specific figures, Mr. Le Duy Toan - CEO of Duy Anh Foods - said: This enterprise is currently regularly exporting traditional rice paper products - a specialty of Cu Chi district, Ho Chi Minh City to the US market. The good news is that in addition to the US market, the enterprise also has the opportunity to approach many customers in other countries.

Meeting quality and standards is the "passport" to conquer consumers.

Although the demand for Vietnamese products in the US market is large, accessing this market has some difficulties in terms of time and cost. Specifically, the geographical distance is far, so Vietnamese businesses will lose advantages in terms of time and transportation costs. In addition, for food products, transportation must ensure freshness and integrity. In addition, businesses must also strictly comply with regulations of agencies such as the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

In addition to the above difficulties, according to Ms. Jolie Nguyen, many Vietnamese startups produce products with unattractive packaging that is not suitable for foreign markets.

Therefore, when businesses want to export to the US, they need to prepare documents for factory construction, production management rules, risk management, quality management documents depending on each product... because this is a very important "passport", helping products clear customs easily without encountering any barriers.

In particular, manufacturing enterprises must also ensure that product packaging is standard, has full information about nutritional ingredients (nutrition facts), displayed information must be transcribed depending on each market, and has additional warning information about the product...

With more than 20 years of experience in the field of import and export of goods, Ms. Jolie gives advice to businesses, especially startups: The consumption of Vietnamese products abroad depends largely on the media in Vietnam. Customers abroad also "catch the trend" when Vietnam has a hot product, after a while, it will also be available abroad. Many businesses see this and think that exporting by any route (hand-carried, going through unofficial channels), as long as it reaches customers. However, that is a wrong way of thinking. Businesses must follow the official path, providing quality products that meet requirements, and not lose their reputation abroad. "The product must be good to retain customers" - Ms. Jolie emphasized.

Mr. Nguyen Duc Nhat Thuan - Founder of Ca Men: Striving to change to meet market demands

Initially, when launching, Ca Men still did all the manual steps. However, thanks to the spiritual support and advice from LNS on production lines and technological machinery, Ca Men has been making efforts to ensure that the products are packaged professionally but still retain the flavor, so that after enjoying them, people can find the flavor and memories of their childhood.

Economist Huynh Phuoc Nghia: There needs to be a specific policy to promote agricultural export startups.

Vietnam is a country with advantages in agricultural raw materials and specialties. However, the Government also needs to have more specific policies to promote investment in startups in the field of agricultural exports.

In particular, the ability to build a brand for startups is a very important factor for successful export. Businesses standardize processes from the beginning, have in-depth product quality, register for intellectual property protection, brand communication, etc.

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