Businessman Nguyen Van Dung, Director of Asia Gate Travel: The man who solves impossible tasks

Businessman Nguyen Van Dung, Director of Asia Gate Travel. Photo: Ho Ha.

“Sowing seeds” from childhood trips

Amidst the bustling working atmosphere at the Asia Gate Travel office on Lang Ha street, the conversation with businessman Nguyen Van Dung was constantly interrupted by staff who needed him to urgently sign tour contracts for customers who had transferred deposits. Reading carefully before signing, his calm demeanor always made the person opposite him feel two words: steadfastness in this CEO born in 1986.

CHAT WITH BUSINESSMAN NGUYEN VAN DUNG:
The moment you felt you "mature" in your career?
- When I dare to refuse a big contract because the customer wants a service of lower quality than the standards I set.
Survival skills for tourism workers?
- Stay calm when an incident occurs and always put yourself in the customer's shoes.
What touches you most from customers?
- When they say: “This trip healed me”.
Which adjective best describes you?
- Persist
What keywords do you want to associate with your name when talking about travel?
- Kindness.

Born and raised in a rustic countryside of Thanh Hoa, at the age of 6, on his first trip with his grandfather to visit his hometown in Phu Xuyen ( Hanoi ), little Dung was able to see the luxurious city and the roads larger than his imagination, which planted in his heart a dream: to go, to see, to understand.

At the beginning of grade 12, when he learned about tourism through a newspaper article, Dung was determined to pass the entrance exam to the Faculty of Tourism, University of Social Sciences and Humanities (Vietnam National University, Hanoi). Right from his first year, he read many specialized books on tourism, although he only studied it in his third year. At the end of his first year, he started leading tours to gain practical experience in the profession. For the first two years after graduating from university, he continued to work as a tour guide to explore many new lands and absorb lessons that were not taught in the classroom.

Having played many roles, from tour guide, operator, businessman to entrepreneur, Nguyen Van Dung always maintains the principle of doing his job with all his heart. At the end of 2017, he co-founded and became the Director of Asia Gate Travel (Asia Gate Travel Joint Stock Company), with all 3 segments: domestic, outbound (bringing Vietnamese people to travel abroad) and inbound (welcoming international visitors to Vietnam). He aspires to realize ideas that he did not have the opportunity to implement at his old company.

Faced with a "tsunami" but still not giving up

In early 2020, when the Covid-19 pandemic hit, the tourism industry was paralyzed. Asia Gate Travel was only two years old at that time, a young business that had just established its foothold, but suddenly faced an unprecedented "tsunami" in the tourism industry.

CEO Nguyen Van Dung still clearly remembers the feeling of emptiness when a series of contracts were canceled in just one week, emails asking to stop tours poured in, and all plans collapsed. But when many travel businesses chose to close, he chose a different path: keeping people, keeping spirit, keeping hope. During the first year of the pandemic, he still tried to maintain salaries for the core team, paid full insurance, and found every way to make sure his colleagues did not feel alone. "Keeping people in peaceful times is easy. But keeping people in stormy times is the hardest and most rewarding thing to do," he shared.

When both the inbound and outbound markets froze, Dung quickly pivoted to domestic tourism. Small tours, private tours for families or business groups began to be built with strict medical procedures and high personalization. He told of a group of corporate guests who went on vacation to Ha Long right after the social distancing was eased. The hotel refused to accept guests without test results. Instead of giving up, Dung contacted the medical team to take samples for testing on site, sending the results directly to the hotel to ensure safety without bothering guests. “At that time, there was no formula, only initiative and a spirit of not accepting to stop,” he said.

In addition, Asia Gate Travel is also trusted by some partners to organize a complete package for foreign experts to work in Vietnam during the epidemic: from visa application, flight booking, testing, quarantine, to accompanying services. "As long as there is an opportunity, I will do it. As long as there is movement, there is survival. So that when the "storm" passes, we will not have to start from zero again", he believes so, and reality has proven that belief is not wrong.

When the pandemic gradually subsided, tourism bounced back strongly like a spring that had been compressed for too long. Asia Gate Travel was no exception. Customers returned in droves, many going on five consecutive tours in just a few months. Despite the lack of staff and the heavy workload, no one complained, because the time spent “sticking around” during the pandemic had trained them to become real professionals.

“The first trip after the pandemic was successful, the customers were satisfied, I am happy that I did not give up,” Dung said. For him, Covid-19 is not just a crisis, it is a test of courage, perseverance and faith.

Always consider customers as family

“If you want to take customers far, you must first get close to them,” that is also the guiding principle throughout the journey of businessman Nguyen Van Dung in tourism. In a world where everything can be digitized and standardized, he still chooses to stick with the most manual part of the profession: listening, observing and taking care of every little detail with the heart of a companion.

In addition to popular tours, Asia Gate Travel is currently developing specialized tours, personalized to each specific need, as the slogan he set out "Make your trip impressive". From tours that touch the controlled adventurous beauty of Pakistan; tours to experience Japan in winter but without crowded places; or the novel Xinjiang caravan tour... with CEO Nguyen Van Dung, each trip must be "right person, right time" and absolutely not confined to a fixed formula.

Asia Gate Travel's long-term vision is to promote inbound, beyond outbound, because the CEO wants to turn his company into a true "Gateway to Asia": taking Vietnamese people far away to broaden their knowledge, and bringing international friends closer to the culture, people, and country of Vietnam. The word "Gate" in the company's name also carries the image of village gates in the countryside of Vietnam. A simple saying but fully encapsulates the career philosophy he pursues: "not selling tours, but creating emotions". To do that, he invests in seemingly invisible things: building a team with solid skills, surveying services according to international standards, training in problem-solving skills, and most importantly, nurturing the spirit of working with heart.

For him, professionalism starts with kindness. A delicious meal, a clean bed, a timely smile… are sometimes what customers remember, not a grand schedule. “I always remind my staff: whatever you do, think about the customer, put yourself in the customer’s shoes, profit still comes second. Because when the customer is happy, revenue will come automatically. When the customer trusts, the brand will grow by itself,” he revealed.

In 2010, when he was still a tour operator, Nguyen Van Dung encountered a memorable incident: a large group of tourists from Hanoi to Da Nang by train, everything was finalized, but close to the departure time, the supplier reported a shortage of tickets. The whole group was at risk of "breaking the tour" just because of a mistake beyond control. Faced with that incident, Dung quickly bought plane tickets for the group instead of booking train tickets for a later trip. He accepted the loss, but in return was absolute trust. "The customers were surprised and happy. After that, many people still came back, looking for me wherever they went on tours," he said. For the Tiger businessman, it was not only a way to handle a crisis, but also an early lesson in the value of trust and creating emotional experiences.

In recent years, while many companies have chosen to invest heavily in technology, communications or advertising, Nguyen Van Dung has quietly focused on improving product quality and service experience. He is not in a hurry to follow trends, because he believes that sustainable differentiation does not come from speed, but from depth. “I do not need Asia Gate Travel to be the most outstanding, but it must be the most trustworthy,” he asserted.

What makes Nguyen Van Dung different is his ability to put himself in the shoes of his customers, taking care of them like family members. Once, a group of several hundred people went on a business trip and vacation to Nha Trang during the peak season of April 30 and May 1, and most of the hotels were fully booked. Undaunted, Mr. Dung quietly worked through lunch, calling more than 100 large and small hotels, checking each one, carefully recording the number of rooms left, room type, location, etc. Finally, he gathered enough accommodation for the whole group in the same area, meeting the standards requested by the customers. "When the customers knew that I had personally checked each facility, they only said one sentence: "Probably only you can do this." For me, that was enough," he proudly said.

Nearly two decades in the tourism industry, from the early days of holding a stack of tour papers and knocking on doors of companies, to the sleepless nights taking care of customers, and the years of fighting the pandemic; at Nguyen Van Dung, there is no room for surrender. Every difficult situation is not a “problem to avoid”, but an opportunity to prove one’s dedication.

Sometimes, CEO Asia Gate Travel sees that there are work situations that are no different from an action movie, the operator must play the role of "rescuing" in time from difficult situations. Once, a group of Da Nang tourists of Asia Gate Travel went to Europe, departing from Hanoi at 7:30 pm, while the visa approval result was at the Italian Embassy in Ho Chi Minh City at 3:30 pm. "That day, the guests had to fly from Da Nang to Hanoi with CCCD. I asked everywhere to get the Embassy to agree to authorize someone to pick up the visa. After that, this person had to go to the airport by motorbike and ask someone on the earliest flight from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi to bring the visa to Hanoi. That day, I also personally rode a motorbike to the airport and received the visa application to do the procedures for the group of guests. Every operation had to be done precisely to the minute to ensure the time was right," said Mr. Dung.

Forever an unshakeable belief

“Difficulties are everywhere, but if you know how to take a step back to look at the bigger picture, sometimes you will see unexpected opportunities,” Mr. Dung confided. Sitting in the middle of the Asia Gate Travel office, where every day we regularly receive dozens of calls from individual customers to international partners, from group tours worth a few million VND to tours for large groups worth billions, the businessman clearly understands that this country has no shortage of beautiful landscapes, no shortage of kind people, and no shortage of units that do their jobs properly. But without a strong enough “push” from policies, especially a flexible visa policy, systematic promotion and open aviation infrastructure, that momentum will remain just dormant potential.

For example, the US’s high tariffs on goods from China and Southeast Asia have shaken up the supply chain, severely impacting tourism. When incomes and consumer confidence decline, tourism is the first expense to be cut. Tour prices have increased and visas have tightened, making both international visitors from distant markets coming to Vietnam and Vietnamese people traveling abroad more cautious. But in this context, intra-Asian tourism has emerged as a safe choice.

“This is an opportunity for Vietnamese tourism to turn challenges into leverage, by improving service quality, opening more routes, and attracting high-spending, long-stay tourists in Asia. This will also help retain tourists and increase value instead of quantity, for sustainable development,” the “captain” of Asia Gate Travel analyzed and said that, just by being one step ahead, with timely open policies, combined with the efforts of businesses, Vietnam can completely rise to become a regional tourism center in Asia.

That is why he has never given up his job, never stopped creating emotions for customers, even in the most difficult times. Having traveled to dozens of countries around the world, the businessman said he has never seen a country with a sea as beautiful as Vietnam. He especially loves Nha Trang, where there is blue sea, white sand, a gentle climate, and a coastal route that he considers the most beautiful in the S-shaped strip of land... He is currently gradually expanding the coastal tour connecting Nha Trang with Quy Nhon, Tuy Hoa, Vinh Hy Bay, lands that are breathtakingly beautiful and still have a lot of room for sustainable development.

Mr. Dung shared that before opening a travel agency, he wanted to open a restaurant. Until now, despite his busy work, he still hopes to one day be able to realize that dream, a space that connects friends in the tourism industry, customers, and colleagues through cuisine. “I love cooking, just like when organizing a tour, it must be meticulous from choosing ingredients, processing until customers finish eating and leave the restaurant,” he confided.

There are still more attractive business opportunities out there. But for Nguyen Van Dung, leaving tourism has never been an option. Because the love for the profession has penetrated deep into his mind, his heart. And the journey of that “captain” is still burning with faith, with behind-the-scenes stories that anyone who hears it must nod: “That’s how tourism should be!”.

FIVE WORKING PRINCIPLES OF CEO NGUYEN VAN DUNG
1. Always put yourself in the customer's shoes: Every journey begins with understanding, from food preferences, living habits to unspoken emotions.
2. Everything must be done with care down to the last detail: A good tour does not lie in the grandiose destination, but in a comfortable bed, a delicious meal and a timely smile.
3. Never stop looking for solutions, instead of making excuses: “If it’s difficult, think of another way. Never give up.” That’s how he handles “action movie” situations in his career.
4. Kindness never goes out of style: Even when there is no profit, maintain service standards to protect brand value and trust.
5. Practice your profession with your heart, not with calculations: Even though the market fluctuates, that philosophy is still the guiding principle to keep your profession and yourself.

Source: https://baodautu.vn/doanh-nhan-nguyen-van-dung-giam-doc-asia-gate-travel-nguoi-hoa-giai-nhung-nhiem-vu-bat-kha-thi-d273122.html