Back in 2019 and 2020, Hoang Thi Thuy (born in 1989), from Kim Ngan commune, became famous as the "bamboo straw girl" for exporting numerous shipments of bamboo straws to demanding markets in Europe and Australia. Starting her business while browsing online for straws for her firstborn daughter and noticing the trend of using environmentally friendly materials, Thuy decided to pursue her entrepreneurial journey by learning from and accumulating experience from those who came before her.
The An Mã Farm brand officially became known. Starting with simple bamboo straws, mainly sourcing materials from other localities and using some stages of production manually, Thủy gradually expanded the workshop, purchased more machinery and equipment, developed raw material sources, and diversified products. Importantly, Thủy also created stable incomes for many local workers.
At one point, the production facility was producing 5,000-7,000 bamboo straws per day, generating revenue of 200-300 million VND per month. An Mã Farm's bamboo straws are a partner of many major bamboo straw brands worldwide , such as Jungle Straws (UK), Little Green Panda (Australia), Green Panda (France), Bambustro (Belgium), etc.
The product's main distribution market is overseas, especially in Europe. It's rare for a startup in such a disadvantaged area to achieve this. And of course, Thuy appeared in the mass media as an outstanding "startup role model" in the locality. It seemed that success would follow success, but the Covid-19 pandemic proved to be a "test" for any startup project.
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| Images from the days of producing bamboo straws are now beautiful memories of her entrepreneurial journey - Photo: MN |
“Orders plummeted, products went unsold, workers lost their jobs, machinery was idle, and imported raw materials were unusable… Even after the pandemic ended, demand for bamboo straws dropped sharply due to fierce competition from other environmentally friendly straws. Meanwhile, bank debts were still pending. The losses exceeded half a billion dong. That was a very difficult time for me – someone who had just started a business and had high hopes for the future. How would my family, who had placed so much trust in me and contributed to this journey, fare if I failed? And what about the workers at An Mã Farm, if they lost their jobs?” Hoàng Thị Thủy recalled emotionally.
Acknowledging failure and rising up strongly—that's the hard-won lesson Thuy learned from this "incident." Refusing to dwell on negative thoughts, Thuy boldly built An Ma Farm in a purely natural direction. In fact, when bamboo straws achieved good sales, Thuy didn't focus too much on that product line, but instead invested the profits back into An Ma Farm.
According to Thuy, "hot" or "trendy" products often lack long-term viability, and it's important to have contingency plans during the startup process. Thuy and other members established the An Ma General Farm Cooperative, specializing in growing myrtle, eucalyptus, lemongrass, oranges, and tangerines. The cooperative's products are diverse and abundant, meeting consumers' demands for clean food. In addition, items such as dried myrtle fruit, myrtle wine, myrtle tea, eucalyptus essential oil, and lemongrass essential oil are also very popular with customers.
Looking back on her failed bamboo straw startup, Thuy shares that it was a valuable lesson for many young entrepreneurs. Don't hesitate, be confident in starting a business, but always be prepared for all possibilities, anticipate contingencies, and bravely face failure.
Now, An Mã Farm is bustling with visitors during the Christmas and New Year holidays – a popular check-in service for the farm. The farm owner continues to diligently livestream daily, introducing new beverage products, attractive organic food, and the unique features of An Mã Farm. Either way, for Thủy, this is a successful entrepreneurial venture right on her homeland.
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| Phan Thanh Son and the products of Thanh Son Organic Agricultural Cooperative at the startup competition - Photo: MN |
For Phan Thanh Son (born in 1993), Director of Thanh Son Organic Agricultural Cooperative (Quang Trach commune), the cooperative's current success stems from the initial failure of his entrepreneurial journey. He recalls that in 2020, while comfortably employed in an office job, he recognized the potential of lotus cultivation through his family's traditional lotus seed production. He decided to quit his job and start growing lotus.
Initially, Son cultivated white lotus flowers on a small area for their blooms, rather than their seeds. White lotuses were highly sought after, and he couldn't produce enough to meet demand. Seeing this advantage, Son expanded his white lotus cultivation, confident he could meet customer needs. However, the initial challenges of his entrepreneurial journey emerged. While the pond was full of blooming white lotuses, buyers weren't enthusiastic. There was still a prevailing belief that this type of lotus was only suitable for funerals and religious ceremonies. Meanwhile, all his initial capital had been invested in the white lotus pond.
Within the framework of the Vietnam Private Sector Economic Forum (VPSF) 2025, a statistic was presented: After 5 years of starting a business, only about 10% of businesses survive, and of these, only 3% are truly successful. This reality demonstrates the fierce competition in the business world for any young person wanting to start a business.
Undeterred, initial failures helped Phan Thanh Son gain a clearer understanding of his entrepreneurial path and meticulously build a roadmap for developing products from the local traditional lotus plant. Understanding market demand played a crucial role in launching each product. Thanh Son gradually expanded his lotus cultivation area, purchased modern machinery for the production of finished lotus products, and actively applied digital transformation in various stages…
Currently, Thanh Son Organic Agricultural Cooperative effectively collaborates with lotus growers in the region, diversifying its clean lotus-based products, such as: traditional lotus flower tea, fresh lotus seeds, dried lotus seeds, lotus heart, lotus root, lotus starch, fresh lotus flowers, etc. Thanh Son also actively participates in and wins awards at creative and startup competitions to learn from experience, exchange, and share valuable lessons.
"Failure is the mother of success," a lesson learned from our ancestors, always motivates young people to persevere, remain steadfast, and readily face challenges and difficulties to achieve their goals. And startups perhaps also greatly need meetings, exchanges, and forums to share experiences from failures and lessons learned from the practical experiences of "living witnesses" to firmly establish themselves and build their careers.
Mai Nhan
Source: https://baoquangtri.vn/xa-hoi/202512/khoi-nghiep-that-bai-ben-chi-thanh-cong-3ee77b6/
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