Masan's profit growth thanks to the Consumer - Retail - Technology platform

(Chinhphu.vn) - The financial report for the first 6 months of 2025 of Masan Group (HOSE: MSN) shows strong profit growth, nearly doubling compared to the same period, despite the challenging consumer market context. This result is a clear demonstration of the effectiveness of the long-term strategy, steadfastly building an integrated Consumer - Retail - Technology platform, with solid growth pillars from WinCommerce (WCM) and Masan MEATLife (MML).

In the first half of 2025, Masan Group recorded positive business results, affirming its position as one of the leading private economic groups in Vietnam.

Masan's growth comes from the outstanding performance of its member companies, especially in the retail and consumer staples sectors.

After-tax profit in the first 6 months reached VND2,602 billion, nearly double that of the same period in 2024 and has completed more than 50% of the profit plan for the whole year. This growth comes from the outstanding performance of member companies, especially in the retail and essential consumer goods sectors.

Sharing about the strategic direction, Dr. Nguyen Dang Quang, Chairman of Masan Group said: "The disruption in traditional retail channels is a clear demonstration that our strategy of comprehensively integrating the Consumer - Retail - Technology platform is on the right track. As WinCommerce continues to expand rapidly, the synergy effect within the Masan ecosystem is increasingly evident, creating a solid foundation to promote strong growth in both revenue and profit."

He also emphasized the Group's long-term vision: "We aim to modernize the consumer infrastructure in Vietnam, through cooperation with traditional retailers, to better serve 100 million consumers nationwide. We believe that the combination of operational infrastructure and technology is the core driving force to closely connect brands, retailers and consumers."

Masan's report pointed out that, although Vietnam's macro economy grew impressively by 8.0% in the second quarter of 2025, the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry still faces many challenges. The market recovery was weaker than expected, along with the impact of new tax regulations on individual businesses, which have had an impact on the traditional retail channel (General Trade - GT). This has led to a widespread reduction in inventories, causing FMCG output consumed through the GT channel in the first 5 months of the year to decrease by nearly 3%.

In that context, the process of reshaping the retail industry has accelerated the trend of shifting to the modern retail channel (Modern Trade - MT), where FMCG consumption increased by 4.2%. This is an opportunity for businesses with a solid modern retail foundation like Masan to break through.

WinCommerce: The Pillar of Growth and Profitability

WinCommerce continued to be a bright spot with second quarter revenue reaching VND9,130 billion, up 16.4% year-on-year. Profit after tax reached VND10 billion, marking the fourth consecutive profitable quarter. In the first 6 months, WCM achieved revenue of VND17,915 billion, up 13.4%, and profit after tax reached VND68 billion, up VND292 billion year-on-year.

WCM's success comes from its effective network expansion strategy and operational optimization. By the end of the second quarter, WCM had opened 318 new stores, completing 80% of its annual plan and firmly consolidating its position as the number one modern retailer in Vietnam in terms of scale with 4,146 points of sale nationwide.

Notably, the "going to the countryside" strategy is showing clear results. Rural areas, home to more than 60% of the population, are becoming a strategic growth driver. The average daily revenue of a mini-supermarket in rural areas has reached nearly 90% of that of a mini-supermarket in urban areas. Nearly 75% of the new stores opened in the first half of the year were WinMart+ models in rural areas, showing strong acceptance by consumers there.

Thanks to same-store sales growth and operational efficiency, WCM's EBIT margin in the second quarter reached 0.9%, a major step forward showing that WCM is on track to achieve sustainable positive profits for the whole year.

Masan Consumer: Overcoming short-term challenges, strengthening the foundation

Facing disruptions to traditional distribution channels, Masan Consumer (MCH) recorded revenue in the second quarter of 2025 of VND 6,276 billion, down 15.1% year-on-year. The main reason was that traditional retailers simultaneously reduced inventory to adapt to new regulations, leading to an estimated decrease in MCH's revenue of about VND 600-800 billion in the quarter.

In response, MCH has accelerated its transition to a more flexible and sustainable distribution model. Key initiatives include: Shifting to a direct coverage model, reducing dependence on large traditional retailers, and strengthening its go-to-market capabilities. In the first half of 2025, MCH expanded its point-of-sale coverage in pilot areas by 62% year-on-year, and the average number of points of sale with at least one order served per sales person per month increased by 48% year-on-year. These changes are expected to restore MCH’s growth momentum in the coming quarters.

Meanwhile, revenue from the modern retail channel (MT) and the restaurant and hotel channel (HORECA) still grew strongly, by 5.7% and 34.2% respectively over the same period, showing the effectiveness of diversifying distribution channels and close coordination with the WinCommerce system. Categories such as Coffee, Personal and Family Care and Export still maintained growth momentum, partially offsetting the temporary weakness of other categories.

Masan MEATLife: Impressive growth, breakthrough profit

Masan MEATLife (MML) is a bright spot in Masan's business picture in the first half of the year. Revenue in the second quarter reached VND2,340 billion, an impressive growth of 30.7% over the same period, thanks to strong growth in both livestock (up 66.4%) and meat (up 20.5%). Profit after tax reached VND249 billion, a remarkable improvement over the same period.

This result comes from MML's optimization of the "farm to table" value chain. Rising hog prices, the expansion of the WinCommerce network, and the rapid growth of the processed meat segment have become the main drivers.

In particular, product innovation continues to play a strategic role, with new products contributing 29% of processed meat revenue. Deeper integration with WinCommerce also paid off, with average MML sales per WCM store increasing by 10.9%.

Prospects and strategic orientation to the end of 2025

Based on the positive results of the first 6 months of the year, Masan confidently sets a consolidated net revenue target of VND80,000 to VND85,500 billion in 2025. Profit after tax is expected to reach VND4,875 to VND6,500 billion, a strong growth of 14% to 52% compared to 2024.

To achieve this goal, the Group will continue to focus on strategic priorities. Specifically, it will continue to focus on profit growth with a focus on its core consumer-retail business. MCH is expected to return to double-digit revenue growth, while WCM will focus on profitable growth through accelerating store openings and maintaining strong LFL growth.

At the same time, develop and apply cross-cutting technology to drive operational efficiency and enhance integration within MSN's consumer-retail platform. This is done through the WiN membership program and increased cooperation between Masan brands and WinCommerce.

Masan's business results for the first 6 months of 2025 have demonstrated the stability and flexible adaptability of a leading economic group. By sticking to the strategy of building a Consumption - Retail - Technology ecosystem, Masan not only creates value for shareholders but is also actively contributing to the modernization of commercial infrastructure, enhancing the experience and better serving more than 100 million consumers nationwide.

On the stock market, at the end of the morning session on July 28, Masan Group's MSN shares were trading at VND78,100/share. In the last 3 months, MSN has increased by more than 25% and is one of the favorite stocks of domestic and foreign investors.

Vinh Hoang

Source: https://baochinhphu.vn/masan-tang-truong-loi-nhuan-nho-nen-tang-tieu-dung-ban-le-cong-nghe-102250728163028299.htm