The conversation with the strawberry millionaire did not use a single word of English as we imagined.
Sorry, are you Ms Lam Ti? – I asked. Yes, hello. This is Lam Ti, do we have an appointment at Lam Ti's farm today? - the standard Vietnamese voice, so sweet and feminine on the other end of the line, surprised us greatly.
After more than 30 years in Australia, the Vietnamese accent of the woman in charge of thousands of employees from all over the world is still clear and coherent. A pure native Vietnamese accent, mixed with a slight Central Vietnamese accent, without any accent, makes people even more curious about this special woman.
A very Vietnamese woman
After nearly an hour's drive, Ms. Mai Huong and Mr. Huy Tuan took us to the suburb of Bullsbrook in Perth to visit TI Group of Companies.
"Farming" is a common word that many Vietnamese people use when referring to Australia because of its developed agriculture , applying science and technology to cultivation and creating fresh products such as strawberries, mangoes, blueberries... The female "manager" of the farm in a long-sleeved shirt and short skirt surprised us even more because she does farming but is not afraid of the sun!
The late spring sun in Perth is not too harsh, surprisingly cooler thanks to Lam Ti's vast strawberry farm. It is vast, covered in green and sweet red strawberry spots. Late spring is also the end of the strawberry harvest, the straight rows of strawberries are left with only the fresh green of the leaves and the large, plump, red and green strawberries interspersed.
Holding the special business magazine we sent her, Ms. Lam Ti suddenly exclaimed: "That's right, Thanh Nien newspaper was published in 1986, almost 40 years ago. This writing is very familiar to Lam Ti...". The familiar Vietnamese writing seemed to come back to this female CEO.
Sincere, simple and very good at Vietnamese, female director Lam Ti has a special love for agriculture and strawberries.
Moving to Australia with her family when she was in grade 7 in 1991, the 14-year-old girl's Vietnamese language skills remained strong and developed not only in speaking and writing but also in no way diminished. It had been a long time since she had read a Vietnamese newspaper.
Strawberry millionaire because in Vietnam we live on the farm
Coming to Western Australia with her family in the 90s, Lam Ti learned farming from her adoptive father while still in school. He was a long-time importer and exporter of native fruits. The "farmer" fate has come to this young girl. In a country that creates opportunities like Australia, the female CEO of TI of Companies admits: "Ti is not good, not better than anyone else, but because of the opportunity, if I am willing to work and be diligent. As long as I am willing to work hard , the results will come."
Memories of 33 years ago with this talented woman. Originally from Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa , since childhood she has been familiar with the plants in her garden, what kind of trees, what kind of fruits, how they grow. Born in the windy sea, the land of white sand, this female director understands how her garden with the growth of fruit trees in the harsh land for cultivation.
Her childhood memories are cassava plants, rice plants, and peanuts. The natural plants in her garden, in her childhood memories, are the luggage for her to continue with strawberries for over 20 years like a fate that is difficult for anyone to explain.
Most of Lam Ti's day is spent on the farm.
It is a small "capital" for her to understand more about fruits, especially strawberries when grown in Australia. With a large territory, but probably few people know that 2/3 of Australia's territory is uninhabited due to the different geographical terrain. As a father in the company, the farming career is brought to this charming woman.
Her adoptive father had a fruit and vegetable export company, so she studied, worked and helped her father throughout her adulthood. One lucky thing she admitted was that at that time, the Vietnamese community in Perth and Western Australia grew a lot of fruit, and the job helped her gradually get to know and connect with fellow farmers in a foreign land.
Her Vietnamese connection helps her connect more closely with her relatives and when her father sold the company, she continued to work for the new boss for 2 more years to gain experience.
But Lam Ti's life was not always just a farmer.
Lam Ti's strawberry products reach the markets of Thailand, Singapore every day...
Ever wanted to "become a swan"
There was a time when that woman pursued another desire. As a woman, and a lover of beauty, the female director at that time also wanted to "change her life" and not be a farmer anymore. She quit her job and studied business, marketing... The determination not to be a farmer also grew in the desire of that young woman at that time.
"Why am I a woman, why don't I become an artist or a model, but always go to work in the fields?", that question kept urging her because buying and selling agricultural products at that time was very hard, monitoring farming and domestic trading, so after school, she slept until 3-4 am and had to wake up to transport goods to markets and supermarkets.
"I can't continue like this because I have family and children in the future," she thought, so she dropped out of school to study marketing, business, and get a degree in real estate. Her farming career officially ended after she started working and sold 2 houses in 6 months.
It was thought that the bride in Perth would become a real estate entrepreneur, but the phone call from Uncle Berry - the old boss who bought her father's company (who was also her father's friend) asking her to come back and help the company was a huge turning point. The company only traded domestically, so the potential for development was almost impossible to explode. With the knowledge she had learned about marketing, she boldly suggested that if she returned, the company should gradually shift to exporting. So the "farmer" fate returned to Ms. Lam Ti after that phone call.
Started a company at 26 because I'm not 30 yet.
Working in the export sector, she was given a round-trip ticket to Hong Kong to negotiate to bring goods to the two largest supermarkets in Hong Kong at that time. All the preparations suddenly disappeared when meeting the big boss, but fortunately the order was successful. Experience and knowledge in negotiating and connecting with international customers were officially accumulated from here.
After working for a while, the former farmer boldly decided to officially start her own business despite her young age. That was a historic decision to create the TI group as it is today.
TI Group Companies, owned by Lam Ti, was founded in 2003 after her adoptive father's gentle advice: Now that you're working, are you happy with your job? If you're happy, are you happy with the money people pay you? If you're happy and satisfied, what do you have to worry about? You're only 26 years old, in 3 years you'll only be 29 and still under 30. If you make a mistake, you still have time to do it again. She admitted at that time: "I was very worried, lacking knowledge, still young, everything, but my adoptive father's words made me feel comfortable and no longer worried about anything."
Ms. Lam Ti's company creates thousands of jobs for workers in Australia and other countries around the world.
The good thing about this female director is that she recognizes the times. More than 20 years ago, with her sharp mind, she saw the opportunity of strawberries, so in 2008 - a few years after founding the company, she began to "fall in love" and create a strawberry growing and exporting corporation as it is today.
With the knowledge she learned, she soon realized that the apple and peach market was facing fierce competition from South Africa or New Zealand apples, so she proactively switched to strawberries. The important thing for her to change direction was that more than 95% of the Vietnamese community in Western Australia mainly grow strawberries. Being from the same country, connected for many years, with the same connections and customers. With the advantage of communicating in Vietnamese, people feel comfortable and trust her.
Technical revolution in agriculture
Most importantly, Ms. Lam Ti and her boyfriend at that time, Mr. Jame (very handsome), carried out an "agricultural revolution" for the people because nearly 20 years ago, farming in Australia was also done in the traditional family style. The yield and quality of each family were different. That made it very difficult to export and promote to other countries.
The love of strawberries has accompanied the couple Lam Ti and Jame for the past 21 years.
She and her companion decided to guarantee the output, especially the transfer of science and technology in cultivation to Vietnamese farmers. In the writer's mind, it was a historic decision, but a humble woman like her only commented: "It was a surprise and luck, helping me seize the opportunity to develop until today".
Farmer Jame is probably the most handsome farmer I have ever known, big and strong and very handsome. Since meeting Lam Ti, he has also been involved in agriculture. This (former) life partner has devoted all his heart and soul to research and science and technology to ensure the best quality of strawberries. Technology transfer in agriculture was a historic step at the right time so that people could feel secure in farming and harvesting. When the orders started to come in regularly, the owner Lam Ti officially opened the farm. "Opening a farm makes me very happy but it's also very hard. I don't know why I opened a farm?", she said.
In the middle of the vast strawberry farm at the end of the season, the big, juicy green and red strawberries twice as big as a thumb are the results of Lam Ti and James's efforts and love for strawberries over the past 22 years.
Applying science and technology to agriculture is a vital method to promote agricultural efficiency.
Both love strawberries, both love the sun and sand of the vast Western Australia. For the past 21 years, the couple have been colleagues, co-founders and partners with two children, now 14 and 12 years old. However, their relationship ended 10 years ago. During those 10 years, they have remained good friends, running TI Group Companies together and devoting all their love to fresh strawberries.
So what is the secret to TI Group Companies' success, allowing them to export about 20 tons of strawberries to difficult markets such as Singapore, Hong Kong, and Thailand every day? – we asked. Smiling gently, the female director did not say anything grand but simply said two words: "professional!".
Professional in improving the quality of strawberry output by science and technology - a prerequisite in exporting agricultural products. "Lam Ti has never introduced her products as the best, highest quality and cheapest, but she always does her best within her ability and work so that her partners can feel and evaluate", Ms. Lam Ti modestly shared.
Director Lam Ti has been working with agricultural products and strawberries for more than 20 years. For her, strawberries are a special love and an opportunity for her to repay her country.
Director Lam Ti also hopes that one day, her fresh strawberries from Australia will be officially imported into Vietnam, or that on trips back to her homeland, she and Jame will have the opportunity to share their experiences and science and technology with farmers in their homeland.
Farmer Jame commented that Vietnam's agriculture has great potential but is also facing many challenges. During many trips to Vietnam, experiencing and witnessing farmers' production and cultivation, Jame said that old habits and the story of applying science and technology to agriculture are among the prerequisites that Vietnam needs to change to promote agricultural development.
In addition to her love for farms and strawberries, director Lam Ti is also very enthusiastic about community activities for her fellow countrymen and overseas Vietnamese in Perth. At the recent Homeland Spring Festival, we happened to meet her again with a gentle smile as she sat and watched many traditional Vietnamese cultural performances under the blazing sun.
For Lam Ti, an Australian woman who is very Vietnamese and very simple, developing agriculture in Australia is to repay Australia and also a bridge to help her homeland Vietnam through many different forms from labor to agricultural products, agriculture, in the most gentle and graceful way!
The success of Vietnamese women in Western Australia is built on many important factors. First of all, their perseverance, tenacity and hard work. Vietnamese women always have patience and a spirit of overcoming difficulties, which has helped them overcome challenges and difficulties in life and work.
Second, flexibility and adaptability. Vietnamese women in Western Australia have demonstrated their ability to adapt quickly to new environments, from grasping the language and culture to integrating into the local community. They are not afraid of challenges and always seek opportunities to develop themselves. In addition, they are confident and determined. Vietnamese women in Western Australia are always confident in their abilities and constantly strive to achieve their goals. They know that success does not come from luck but from constant effort. And above all, they have a spirit of national pride, always looking towards their homeland and country.
All of the above factors have created successful Vietnamese women, contributing to enhancing the image and position of the Vietnamese community in the host country.
Consul General of Vietnam in Perth - Nguyen Thanh Ha
Thanhnien.vn
![[Photo] Overcoming the heat, practicing to prepare for the parade](https://vphoto.vietnam.vn/thumb/1200x675/vietnam/resource/IMAGE/2025/6/21/b93392e8da8243b8a32040d19590e048)
![[Maritime News] Wan Hai Lines invests $150 million to buy 48,000 containers](https://vphoto.vietnam.vn/thumb/402x226/vietnam/resource/IMAGE/2025/6/20/c945a62aff624b4bb5c25e67e9bcc1cb)
Comment (0)