Giordano targets early retail entry

A joint venture will propel Giordano into Vietnam’s retail sector in the near future

Richard Leech, executive director CBRE told VIR that the size and youthfulness of the population, growth in middle income earners and rapid urbanisation would make Vietnam an attractive investment option, especially in relation to the retail sector.

Giordano International, Hong Kong’s leading fashion apparel and accessories retailer in mid-November signed a joint venture agreement with Yeo Boon Liang and Vietnamese representative Nguyen Thanh Tung on opening retail outlets in Vietnam under the Giordano and BSX brands.

Under the agreement, Giordano International will hold a 60 per cent stake in the $600,000 joint venture.  Liang and Tung will each hold 20 per cent. However, the opening date for their first outlet has not yet been made public.

Peter Kwok Kuen Lau, chairman of Giordano International Limited said that Vietnam was an emerging market with significant potential in terms of fashion retail. The joint venture would allow the company to have a more direct reach into the Vietnamese market and more involvement in terms of the operation and control of local retail outlets.

“By entering the market early, the company believed that it would be able to select the best strategic locations and position itself correctly from the outset with the right brand imaging,” shared Lau.

Lau added that the company also believed that both Liang and Tung would be able to offer their assistance in the establishment and operation of the retail outlets, as both possessed significant experience and knowledge in fashion retail and supply as well as local infrastructure and systems in Vietnam.

According to Giordano International Limited, Liang is regional general manager of the company’s Southeast Asian markets. He is well-connected with international department stores chains and experienced in running Giordano as an international brand in Southeast Asia. Tung, the company’s existing franchisee in Vietnam, has in-depth understanding of local market developments and its rules and regulations.

Many other sectors such as fast food and beverages have also attracted a series of huge foreign retailers to Vietnam.

The US-based Dunkin’ Donuts, the world’s top coffee and baked goods chain will expand its business in Vietnam this month, with the first location in Ho Chi Minh City. Last year, the restaurant service provider signed a franchise agreement with the Imex Pan Pacific Group’s Vietnam Food and Beverage Co. Ltd., whose partners have a proven track record of success in the local restaurant industry to develop the brand in Vietnam over the coming years.

Next month, leading Filipino food and beverage manufacturers Universal Robina Corp (URC) will build its third beverage manufacturing facility, with a $35 million investment in the central province Quang Ngai.

URC is intensifying its Southeast Asian expansion programme in line with plans to diversify and boost profits, with Vietnam likely to see growth matching the current size of the Philippines’s market over the next 10 years.

Based on a growth trajectory of 17 per cent a year, URC’s Vietnam business could hit $1 billion in 10 years. In Vietnam, URC is well-known by its successful C2 and Rong Do beverage products.

The world’s largest fast-food chain McDonald’s is expected to launch its first Vietnam restaurant in Ho Chi Minh City next February  after signing a master franchise agreement with Ho Chi Minh City-based Good Day Hospitality, founded by IDG head – Nguyen Bao Hoang.