How WinCommerce modernises grocery retail in Vietnam

WinCommerce's "New Commerce" retail consumer model boasts unique advantages thanks to an ecosystem combining a consumer production platform, a modern trade platform, and a self-built logistics company.

In the second quarter of 2024, WinCommerce recorded revenue of VND7.84 trillion ($314.67 million), an increase of 9.2 per cent over the same period last year. This is the result of upgrading and improving WiN stores (targeting urban consumers) and WinMart+ Rural stores (targeting rural consumers).

The two store models have proved outstanding compared to the traditional model, with like-for-like growth of 6.3 per cent and 10.7 per cent in the second quarter of 2024 compared with the same period last year, respectively. Remarkably, WinCommerce achieved positive net profit after tax in June, marking significant progress since Masan took over the retail chain in 2019. WinCommerce is expected to speed up the opening of new stores in the second half of 2024 towards the goal of achieving break-even in 10 years.

According to Euromonitor data, modern trade penetration in Vietnam is still relatively low and currently in its early stages, with a modest market share of about 12 per cent. This market share is similar to Indonesia's in 2010. However, thanks to the expansion of two major retail chains, Indomaret and Alfamart, Indonesia's modern trade channels have risen rapidly. As a result, the modern trade market share in Indonesia has achieved 18 per cent growth per year for five years.

In Vietnam, although modern trade and e-commerce have grown strongly, daily consumer purchases are made mainly through general trade channels, with a market share of about 75 to 80 per cent forecast in the next five years. Euromonitor's report indicates that if Vietnam's modern trade market grows like Indonesia, the market size is projected to more than triple in the next decade, reaching $20 billion.

Present in 62 cities and provinces across the country, WinCommerce (WCM, the operator of WinMart/WinMart+/WiN) has a network of nearly 3,700 points of sale. This is the largest modern grocery chain in Vietnam and accounts for half of the market. Every month, the WCM chain serves more than 30 million shoppers.

In 2023, WinCommerce completed its restructuring and returned to its expansion strategy, focusing on separate models for each region and customer segment. By the end of 2024, WinCommerce plans to scale up to about 4,000 stores nationally, which would equate to opening a new store every day. This is also how the Indomaret and Alfamart retail chains “modernised” Indonesia's retail market and succeeded.

However, scaling up is only part of WinCommerce's “New Commerce” strategy, as it also incorporates core capabilities from Masan Group's consumer retail ecosystem. Specifically, WinCommerce can inherit Masan Consumer's manufacturing and brand-building capabilities. Moreover, Masan Consumer operates one of the largest food and beverage distribution networks in Vietnam. This brings significant competitive advantages, such as the ability to deliver goods to consumers effectively while reducing logistics costs. This is important because almost 70 per cent of the Vietnamese population lives in rural areas, and the retail sector remains largely dependent on traditional sales channels.

The synergy is further enhanced by Masan-owned logistics company Supra. Founded in 2022, Supra owns a distribution centre network of 10 warehouses (including dry and cold warehousing) across the country. Supra is responsible for delivering 60 per cent of WinCommerce's total commodity output. According to WinCommerce statistics, Supra has helped reduce the logistics cost of goods by 11 per cent, contributing directly to price reductions on a product-by-product basis, benefiting customers.

WinCommerce is a solid part of Masan's journey to serve consumers. WinCommerce's network of supermarkets and mini-markets are providing “all-in-one” daily needs from fast-moving consumer goods, grocery retail, healthcare, and telecommunications to financial services. In the future, along with the growth of the modern trade market in Vietnam, WinCommerce will accelerate its profitability, thereby increasing the enterprise's intrinsic value.

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