Masan honoured in Vietnam Top Strong Brands 2021

Representative of Masan Group receiving the Vietnam Strong Brand Award 2021

Vietnam Strong Brand 2020-2021 was organised by VnEconomy to honour entrepreneurs and businesses showcasing the greatest brand resilience and giving back the most to the community during the pandemic.

The criteria to select Vietnam's strongest brands included business performance, brand resilience, product and service quality, leadership, human resources, corporate social responsibility, commitment to environmental protection, digital transformation, and adaptability to the new context.

As the leading retail-consumer conglomerate, Masan Group was honoured as one of the 10 strongest brands in the country. At the ceremony, Nguyen Thi Phuong, deputy general director of WinCommerce (formerly VinCommerce) – an affiliate of Masan Group – talked about the difficulties the company has faced as well as the initiatives it has taken to innovate and adapt in the new business environment. She proposed the National Assembly to continue adjusting policies to the new situation, creating favourable conditions for the construction of delivery centres in key economic regions and logistics infrastructure to prevent supply chain disruptions.

At the awards ceremony, representatives from the winners expressed appreciation and gratitude for the support of the Party and the government to remove difficulties and create a favourable business environment during the pandemic.

Wide range of products to meet the needs of consumers

Overcoming difficulties to maintain production and supply of essentials

On the afternoon of October 12, National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue had a meeting with businesses on the occasion of Vietnam Entrepreneurs' Day (October 13). He said: “The business community has upheld the spirit of solidarity, demonstrated a great sense of responsibility and self-reliance, and has taken the initiative to adapt to difficult conditions. Many innovative models have been applied creatively.”

Masan Group, whose core business lines are the production of essential consumer goods and retail, has more than 30 factories and numerous high-tech livestock and crop farms in the country’s key economic regions. Each day, Masan provides essential items such as rice, noodles, soy sauce, fish sauce, drinks, pork, chicken, eggs, and vegetables to consumers across the nation. Its consumer goods like Chin-Su soy sauce and pho, Nam Ngu fish sauce, MEATDeli meat, Omachi noodles, and WinEco (formerly VinEco) clean vegetables are mainstays in Vietnamese kitchens. As one of the few enterprises in the country operating a fully integrated chain of production, supply, distribution, and retail, Masan has been serving the essential needs of a large number of customers all over Vietnam.

Since the end of 2019, the VinMart and VinMart+ retail chains have signed strategic agreements to provide essential goods and proactively control supply from Masan Group’s affiliates to ensure stable inventories and prices. There are nearly 500 supermarkets and VinMart/VinMart+ stores in Ho Chi Minh City. Each ward has at least one VinMart+ store capable of handling hundreds of orders per day. During the stressful days of the pandemic, VinCommerce has closely coordinated with city authorities to quickly deliver essential goods to residents.

“We immediately contacted the ward and neighbourhood groups to find a delivery plan and connect with local grocery stores,” said Nguyen Thi Phuong, deputy general director of WinCommerce.

Masan Group has proactively implemented epidemic prevention measures to ensure safe production and retail chains. Thanks to well-managed anti-pandemic work and vaccination for employees, Masan's factories and supermarkets have maintained operations. All of the group's factories, supermarkets, stores, and offices strictly comply with 5K regulations. The group also regularly organises COVID-19 testing for departments where it deems it necessary.

Support against the epidemic

In addition to providing essential products, since the beginning of 2020, Masan Group has contributed more than VND270 billion ($11.74 million) to activities supporting people and frontline workers to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

Masan Group has supported these efforts in diverse ways, from direct monetary donations to giving milk to COVID-19 patients at 16 hospitals in Ho Chi Minh City, as well as providing medical supplies and necessities worth VND16 billion ($695,650) to 312 communes/wards/towns in the city, and contributing VND60 billion ($2.6 million) to the government's vaccine fund.

Especially, during the peak of the epidemic in July and August, Masan Group donated essential medical equipment for more than 15 field hospitals, COVID-19 treatment hospitals, disease control agencies, and the Ho Chi Minh City Police Department. The sponsorship includes 2 ECMO machines and ELSA monitors, 31,000 Japanese/South Korean antigen rapid test kits; seven HFNC high-flow oxygen ventilators; three 10L oxygen generators; five invasive ventilators; 70,000 medical personal protective equipment; 50 automatic infusion machines; 20 6-parameter patient monitors; 7,000 medical gloves; and 10,000 medical masks.

The group has also donated ECMO systems, dozens of high-flow ventilators, tens of thousands of test kits, and personal protective equipment to the Departments of Health of Long An, Binh Duong, Dong Nai, and Hau Giang provinces, among others. It has also provided accommodations for doctors and nurses at Trung Vuong Hospital.

Since the very beginning of the epidemic, many essential Masan products such as Kokomi and Omachi noodles, and MEATDeli meat were directly delivered to check points, border guard stations, hospitals, and medical isolation areas to support frontline forces.