Vietnamese furniture businesses must embrace global trends

According to Dr. Truong Tat Do, secretary of the EUDR Task Force for the Forestry Sector (Department of Forestry and Forest Protection), businesses must be prepared to meet EUDR compliance requirements and ensure transparent traceability of product origins.

“Alongside solutions to support compliance with EUDR requirements, this is an essential digital platform that helps Vietnamese businesses demonstrate the legality of timber origins and minimise risks to their goods when entering the EU market,” Do said at a seminar on Vietnam’s wood and furniture industry on November 12.

Dr. Truong Tat Do, secretary of the EUDR Task Force for the Forestry Sector under the Department of Forestry and Forest Protection. Photo: HAWA

Reine Karlsson, CEO of Scale Up Oy Ltd, a company specialising in furniture sourcing across Asia, urged Vietnamese businesses to pay close attention to the distinction between having documentation and maintaining a systematic, verifiable traceability system.

“A single certificate cannot replace a closely linked chain of evidence covering the finished product, production batch, materials, and plot-level data,” Karlsson said.

Accordingly, European buyers now require upstream information to be structured, reliable and capable of demonstrating three key criteria: deforestation-free production, legal sourcing, and systematic due diligence.

Karlsson advised businesses to establish traceability systems before production begins, as this is the least costly stage at which to address data gaps before formally committing to material sourcing.

“EUDR readiness is not a certificate. It is a repeatable supply chain capability. As quality and pricing become increasingly comparable across suppliers, having a transparent supply chain not only reduces barriers for buyers but also directly strengthens Vietnamese businesses’ competitiveness in commercial negotiations,” Karlsson said.

Beyond certification, strategic product readiness to cater to increasingly diverse consumer preferences across different markets is also an important factor.

Tran Lam Son, vice chairman of Thien Minh and standing committee member of the Handicraft and Wood Industry Association of Ho Chi Minh City (HAWA), noted that the US market, valued at $125 billion, is becoming increasingly polarised into an “hourglass” structure, amid sluggish growth in the housing market and consumers’ growing price sensitivity.

“To adapt, US retailers are tightening inventory management and prioritising suppliers that offer flexibility in order quantities, reliable delivery and the capacity to support domestic distribution. In terms of products, demand is increasingly shifting towards upholstered furniture, motion furniture and designs incorporating functional technology and wellness features,” Son said.

Once product development and documentation requirements have been properly addressed, readiness in trade operations becomes the key to successfully closing deals.

Alongside the seminar, business-matching activities at HawaExpo Preshow also took place in a vibrant atmosphere, delivering a number of positive results.

Around 100 Vietnamese businesses held direct business-to-business meetings with 30 international buying offices.

New product designs and business policies adjusted to reflect global developments also generated encouraging signals for potential orders.

Phung Quoc Man, chairman of HAWA and representative of the HawaExpo (set for March 20227) organising committee, said that since its launch, HawaExpo had consistently focused not only on promotional activities and customer outreach but also on enhancing business connections and narrowing the gap between buyers’ increasingly stringent expectations and sellers’ readiness to meet them.

“The preshow programme is designed to help exhibitors stay updated on actual market requirements, enabling them to select the right products for display and prepare their resources thoroughly. We hope to provide businesses with a stronger basis for actively adapting and turning compliance pressures into tangible business advantages in 2027,” Man said.

Around 100 Vietnamese businesses held business-to-business meetings with 30 international buying offices. Photo: HAWA

EUDR imposes new regulations on timber exporters Exporters will have to demonstrate that a variety of products, including wood, are not associated with deforestation in order to access the EU market after a landmark law was approved last week.

Deforestation-free coffee production to comply with EU regulations The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), the EU Delegation to Vietnam, and sustainable trade initiative IDH hosted a conference on deforestation-free coffee production on June 29.