Building Brands In Vietnam

past, present and future

September 2007
 Vantage Points

• Past
– Indochine
– War
– Post War

• Present
– Post embargo

• Future
Past
The French Arrived in the mid 19th century
(although the French Jesuit who invented the Vietnamese
written script arrived in 1627)

Alexandre De Rhodes
The early colonialists encountered a land and people
with a rich and proud cultural heritage
which they tried to control militarily and through
institutions
some of which they branded
In addition they also brought French things like
cafés and coffee
Which richer
Vietnamese
developed a
taste for
French Architecture

Now replaced by Sun Wah Tower.

(Ogilvy office on the 16th floor!)
Fancy shops
Fancy Hotels
AND SOME FRENCH BRANDS
Traces of brands from that time have survived
 CEE (Compagnie des Eaux et d’Electricité de
l’Lindochine)

• Used to be the major electricity

provider in Vietnam.
Small soap brand that no
longer exists
 Lien Thanh fish sauce

• Founded in March of 1906 in Phan Thiet

• The brand became popular across the country

thanks to its superior product and distinctive red
elephant logo.

• It was also exported to other Indochina

countries.
…and some have disappeared altogether
 Co Ba soap
• Once the most famous soap brand
in the South of Vietnam

• Named after “Cô Ba” – Miss South

Vietnam at the time.
In 1954 the French finally left, but after World War II
Vietnam remained divided along the 17th parallel. Civil
war broke out in 1960
Product branding - outside of military products and basic
goods - stopped, but propaganda communication took off,
especially in the North
“Unity of North and South”
“Advance towards Saigon”
 Radio
Songs to promote patriotism:

• “Protecting the country” in wartime: “Tiến về Sài Gòn”

(Advancing towards Saigon), “Năm anh em trên một chiếc
xe tăng” (Five brothers on a tank)

• “Building the country” after wartime: “Người ñi xây Hồ

Kẻ Gỗ” (Builders of Ke Go Lake), “Em ở nông trường,
anh ra biên giới” (I am on a farm, you are on the border”
PEACE
PEACE -- FREEDOM
FREEDOM FIGHT
FIGHT FOR
FOR THE
THE RIGHT
RIGHT TO
TO LIVE
LIVE
 Propaganda dissemination channels

•Training sessions about Party and

its mission of protecting and
developing Vietnam, through:
– Vietnam Frontier Organization
– Women Union
– Students Union
– Labor Union
 Post war
Nation Building

• Poster used for boost

rice farming.

• “Try to grow 5 tons of

rice on one hectare”
 Post war

• Poster to boost coffee

farming.

• “Grow lots of coffee to

increase exports”
 Modern day propaganda

• Build the Communist Party brand

• Propaganda for the industrialization and

modernization of Vietnam
 Propaganda Style

• Influenced by Soviet Federation and China.

• Heavy use of outdoor and radio.

• Three main functions

– War effort HEROIC
– Party building
STRUGGLE
– Post war nation building activities.
1975 - 1994
 New Vietnamese State Companies

• Companies like Vinamilk emerged from the early united government

 Basic Style Of Communications

• Not consumer centric

• Marketing - Tiep thi –

same word as sales
promotions people. So
marketing understood as
‘promotions’

• Advertising bought in a
shop
 Biti’s the first brand that really established an emotional
connection with Vietnamese consumers leveraging a sense
of ‘nationhood’ and progress
BITI’S TVC FROM 1980’s
 Emergence Of ‘Brand-Focused’ Generation Of
Entrepreneurs

Dr Tran Quy Thanh – C.E.O Dang Le Nguyen Vu

Founder THP Group General Director or
Trung Nguyen Coffee

Dr. Truong Gia Binh.

FPT corporation
chairman and CEO
 Enter the foreign FMCG brands
(Following the lifting of US embargo 1994)
• Unilever

• P&G

• Nestle
 …and then the international agencies

Bates - Leo Burnett Asatsu DK Lowe

Vinexad – M&T & JWT 100% FO
Advertising 100% FO license
license
O&M
– rep.

Jul,1993 Sep,1994 May,1998 Oct,2000 Jan,2002

Oct,1994 May,1995 Oct,1999 Mar,2001 Dec,2002

McCann
Dentsu VN and
Erickson
Dentsu, Young
– rep.
Rubicam 100%
Saatchi FO license
JWT – &Saatchi O&M
rep. – Venus 100% FO
JV license license

Source: Advertising Agency Directory VN, Vol.1,

2005
Present
The Happiest Country In Asia!
“As long as I have the right
attitude
– I can do it all!”
 – A very young population. 100m in 10 years

Male Vietnam 2006 Female

Population: 84.4 million 80+
Population under 30 years old: 57% 75 - 79
70 - 74
Consumer base (15-69 y.o): 58.3 million 65 - 69
Urban: 27% – Rural: 73% 60 - 64
55 - 59
Average household size: 4.6 50 - 54
HH with kids under 16 y.o: 80% 45 - 49
40 - 44
35 - 39
30 - 34
25 - 29
24m 20 - 24 30%
15 - 19
10 - 14
21m 5-9 26%
0-4
5000 4000 3000 2000 1000 0 0 1,000 2,000 3,000 4,000 5,000

Source: U.S. Central Bureau, International Database

 Generation 8x

• Generation 8x (or VN8x) is the frequently used label to refer to the

youth. It refers to anybody born in the 1980s.

• Two types of character emerging at opposite ends of the gen.8x

spectrum:

Nguyen
Hai Ha:
Innoviet

Get rich quick -

“Enjoyaholics”
Entrepreneurship
 Persistent Sense Of Values

• A balance of modern and

traditional

• National pride

• Integrity, quiet strength

• Perseverance

• Community spirit
 BOOMING ECONOMY

• Fastest growing mobile phone market in Asia

• Highest number of people accessing the internet in South

East Asia (15.7 million)

• Retail market ranked in top ten most potentially lucrative

in the world

• Vietnam stock market has increased 50% since beginning

of 2007
 The Big Themes

HEROIC
HEROIC
STRUGGLE
STRUGGLE

YOUNG,
YOUNG, HAPPY
HAPPY AND
AND
BOOMING
BOOMING ECONOMY
ECONOMY

Brighter
Brighter future
future for
for next
next gen
gen
Giving the next generation a better opportunity in life

Syngenta
 The Big Themes

HEROIC
HEROIC
STRUGGLE
STRUGGLE

YOUNG,
YOUNG, HAPPY
HAPPY AND
AND
BOOMING
BOOMING ECONOMY
ECONOMY

Part
Part of
of global
global scene
scene
Brighter
Brighter future
future for
for next
next gen
gen
Being part of an international community

Heineken
 The Big Themes

HEROIC
HEROIC
STRUGGLE
STRUGGLE

YOUNG,
YOUNG, HAPPY
HAPPY AND
AND
BOOMING
BOOMING ECONOMY
ECONOMY

Part
Part of
of global
global scene
scene
Brighter
Brighter future
future for
for next
next gen
gen Teen
Teen culture
culture
Birth of the teenager

Kotex S-tyle
 The Big Themes

HEROIC
HEROIC
STRUGGLE
STRUGGLE

YOUNG,
YOUNG, HAPPY
HAPPY AND
AND
BOOMING
BOOMING ECONOMY
ECONOMY

Part
Part of
of global
global scene
scene Romance
Romance
Brighter
Brighter future
future for
for next
next gen
gen Teen
Teen culture
culture
Romance

YoMost
La Vie TVC
Romance
 The Big Themes

HEROIC
HEROIC
STRUGGLE
STRUGGLE

YOUNG,
YOUNG, HAPPY
HAPPY AND
AND
BOOMING
BOOMING ECONOMY
ECONOMY

Part
Part of
of global
global scene
scene Romance
Romance
Brighter
Brighter future
future for
for next
next gen
gen Teen
Teen culture
culture Modern/trad
Modern/trad values
values
Keeping traditional values despite a modern lifestyle

Knorr
 The Big Themes

HEROIC
HEROIC
STRUGGLE
STRUGGLE

YOUNG,
YOUNG, HAPPY
HAPPY AND
AND
BOOMING
BOOMING ECONOMY
ECONOMY

Part
Part of
of global
global scene
scene Romance
Romance National
National pride
pride
Brighter
Brighter future
future for
for next
next gen
gen Teen
Teen culture
culture Modern/trad
Modern/trad values
values
National pride

NutiFood
Future
 Rural Penetration

70% of Vietnam is rural but rural penetration is

about more than just sachets
Comfort
 Online

Largest number of people with access to the

internet in South East Asia
Foreign Brands Currently Leading The Way
Nike – music playground
for kids
Channel Proliferation
 PR

• Led by International brands but local companies

beginning to follow
– OPR double digit growth

• International journalism practices coming to Vietnam

• Proliferation of news titles plus internet news

 Activation

• Rapid rise of modern trade

• Way for local brands to compete with the big foreign

companies
– Foreigner build categories, local brands fight at point of purchase

• Marketing as form of entertainment on street level

 Future Themes

• New levels of ‘premium’

• Increased exposure to global entertainment trends (not

just Korean soap operas)
– Cinema culture
– Beauty
– Leisure culture

• Financial services
Even Propaganda Is Evolving - Public Service
Communication
Helmets
Thank You