OFFICIAL CASE RELEASE

October 4th, 2021

VinFast Electric Vehicles: A Quest for the American Market

Disclaimer: This case is written for educational purposes only. Information about VinFast is
taken from public sources available at the time of publication, and presented here to inform
case study discussion in an educational setting. This case does not represent the views of
VinFast, nor is it meant to be historically accurate. Thus, the case should not be cited as a
source of information about VinFast outside of an educational context for classroom and/or
business case competitions. The case competition organizers are exempt from any negative
consequences which might occur if information presented within the case is used outside of
educational purposes.
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Michelle Nguyen walked into her VinFast office in California energized by her morning meetings.
The CEO of VinFast Global had just tasked her and her team to develop a go-to-market
strategy for two of VinFast’s new electric vehicle (EV) models into the United States (U.S.)
automotive market. As she sets down her papers and looked out of her office window, she
paused for a moment to take everything in.

VinFast has quickly become highly successful in Vietnam and this new initiative would mark
the company’s first major international market foray. Thanks to VinFast’s significant
investments in manufacturing facilities in Vietnam they have the capacity and capability of
producing very well-made, well-designed cars. The executive team of VinFast has already
committed a significant investment into the expansion plans by establishing the U.S.
headquarters in Los Angeles, California. In addition, they plan to open multiple showrooms
throughout California in early 2022. VinFast has set an aggressive sales goal of capturing at-
least 1% of the U.S. automotive market by 20251. However, entering a highly competitive U.S.
automotive market won’t be easy for an automotive brand from Vietnam, and the newness
and high-tech aspect of EV add several more layers of complexity. Time was short, but Michelle
was optimistic as she considered her next steps.

Vingroup and VinFast

Established in 2017, VinFast is a subsidiary of Vingroup, a large conglomeration of privately held

corporations in Vietnam, that includes businesses in technology, industry, and services. VinFast
boldly stepped into the Vietnamese automotive market in 2019 as the only domestic car brand
and showed that they could move quickly and decisively to produce high quality cars resulting
in rapid sales and leading revenue in their respective segments. Within 21 months of launch,
and with an investment of nearly $3.5 billion USD, they were producing several models of e-
scooters, buses, and automobile models —including the ultra-high luxury President2— in their
fully-automated modern manufacturing facility boasting capacity to build 250,000 vehicles a
year. In early 2021, VinFast executives announced their vision of becoming a global leader in
the EV market, introduced EV models, and started their international expansion plans.

1
https://www.statista.com/statistics/323192/automotive-aftermarket-size-in-the-united-states/
2
https://shop.vinfastauto.com/vn_en/car-president.html

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 This is VinFast - Geared for the Future
https://youtu.be/VI0u8_xs9tk

VinFast EV Products

The two VinFast EV models being considered for the U.S. market include the midsize sports utility
vehicle (SUV) VF e35 and full-size SUV VF e36. Partnering with famed Italian designer Pininfarina,
VinFast’s earlier models were recognized for their design; VinFast hopes the new EV models’
sleek look will appeal to U.S. drivers. The cars have a range between 300 and 330 miles (500 to
550 km) per charge and boast several high-tech features such as an Advanced Driving-
Assistance System (ADAS) that incorporates machine learning technology to assist drivers with
parking, staying in lanes, avoiding collisions, and adapting their cruise control settings with the
speed of surrounding cars. In addition, the car offers a wide variety of AI-powered smart
services features with Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity and sensor capabilities that link the
car to phone, home, payment, and other connected devices to enable features such as smart
summoning, preventative maintenance updates, and voice commands.

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 VinFast e35: https://drive.google.com/file/d/16VnXblJUzX4xBGjEHSMR9ybf-cvfjeJu/view

Entering the U.S Market

Though the EV market projections are stronger in Europe or China, the U.S market size is
considerably larger, meaning even a small share could mean significant revenues and,
perhaps more importantly, provide a toehold for Vingroup to tap into the large U.S. market in
other segments outside of automotive. Preparing for her next meeting with her strategy
development team, Michelle summarized the key objectives that need to be addressed in her
team’s go-to-market strategy.

1. Branding

The VinFast name quickly gained prominence in Vietnam since it was associated with the other
well-respected Vingroup brands, but both Vingroup and VinFast are lesser known names in the
U.S. market and most of the rest of the world. Michelle needs an effective strategy to make U.S.
consumers aware of, and interested in, the VinFast brand. VinFast corporate has developed
branding guidelines (see the online appendix), but Michelle plans to challenge her team to
describe specifics about how brand development will happen in the U.S.

2. Product Positioning

The traditional internal combustion engine (ICE) automotive industry in the U.S. is mature;
however, the EV market is still in its infancy. Over half of all the EVs sold in the U.S. in 2020 came
from one manufacturer – the high-end, high-tech, highly visible Tesla. However, nearly all the
other established car manufacturers are also planning on rolling out EVs in the coming years.
In fact, in July 2021, the U.S. President Joe Biden announced goals that half of new cars sold in
the U.S. to be EV by 2030.

Michelle’s team will need a differentiated strategy to position their new EV entrants in the
marketplace in a way that convinces the U.S. consumer that the product is a competitive fit for
their lifestyle, budget, and needs. Full details on product pricing have not been finalized, but
Michelle plans to challenge her team to consider aspects outside of just pricing to
appropriately position the two new cars in the U.S. automotive market.

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3. Distribution and Logistics

While the newly completed manufacturing plants in Vietnam have capacity and capability to
make enough cars to meet VinFast’s aggressive growth goals, there remain concerns about
how and where to store, sell, distribute, and service the U.S. market. The U.S. geography is much
larger than Vietnam, and providing an appropriate service and parts network across the
country would be a massive undertaking. To make matters worse, the ongoing COVID-19
pandemic continues to cause major disruptions in the global supply chain market, with no
immediate signs of relief. Quickly responding to sales, demand and service requests will require
a fluid and well-serviced supply chain and smart considerations about the logistics of
distribution.

Traditionally, car manufacturers have relied on dealerships for sales and after-sales service in
the U.S. market. However, VinFast has decided to sell cars online direct to U.S. consumers and
to exhibit cars in VinFast showrooms. While some decisions have been made about the
placement of the first showrooms in California, Michelle’s team must decide where next to open
showrooms and what other logistical support they will need in order to ensure U.S. customers
that their car will be delivered and supported.

In addition, the battery rental program will require VinFast to respond quickly to the service
batteries. After-sales service and support will likely play a big part of U.S. consumers’ trust in
VinFast’s offerings; consumers will be hesitant to invest in a relatively unknown car brand
without assurance that the cars can be serviced.

Michelle plans to challenge her team to consider a specific strategy about the roll-out of the
locations of showrooms and after-sales support locations, and to decide on the key logistics
ports and channels in order to ensure distribution of the car buying experience is well executed.

4. Customer Experience

Michelle has stressed to her team the importance of customers having a good experience
before, during, and after the purchase of their car. The car-buying experience in the U.S. is not
always known to be positive, so VinFast hopes to introduce a unique level of service to their
customers by bringing an Asian flair to the entire customer experience. The details of this
approach are not finalized yet and Michelle wonders how the U.S customer would respond to
this type of service, and how much—or how little—of the Asian culture should be included. She

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also wonders whether the U.S. workforce could deliver the Asian-inspired high-touch customer
service that the company aspires to deliver.

Michelle plans to challenge her team to consider what other aspect of designing an experience
should their roll-out include. How important are the tangible and intangible elements of the
showroom and after-sales service? How can they consistently deliver an experience that is
beyond what customers expect when buying and servicing a vehicle?

5. Partnerships

Entering a new geographic market can be daunting; strategic partnerships are often used to
reduce both known and unknown go-to-market risks. Although Michelle would hate to share
potential profits and control, she also wonders if a partnership would help her team reach their
goals and reduce some of the risks identified. To date, while VinFast has not committed to any
domestic partnership in the U.S., it aims to partner with reputable service supply chain
providers, financial organizations, traditional and modern dealers, banks and insurance
companies. The question is whether and to what extent VinFast should approach these
partnerships.

6. Promotion and Sales

In concert with the objectives outline above, Michelle plans to challenge her team to consider
how best to promote their U.S. launch. They need to consider what marketing and
advertisement channels and sales promotions are appropriate to engage customers.

Next Steps

Michelle plans to convey to her team that while the objectives she has outlined are aggressive,
the team must create an actionable strategy leading to a successful launch. The team has
been studying the U.S. car market, EV sales projections, and a myriad of other factors relevant
to the problem and has created an online space to share what they have found (see the online
appendix). Now they need to move forward decisively to meet their target launch date early in
2022.

Most important, the team needs to describe how VinFast can be successful with these two new
EVs in the U.S. market. How can VinFast quickly gain and maintain confidence of the U.S.
consumer and successfully establish a permanent presence in the U.S? Finally, the strategy

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needs to clearly elaborate how they will meet the CEO’s goal of capturing at least 1% of the U.S.
auto market by 2025.

Case Appendices are available at: https://vinuni-globalcase.com/case-appendices/

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Round ONE
A. Create and record a video presentation not exceeding 5 minutes; and
B. A PowerPoint slide deck (16:9) not exceeding 10 slides (exclusive of cover page).

describing your strategy for addressing what you consider the top two, most urgent and
critical objectives and issues for VinFast in their go-to-market strategy.

Round TWO
Develop a strategy to address all of the major objectives and issues you see as relevant to the
case. Your submission document should be
A. A maximum of 20 pages, single-spaced write-up (inclusive of all content including
cover page, appendices, footnotes, and any other supplementary information).

Round FINAL PRESENTATION

Finalists will submit a PowerPoint slide deck and make a 20-minute live presentation of their
Round 2 entries before a panel of judges consisting of academic scholars and industry
executives.

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