Latest Thinking

Lessons Learned from Working in Vietnam

Looking to the past provides perspective, experience, and wisdom. However, it needs not to define the present nor future. That is the reality of Vietnam and its rise from past decades filled with struggles. Today, Vietnam is a thriving country, attractive to investors, both domestically and globally. Globalization has its limitations, but there is no… [Read the full article]

Tailoring Your Promotion to Your Market – Making It Personal

It is not a business if there is a great product but nobody knows about it. Promotion embraces all methods of persuasion in order to bring awareness to your brand and motivate customers to buy your products. Successful promotion comprises elements such as advertising, public relations, and sales promotion. These elements shift as new generations… [Read the full article]

Three ‘Family Values’ That Should Be A Part of Every Business

There are key elements to any successful company; two of the most important elements include: your product and the people who make your business run.  These people, which may include family members, are the core of your business’ existence.  Together you are working to achieve great things; it’s important that those relationships are nurtured in… [Read the full article]

How Companies Can Learn Their Market to Boost Growth

This week I will share with you a seemingly impossible feat which has, in fact manifest into reality.  It’s a story of a product that multi-nationals have tried and failed, but with the right understanding of its market, it has become a successful national brand enjoyed by 93 millions people in Vietnam. It’s one of… [Read the full article]

Overcoming Your Obstacles While Staying Positive

Given where THP stands today, it is hard to imagine how difficult it must have been for my parents, Trần Quí Thanh and Phạm Thị Nụ, in the beginning.  It has been their “nothing is impossible” mantra which helps them withstand decades of difficulty to build the internationally successful company that is Tân Hiệp Phát… [Read the full article]

Vietnam’s Entrance into Modern Business

Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh (or Saigon as the locals call it), and Da Nang are cities thick with development. I live in Saigon, which has bloomed into a metropolitan city. Its streetscape is constantly transforming with new trendy shops, cafes and restaurants popping up on every corner. Roads are bustling with motorcycles at all hours… [Read the full article]

Fight, Flight, Freeze, or None of The Above

Each and every day we are faced with decisions large and small as they pertain to growing our businesses. These challenges and opportunities require confident decision-making, often elicit varying amounts of stress, causing us to feel as though we need to fight, flee, or just freeze. We can’t predict every scenario we’ll be faced with,… [Read the full article]

What Entrepreneurs Can Learn from Companies that Turned Down Lucrative Buyouts

Six years ago, I was sitting in the glass-encased conference room at Coca-Cola’s headquarters, my head spinning. My heart was beating furiously as I watched my father—the owner of Tân Hiệp Phát Beverage Group (THP), our family-owned business—turn down a $2.5 billion offer from one of the largest beverage companies in the world. At the… [Read the full article]

Creating Win-Win Business Partnerships

Since the turn of the century, THP has become one of Vietnam’s leading private-sector companies. It has successfully ridden the wave of rising domestic consumption at home and taken its first steps to export abroad. That independent success however, hasn’t eliminated our need or desire to partner with multinationals or other companies. In fact, collaboration… [Read the full article]

Driving your Own Destiny

As a business, no matter your size, there is no reason for you not to be in complete control of your vision as it pertains to your market.  My experience in business is shaped by the evolving Vietnamese business environment which has great potential. Many foreign companies and investors see this potential and want to… [Read the full article]