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The domestic programme would widen the rural retail network

A Week of Vietnamese Products, stimulus discounts at shops and 1,000 stalls at a high quality products fair last week are among results of the Government’s domestic promotion programme.

The programme also aims to assist the sales of Vietnamese products in rural areas where 70 per cent of the 86 million Vietnamese live and produce up to 26.5 per cent of the country’s GDP, said Domestic Market Policy Department head Hoang Tho Xuan.

The 2009 Domestic Promotion Programme was launched by the Ministry of Industry and Trade to sell products to farmers and workers in industrial zones in order to boost the trade of domestic products, including handicrafts.

Vinatexmart director Nguyen Thi Hong Huong said while urban consumption seemed to have reduced, Vinatexmart had found great potential in the rural market. She cited the revenue of VND70million for a one-day fair in the southern province of Long An, saying it was much better than what they would get in a city.

The ministry plans to issue shopping vouchers for poor households so they could buy essential domestic products such as food and clothes.

It also supports farmers in buying industrial products such as TVs, bicycles and motorbikes under hire-purchase with no or low interest.

Also under the programme, the ministry will survey the market to provide enterprises with information on consumer tastes and distribution and development trends.

The programme also organises conferences and seminars where firms can share their experience and seek co-operation.

Vu Kim Hanh, chairwoman of a Vietnamese high quality products club, applauded such activities, saying surveys were too expensive for many medium and small enterprises but were necessary to prepare a business plan.

Bui Duy Duc, general director of Vissan Limited Company, said rural people had become more aware of trademarks and quality rather than just cheap prices. He said rural markets should not be thought of as a destination for low-quality or expired products. Rural people often preferred quality and durable products and would turn their backs on offending enterprises.

Xuan said the programme would widen the retail network in the countryside and keep it sustainable.

Last year, the scale of the domestic market stood at US$60 billion, he said.

Meanwhile, Vietnamese enterprises had proved an advantage in the domestic market in the crisis, according to some first-term business records.

Nguyen Thi Yen, director of the Binh Minh Joint Stock Plastic Company, said the number of her branches’ new shops increased by an unprecedented 20 per cent in the first four months.

This had led to an increase of 20 per cent of turnover over the same period last year at VND190 billion, Yen said.

Cao Thi Ngoc Dung, general director of the Phu Nhuan Jewellery Joint Stock Company, said the firm doubled turnover to VND4.56 billion compared with the corresponding period last year thanks to its extended network of domestic shops.

Similar results were reported by the Sai Gon Cosmetic Company which had an increase the number of shops in the provinces of Vinh Long, Can Tho, Ca Mau, and in HCM City and Ha Noi.

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