Lion head workshop in Hue is deserted as Mid-Autumn Festival approaches

Learning from previous years' experience, this year, Mr. Truong Nhu Rem (47 years old, owner of a lion head production facility on Tran Hung Dao Street, Hue City) started producing lion heads for the Mid-Autumn Festival earlier than every year.

In previous years, when the demand for lion heads for the Mid-Autumn Festival was still stable, Mr. Rem’s largest lion head production facility in Hue City did not have enough goods to sell. However, this year, there were many lion heads produced and they were prepared early, but customers were still few and far between, making Mr. Rem and many other lion head production facilities worried.

“Like previous years, we couldn’t sell anything during the pandemic. Last year, it rained during the Mid-Autumn Festival so we couldn’t sell anything. This year, the facility produced lion heads early but many of them are still hanging on the shelves. There are few buyers this year, which is not very good,” said Mr. Rem.

According to research, Mr. Truong Nhu Rem’s lion head production facility is the largest in the ancient capital of Hue. With 28 years of experience in the profession, Mr. Rem’s workshop has up to 16 workers. The products of this facility are exported to many places in the country such as Da Nang, Quang Nam, Gia Lai, Dong Hoi… even many foreign tourists buy them.

Yet this year, the Mid-Autumn Festival is approaching, but there are still many lion heads that have not been sold, making many production facility owners worried.

Yet this year, Mid-Autumn Festival is approaching but many lion heads have not been sold, causing many production facility owners to worry.

Until now, at this time, in every alley and street in Hue City, everywhere is bustling with drum sounds, lion dance troupes perform to serve tourists, people compete to buy lion heads, drums, costumes...

However, with only 10 days left until the Mid-Autumn Festival, Rem's workshop and many other establishments are still deserted, with only a few people coming to buy.

However, with just over 10 days left until the Mid-Autumn Festival, Rem’s workshop and many other establishments are still deserted, with only a few people coming to buy. “The fact that customers are decreasing day by day makes me feel worried. However, with my passion and a little income from this job, I will still try to maintain and develop the lion head making profession that my ancestors left behind,” said Rem.

Tran Hung Dao Street (Hue City) is known as the largest “capital” of lion head production in Hue. These days, every house is filled with lion heads of all sizes and colors, making the whole street bright and cheerful.

Workers here are busy from early morning to late night to meet the demand for Mid-Autumn Festival. However, the number of customers buying lion heads to play on Mid-Autumn Festival is still low.