Make the most of the advantage
According to Ms. Ho Thi Quyen - Deputy Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Investment and Trade Promotion Center (ITPC), Vietnam - Thailand economic relations have achieved many important advances in recent years, especially in the context of the two countries sharing close geographical locations and convenient transport infrastructure through the East - West and Southern economic corridors. This helps the two countries make the most of their advantages to promote economic connectivity, supply chains, production and distribution.
Trade relations are driven by important agreements such as the ASEAN Commodity Trade Agreement (ATIGA) and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (RCEP), opening up great opportunities for businesses of both sides to penetrate and expand the market.
Ho Chi Minh City is identified as a key locality in strengthening connectivity with Thailand, not only in the field of trade but also in investment, culture and tourism. The city will continue to play a bridging role, supporting businesses to access the Thai market and expand to ASEAN countries, taking advantage of the potential of a market of more than 70 million people with increasing purchasing power.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Bich Van - Communications Director of Central Retail Vietnam Group said that since 2016, the event "Vietnamese hang Week in Thailand" organized by the joint venture has become a practical platform to help nearly 500 Vietnamese businesses promote and introduce products to Thai consumers. Trade connection events have helped Vietnamese fruits such as fabric, longan, dragon fruit... penetrate deeper into this market through a large retail system.
As a manufacturing enterprise, Mr. Do Thanh Phuong - Director of P&K Development Company Limited hopes to connect products with the Thai market through agricultural and herbal raw material sources as well as cooperating in processing separate brands for partner enterprises.
In the context of 2025, when the epidemic is still complicated, the consumer trend is strongly shifting to products of natural origin and applying green technology.
Through the connection programs, our business has received many orders from both domestic and international partners, while contributing to spreading positive values to the community. Thereby, consumers also have the opportunity to know many quality products with unique identity of Vietnam" - Mr. Thanh Phuong said.
Enterprises need to focus on attractive packaging
Despite its great potential, the Thai market still has many strict requirements on quality, packaging, labels and import procedures.
Mr. Chailermchai Pornsiripiyakool - Vice President in charge of International External Relations and Sustainable Development of Central Retail Vietnam Group - said that businesses need to focus on attractive, modern packaging, meeting international standards, complying with regulations on labels and aiming for green development.
The product price must be reasonable, combined with seasonal promotions. At the same time, providing clear information and highlighting the product's strengths is very important to attract consumers. Currently, Vietnamese products with great potential in the Thai market include seafood, sweet potatoes, dragon fruit, coffee, sauce and spices.
With a solid foundation of cooperation, the support of large corporations, and commitments from authorities at all levels and businesses, the road to bringing Vietnamese goods to Thailand and ASEAN is more open than ever. This is the golden time for Vietnamese enterprises to seize opportunities, improve competitiveness and gradually affirm their position on the regional trade map.
