Shop & Store Vietnam 2018: Defining new concept for retail and franchise

How did the Shop & Store Vietnam get started?

As the industry continues to embrace the wider international community, being attracted by over 95 million people and accounted as young population of consumers with 60 percent are aged under 30, multinational retail and franchise groups have taken active steps to penetrate the market in Vietnam.

According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, within 10 years, from 2007 to 2016, Vietnam had witnessed the arrival of 164 foreign franchises bringing 201 brands. Food & Beverage franchises comprise 40 percent of those, including KFC, Lotteria, Jollibee, Pizza Hut, Starbucks, McDonald’s, Domino’s Pizza, Popeye’s Chicken and Texas Chicken. Meanwhile, domestic retailers with the upper hand at the first-mover stage will also need to prepare themselves for the more intense competition. Not just the guarantee of good quality premises that are affordable, technology is also a new key competitive issue for any franchisor and retailer toward the rapid change of the consumer market.

An idea sparked up from the market demand, the leading exhibition organizer in ASEAN - Reed Tradex started researching the retail and franchise industry in Vietnam. Especially for franchise industry, even it is not new but still has ample space to develop; we found out that every prospective franchisee has the same questions: How to guarantee the success in doing franchise? What to concern in the relationship between franchisor and franchisee? How’s the training and support? Is the investment worthy, and is the marketing support effective? The retail and franchise industry has a promising future, while specialized playgrounds providing practical knowledge to develop the industry are scarce. To respond to these opportunities and challenges, Reed Tradex decided to launch the international Confex (conference exhibition) Shop & Store Vietnam 2018 (SSV18) which will cater to the needs of all businesses, from small retailers to established SMEs and existing franchisors in expanding their business comprehensively.

What are the concept and mission of Shop & Store Vietnam?

We will introduce the new concept of Confex, which focuses to deliver the enriched content and 360° view of the industry through the combination of conference and exhibition.

The Shop & Store Vietnam exhibition will gather world-class solution providers from retail technologies, finance software, store management system, catering and hospitality equipment, professional retail service, e-commerce system. The exhibition is also designed to be a B2B meeting place and hub for franchise brands to meet with aspiring entrepreneurs, investors and potential buyers who are eager to join the world-class franchising network or retailer brands. During the exhibition, the participants will have a chance to meet face-to-face with over 100 companies from over 15 countries and territories.

At the same time, the Shop & Store Vietnam conference offers a unique line-up of useful advices and tips from experts on both professional and personal levels, local insight information for investors, new trend update for local businessman and extend the networks in the simplest and most effective way. Beside of in-depth provided in the show, there will be many inspirational activities such as Digital Supermarket that will showcase a demonstration of tomorrow’s store to pave a way toward the trend of a cashless society.

One of the core points of consumer business is different people, no matter how similar they are and make different purchasing decisions. Businesses often try to influence a consumer’s behavior with things they can control such as the layout of a store, music, grouping and availability of products, pricing, and advertising. Therefore, besides of two main profiles retail and franchise, we will also bring the experience of shop design and fitting to the exhibition. The success for all participants in the exhibition is not only determined by what actually happens during the show date but also before and after that. Cross-supported programs will be implemented in collaboration among the organizer and specialized organizations such as Retail & Franchise Asia, World Franchise Associates, etc.

What are other advices for prospective new businessmen who are in the middle of a search to find the right opportunity?

The Vietnamese consumer industry is expected to continue recording a stable and positive performance. According to the report entitled, “ASEAN connected 2016”, the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited (HSBC) confirmed that Vietnam’s middle class has the fastest growth rate in Southeast Asia and is expected to grow from 12 million in 2012 to 33 million by 2020. Consumers’ spending is on the increase due to the young population, rapid urbanization, and the increasingly open economy with increased employment, business, and income opportunities.

More than ever, this is a golden time to start or expand the business, in order to serve the increasing demand. However, building successful business takes time, and there are no tricks or shortcuts. Properly researching to start doing any business is a lot of hard work which is why many people do not do enough research and they end up very dissatisfied in the end, or worse, they go out of business. Technology is changing how we live, while the consumer’s expectation and lifestyle are also changing dramatically, plus with fast-paced innovations create fierce competition; an open mind and sharply observation is necessary. Let’s move forward and never stop looking for opportunities.