Would you believe me if I told you that Vietnam is currently one of the best countries in the world to do business? Well, strange as you may find that, it really is the fact.
With a population of over 96 million citizens – half of which are right under the age of 30 – and a gradually evolving economy, Vietnam comfortably sits amongst the best economies in the world at the moment.
Currently ranked by the World Bank as the 70th best country for ease of doing business, Vietnam has comfortably evolved into one of the fastest-growing economies in South East Asia.
Related: Company Formation in Vietnam
Thanks to the evolution of the country’s economy, it is now easier than ever for foreigners to move into Vietnam, launch a startup and get it registered, or bring your existing business into the country.
Vietnam has really been a comfort zone for foreign business owners in recent years, so much so that popular business names have begun to move their factories into the country. They included companies like Sharp, Foxcom, Lenovo, and Nintendo, amongst others.
What the stats say about Vietnam’s business power
The national GDP is now around $180bn – a stratospheric leap from just $6bn in 1990. As of 2017, 24 of the 28 EU nations have invested in around 2,000 projects in the country, with total registered capital reaching $21.5bn. Industry, construction, and services were the major sectors that attracted the majority of EU capital.
Real GDP in Vietnam is projected to expand by 6.8 percent this year (up from 6.5 percent in the previous forecast), before moderating to 6.6 percent in 2019 and 6.5 percent in 2020. In addition, a report published in 2017 suggested that Vietnam would be among the world’s 32 most powerful economies in 2030, ranked ahead of the Netherlands and South Africa.
Now that we’ve been able to convince you that Vietnam is indeed a great place to do business, you must be wondering already the type of business you can do in the country.
If you’ve been, I’m happy to inform you that you need not wonder anymore, because we’ve already done the hard work for you and compiled a list of the top businesses in the country.
However, what you should concern yourself with right now is how you’re going to visit the country to discover for yourself the huge business potential that is there. To that end, I recommend checking out the Explore One Vietnam website for details on what Vietnam is truly like and how you can go about visiting the country before you finally move in to launch your business.
Here is the list of top businesses you can look into in Vietnam, compiled by the author, first posted on augustafreepress.
Furniture and home remodeling business
Furniture and home remodeling are good businesses in Vietnam because almost every home is focusing on decorating, remodeling, and getting their houses in the best shape possible. Additionally, a lot of foreign businesses that come into the country come to take advantage of the wood and labor that Vietnam has to offer. They invest a lot in making designs with sophisticated aesthetics and luxury. So when you come to Vietnam to invest in the furniture or home remodeling business, you’ll surely never run out of potential customers.
Textile industry
A worker at Vinatex Nam Dinh Yarn Factory, a subsidiary of Vietnam National Textile and Garment Group, in Hoa Xa Industrial Zone in the northern province of Nam Dinh. – VIETNAM NEWS/ANN
Even in 2020, garments, fabrics, and textile making is still gaining traction in Vietnam. As such, it represents a really profitable industry for business investors to look into. Up until now, garment and textile are among the major products that Vietnam exports. In addition, there is also a huge demand for fashion products by the country’s young population.
So you see, the garment and textile industry in Vietnam presents you with a local and international market to tap into. You can invest in a production line with low cost and cheap labor. But if you don’t really have the capital for that, you can choose to become a cloth retailer or start an online clothing store.
Construction and building materials business
Laborers work at the construction site of an apartment building in Hanoi. © Reuters
Another great business you can start in Vietnam and which doesn’t require that much capital is the selling of building and construction materials. There are so many building materials that you can look to sell in Vietnam, ranging from cement, roofing materials, and home fitting materials. Otherwise, you could also start a business in the construction service sector like painting, plumbing, home decoration, home renovation, HVAC installation, and repair, amongst other things.
Due to the never-ending demand for these materials, your business will almost always stay relevant.
Beauty industry
If you know a thing or two about fashion and beauty, you might want to consider coming to Vietnam. Almost everyone in Vietnam is focused on using a beauty product or the other, ranging from facial preparations to cosmetics, detergents to soap making, skincare to body care, and everything else in between.
In fact, in a report published in 2019, it was revealed that the beauty and cosmetics retail market in Vietnam was worth around $3 billion annually.
Agricultural products processing
Producing up to 27, 000 tons of rice annually, the site includes a part of a sustainable agriculture industry as well as serving ethnic importance, with guys tilling the soil whilst the women clean and transplant rice seedlings. | Photo: Pham Hoang Cuong @ VNExpress
It is no secret that the food industry in Vietnam is a really profitable market. Thanks to the never-ending influx of tourists and visitors alike, the demand for food products in the country has been on the rise ever since the post-war era.
But that’s not even all; thanks to Vietnam’s strong relationships with the surrounding countries, business owners enjoy the rare benefit of comfortably exporting their agricultural produce to the neighboring countries around. Also, beyond the neighboring southeast Asian countries, you can also look to export your products to places like the US and Canada, by tapping into the already healthy relationship that Vietnam has with these countries.
Exportation
With lots of products to export, delving into the export industry of Vietnam can be a pretty great step to success for anyone. Although Vietnam is world-renowned for its coffee and rice, the country also boasts some robust export strengths in crude oil, footwear, textile, seafood, and electronics. This is probably the best business you can do in Vietnam as a foreigner because of the multiplicity of options available to you.