Increase Competitiveness, Vietnamese Furniture Companies Strengthen Marketing Through E-Commerce

One of the traditional Vietnamese style furniture. (Expo Hawa)

JAKARTA - Deputy Chairperson of the Association of Crafts and Wood Industries Ho Chi Minh City (HAWA) Duong Minh Tue assesses that companies of Vietnamese wood, furniture and handicrafts need to consider entering-commercedemic getting more customers.

Tue, Sunday, saw global growth opportunities for furniture exports and cross-border electronic trade.

He said that Vietnam as one of the leading wood exporters in the world has expanded its market by making more in-depth penetration.

"With the power in forestry development, incentives for the business world, and free trade agreements signed with foreign partners, exports of Vietnamese wood and wood products have recorded great success in the international market," Tue said, as reported by Antara.

The markets targeted by Vietnamese wood processing exports are the United States, European Union, Republic of Korea, and Japan.

Vietnam has also begun to increase its presence in developing countries, such as India and the United Arab Emirates.

However, traditional export market segments face many challenges due to weak global consumption demand, increased barriers to protectionism, and countries that continue to maintain strict monetary policy.

"Meanwhile, sales of furniture and handicrafts through e-commerce continue to experience tremendous growth," he said.

In order to improve brand recognition and access more customers, Tue assesses that business people need to consider and invest systematically in online sales activities, including diversifying sales channels in business strategies.

Vietnam's Senior Account Manager of Amazon Global Selling Nguyen Thanh Yen My said that although global trade has not fully recovered, online trade continues to grow steadily.

"E-commerce across countries is a new trend and form of export that helps small and medium enterprises achieve strong growth," he added.

According to My, in the United States which is Vietnam's largest export market, the furniture industry's e-commerce is projected to grow strong over the next four years and could reach 118.6 billion US dollars (Rp1,855.7 trillion) by 2027.

Wayfair's senior supplier acquisition manager, Jimmy Wang, also noted that Vietnamese companies can directly access various kinds of customers from around the world through the e-commerce platform.

Recently, many Chinese suppliers have bought Vietnamese furniture and resold it globally via e-commerce crossing borders. Therefore, there is no reason for Vietnamese manufacturers not to use cross-border e-commerce to sell their products.