25 years of Huda beer for Vietnam
25 years of Huda beer for Vietnam
On the occassion of the 25th Anniversary of Huda, the well-known lager beer produced and marketed by Carlsberg Vietnam, the market leader in Vietnam’s central region, chairman of Carlsberg Group Flemming Besenbacher travelled to Vietnam for the first time to launch the first-ever brewery tour of Carlsberg Vietnam in the central city of Hue. He shared with VIR’s Tay Lan the long journey that led to the success of its big investment in the Huda brand and its commitment to brewing the best and most consistent beer brands in the country.
Why is it so important for you to be here in the Carlsberg Vietnam (CBVN) brewery tour to mark the 25th Anniversary of Huda Vietnam?
It’s my great pleasure to visit Vietnam on such a special occasion to launch the CBVN brewery tour, the first ever tour of its kind in Hue city. On the way from airport to Hue city, I was truly impressed and very glad to see Huda’s vivid presence in every corner of the streets. This shows that Huda has earned a very dear place in the everyday life of the local people.
It’s a very unique tour for all beer lovers in general, and Huda lovers in particular, to truly see our state-of-the-art technology and advanced processes in brewing the high quality of Huda, Huda Gold, and other beer brands from Carlsberg Vietnam.
The brewery tour takes visitors through Carlsberg Group’s history since it was founded in 1847 by JC Jacobsen, as well as its journey to Vietnam to become one of the fastest growing beer companies in the country.
The first impression for any visitor coming to CBVN brewery in the Phu Bai industrial zone is the elegant and modern design, highlighted by the Elephant Gate painting and the Golden Words – the great symbols of Carlsberg’s history and heritage, which have inspired our staff to pursue perfection in beer quality, in the largest brewery of CBVN.
In addition, visitors can also see our brew house, bottling lines, and a beer bar where they can taste various freshly-made beers and experience for themselves up to 14 different beer flavours.
What did Carlsberg Group see in Vietnam that inspired it to invest in the country some two decades ago?
Vietnam is a potentially huge market with its young population base. Since Carlsberg came to Vietnam in 1993, our aim was not only to bring our international premium brands closer to local consumers, but also to develop the local power brands. I am very pleased to see Huda has become our leading local power brand in Vietnam today.
Carlsberg Group has continued investing in and expanding our business here in Vietnam. The country has always remained in our long-term commitment agenda. We’re looking forward to continuing our contribution to the development of your beautiful country and your society.
Carlsberg Group has managed to fully grow into a multi-national company beyond the border of Denmark. How do you value your subsidiaries in other countries, including Vietnam?
The world is truly globalised today, and completely different than when our founder, JC Jacobsen, was living. Jacobsen established Carlsberg in Denmark in 1847 and died in 1888. One should not forget that he already had a very international mindset. At the time, he exported his Carlsberg beer to not only the UK, but also to Asia as well. He was indeed a very visionary man for his time. He could see that the world was global.
Today, Carlsberg is a truly international company operating in three very important markets. Asia, for instance, is a very important part of the business and Vietnam is one of the largest potential markets for Carlsberg in this region.
The group’s transition has actually occurred, I would say, over the past 15 years or so. 15 years ago we had very little business outside of Denmark. We now have 98.5 per cent of our business operating outside of Denmark. So I am very proud to be the chairman of Carlsberg Group. Of course, we’d like to strengthen our business in Vietnam even further. It should be done in a sustainable manner and it should also be done in a way that we continuously create value for our shareholders, for our consumers, and for our employees.
Will Carlsberg Group’s globalisation process continue and have you had plans to tap into other markets or expand your market here in Vietnam?
Of course, we must always adapt to a range of conditions, including the financial situation around the world. I’m pleased to see that the importance of Asia has grown tremendously for Carlsberg, from about 5 per cent of our total earnings to more than 20 per cent now, a figure which has doubled in five years.
Our focus now is to make a return on our invested capital (ROIC), so we are consolidating where we are. If there are low-hanging fruits coming up where we can do a partnership in Vietnam, or in other markets, we are, however, open for it.
Carlsberg Group currently has some 500 beer brands worldwide, yet in Vietnam, we’ve had only four brands, including Carlsberg, Huda, Huda Gold and Halida. We want to bring more brands into Vietnam, for local consumers to enjoy many great beer flavours. We believe that we have all the right conditions to expand in Vietnam, as well as bring our experience to the country. We’ve been exporting our beers that are produced at our brewery in the southern city of Vung Tau to other markets, like Hong Kong and Singapore. As for our Huda Gold, we’re negotiating with a US partner to export this brand to the US. We expect to export our first Huda Gold order to California in January 2016.
