Local dealer in imported handbags eyes market expansion
Local dealer in imported handbags eyes market expansion
Laos is now gradually becoming a new strategic market for regional fashion goods as a result of the growth in the Lao economy, showing the purchasing power of local people is on the rise.
Many buyers are now able to afford the prices of a range of international goods, especially fashion items for women who are following the trends of new fashion releases.
One of Laos' authorised distributors of a well-known handbag brand from Thailand, Ms Vithaya Oudomphone, spoke to Vientiane Times yesterday saying that she initially bought the brand for her personal use but many of her friends were interested in buying from her.
“That was the beginning of my idea to import products to sell in Laos,” she said, adding that the feedback from customers was quite impressive over the four months since the start of sales.
Currently there are many internationally well-known products on sale at various shopping malls in Laos including the Vientiane Centre, Talat Sao Mall, Lao-ITECC and other shopping centres.
“Generally, Lao people are now more modern and able to buy many kinds of globally made products as the price of these products has become affordable locally,” Ms Vithaya said.
When asked about the quality of ‘Viranda' handbags she said their quality is high because they are made from real cow hides and the skins of snakes and crocodiles from farms in Thailand, Indonesia and Chile.
The shop is expected to expand to over five branches in Vientiane and another three will open up in Champassak, Savannakhet and Xieng Khuang provinces next year.
Ms Vithaya also noted that it would be great if she can produce her own branded product under the label of being made in Laos but this will take more time.
“We are thinking about creating our branded products in the future but we are still in the process of learning about this kind of business and how it works,” she said.
Pricing of her products ranges from 1,000 baht (almost 230,000 kip) to 100,000 baht (almost 23 million kip).
The expansion of the branches will not focus on locations in various major shopping malls but will be in individual shops because the cost of rental of a shop has a direct affect on the retail pricing of the products, according to Ms Vithaya.
“Representatives from several shopping malls in Vientiane have asked us to bring in products to sell at the mall but this is still under the consideration because we are not sure about variable prices,” she said.
The rapid growth of the Lao economy and business operations in Laos now offer a positive inspiration for local young businesspeople to actively seek their own business opportunities.
Many young businesspeople are developing their own product ideas and putting their products on display in local markets to ensure they become recognised by local customers.
Last October, the first handbag brand ‘Naree' was officially put on sale in Vientiane with some 50 to 100 handbags per production run.
But this number is still unable to meet the demands of customers because of the combination of different designs and the buyers being able to afford prices from 139,000 kip to over 1 million kip per bag, the founder of the Naree handbag, Ms Manothip Siripaphanh, told Vientiane Times recently.
