Vietnamese encouraged to sell on Amazon

Seemingly ordinary products that are widely available in Vietnam are in fact hot items that sell well at good prices on Amazon, it was revealed at the Vietnam Online Business Day 2019 in Ho Chi Minh City on Thursday.

Tran Quy Hien, co-founder of Amazon FBA Freedom, a Facebook group encouraging Vietnamese entrepreneurs to expand their businesses to Amazon to reach worldwide customers, acknowledged that Vietnamese merchants are not new to the global shopping platform.

The Facebook group attracts people with intention to or are already selling their goods on Amazon with the FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon) service. FBA users store their products in Amazon's fulfillment centers, and the company will pick, pack, ship, and provide customer service for these products.

Top-rated Vietnamese products

Surprisingly, Vietnamese products with high sales on the online shopping platform are the most ordinary things for most Vietnamese people, such as bamboo brooms, non la (conical hat), and bamboo bags, according to Hien.

Not only do these goods appeal to the customers because of their originality, the products are also sold at much higher prices than their counterparts in Vietnam.

For instance, a Vietnamese traditional broom made of bamboo that fetches a mere $1.5 in Vietnam costs US$12 on Amazon. Similarly, G7 coffee, one of the Vietnamese renowned coffee brands, could be purchased on the online shopping platform for $21.

Other “made-in-Vietnam” goods sold on Amazon include Vietnamese coffee filters, pots and pans to make Vietnamese traditional dishes, and coffee, among others.

As demand for ‘uniquely Vietnamese’ products is huge on Amazon, Hien advises that sellers should not compete by lower prices.

“Instead, you should try to increase the product’s values by improving customer’s experience,” he said.

He added that packaging should also be improved, as many customers do not purchase goods for their personal use but to give as gifts.

Hien said goods listed on Amazon do not need to be special or luxurious, but they have to be innovative to attract buyers.

One of the products originating from Vietnam favored by Amazon customers is bamboo baskets, which became one of the ten best-selling products only after a week being available for purchase.

Now, it is one of the three most searched keywords on Amazon.

“While its price in Vietnam is around VND200,000 [$8.6], the item is sold at $60 on Amazon,” Hien said, adding that the product still needs several adjustments to make it more appealing.

Supporting Vietnamese businesses

The Vietnam E-commerce Association (VECOM), a non-government organization supporting businesses in the e-commerce industry, is currently looking for local specialties and outstanding products of each region, especially craft products, to be sold on online shopping platforms, helping merchants boost sales and localities to spread their special products around the world.

At the moment, the association is working with the Mekong Delta province of Ben Tre to sell its signature coconut-based products online.

By the end of 2019, it is expected that 90 percent of Ben Tre businesses will be able to generate online sales, according to VECOM vice chairman Nguyen Ngoc Dung.

In addition, Dung also emphad that e-commerce is a good way to support super small, small, and medium businesses.

In the meantime, an Amazon representative has said the platform is willing to welcome Vietnam’s businesses.

Currently there are around 200,000 Vietnamese merchants on Amazon, collectively raking in revenue of $1 million in 2018.

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