Representatives of Startup and Innovation Hub of HCM City (SIHUB) and Chung Yong 23 Company sign a Memorandum of Understanding on organising the HCMC K-BRAND EXPO 2026 at the expo's announcement ceremony held in HCM City on August 7. — VNA/VNS Photo

HCM CITY — The annual K-Brand Expo in HCM City will take place on August 27-29 at the White Palace Hoàng Văn Thụ Convention Centre in HCM City.

Speaking at the event’s launch ceremony on Friday, Phạm Huỳnh Quang Hiếu, deputy director of the HCM City Department of Science and Technology, said HCMC K-Brand Expo is officially transitioning from a conventional display exhibition model to premiere platform fostering international cooperation in trade, investment, technology, and innovation between Việt Nam and the Republic of Korea (RoK).

The exhibition will bring together nearly 200 startups, enterprises, and startup support organisations from 18 key industrial cities in the RoK, including Seoul, Busan, Incheon, Gwangju, Jeonju, and Daejeon, alongside hundreds of Vietnamese importers and distributors, Hiếu said.

In its 5th edition, technology and artificial intelligence (AI) account for more than 40 per cent of the total booths, forming the largest section of the exhibition and surpassing all three traditional consumer categories: food (25 per cent), cosmetics and beauty (around 20 per cent), and household goods and lifestyle (around 15 per cent).

Beyond connecting enterprises with markets, the exhibition connects businesses with universities and young start-up communities through the university innovation idea contest InnoStar and the start-up pitch programme Venture Star.

InnoStar, jointly organised by the HCM City Department of Science and Technology, Startup and Innovation Hub of HCM City (SIHUB), and Korea-Vietnam Trade Promotion Centre (Koretoviet), aims to build a sustainable innovation ecosystem where young students are given opportunities to create, start businesses, and connect with the global market.

Over the past three years, InnoStar has attracted more than 1,000 students from both countries with 398 registered projects, with 25 Vietnamese projects receiving awards totaling VNĐ600 million (US$22,900) from South Korean partners.

This year HCM City contributed 110 projects involving more than 400 students from 32 universities, while the RoK side had 110 students from 12 universities participating.

The Venture Star programme has connected 40 startups from both countries with 17 domestic and international investment funds.

This year, five Vietnamese startups are receiving workspace support in Jeonbuk Province and SIHUB is providing workspace support to five South Korean startups entering the Vietnamese market.

Ryu Seung-Ho, Consul in charge of Small- and Medium-sized Enterprises at the Consulate General of the Republic of Korea in HCM City, said that HCMC K-Brand Expo 2026 opens a new era of cooperation between Korean and Vietnamese enterprises, building on the collaborative achievements established over the past five years.

HCM City is a dynamic consumer market and a prominent hub for startups and business in Việt Nam, bringing together innovative enterprises, investors, and high-quality human resources, Seung-Ho said.

Through the expo, Korean businesses have the opportunity to engage directly with Vietnamese consumers and seek local partners, while Vietnamese firms gain enhanced opportunities to collaborate with Korean counterparts in sectors such as beauty, food, AI, and lifestyle technology, he said.

The Consulate General of the Republic of Korea in HCM City will continue to accompany and support networking activities to foster sustainable and mutually beneficial cooperation between the business communities of both nations, he added.

The expo is jointly organised by the Korean Ministry of SMEs and Startups, the HCM City Department of Science and Technology, Jeonbuk Creative Economy Innovation Centre, SIHUB, and Koretoviet. — VNS