HCM CITY — The Vietnamese retail industry is on the cusp of great change, experts say.

Speaking at a seminar in HCM City on Wednesday on the future prospects of the industry, Phạm Thành Công, representative of Nielsen Vietnam, said retailing is undergoing a revolutionary change in the digital age where everything is connected, requiring retailers to keep up to date with innovation to satisfy customers’ diverse needs. 

Others said that in today’s environment relying on growth from a single channel is unsustainable since customers interact with businesses via multiple channels.

Previously, customers visited brick-and-mortar shops to buy products, but now they can engage with a company in a physical store, on an online website or mobile app, or through social media, they said.

David Tan, managing director of the Vietnamese operation of Singaporean IT solutions company Abeo, said Việt Nam’s retail sales last year were worth US$118 billion, a year-on-year increase of 10 per cent.

The country, ranked by A.T. Kearney among the world’s top 30 retail markets, has seen a surge in mergers and acquisitions in the sector, enhancing competition in the market.

International retailers bring funds as well as the best practices in the industry applied in developed countries, he said.

Retail best practices are integrated into the enterprises’operation process and controlled via ERP (enterprises resource planning) systems and other measures, he said.

In the increasingly competitive environment, understanding consumer behaviour to quickly meet their requirements and improving customer services are the key to succeeding and retaining customers’ loyalty, he said.

The use of technology solutions, including SAP S/4HANA Retail for merchandise management solution, helps retailers enhance their competitiveness, he said.

SAP S/4HANA Retail helps businesses automate processes such as inventory tracking and real-time warehouse management and better understand their customers, anticipate their needs and inspire their shopping experience, he said. 

Big data solutions create opportunities for businesses to expand sales of existing products and help increase the speed at which they bring products to the market, innovate new business models to better serve their customers and reduce operating costs.

According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, with 724 supermarket outlets, 123 shopping malls and a large number of convenience stores, modern retailing accounted for 25 per cent of the market last year.

The Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) sector enjoyed 6.5 per cent growth last year. — VNS