HÀ NỘI — A forum on “Việt Nam’s consumer trend in 2017” was held in Hà Nội on Thursday to discuss changes in consumption habits and how to promote the sustainable development of consumer goods in Việt Nam.

As the nation with the third largest population in Southeast Asia, about 70 per cent of whom are at working age, Việt Nam has potential for consumer goods with significantly rising purchasing power.

The forum was an opportunity for businesses in consumer goods, managers, economic researchers to exchange information. Participants also evaluated opportunities for Vietnamese consumer markets and discussed promoting consumption and market development, said Nguyễn Văn Nam, director of the Institute for Brand and Competitiveness Strategy (BCSI).

The event covered various themes such as changes in consumer trends in Việt Nam, internet shopping, brand positioning, consumers’ confidence in local goods and quality and cost of clean products.

Chaitanya Kishore Reddy, research director of P&S – Mekong at the TNS Global market research company, said that consumption was changing in Việt Nam due to improving living standards and lifestyle changes.

Consumers want changes in packaging, as they want to see eye-catching products when they shop, he said.

Consumers tend to prefer foreign brands to domestic ones, which has harmed local firms. Some 64 per cent of rice sold in Việt Nam has a foreign name instead of a Vietnamese language name tag, with some Vietnamese firms using foreign languages to boost sales, reported Trần Nhật Tân, deputy head of Vibiz’s research department.

Consumers also tend to focus on safe food and beverages which are good for health and “green” products that protect the environment.

The seminar also discussed the effects of the fourth industrial revolution on consumption. By applying digital technology into consumption habits, people can save time by shopping online.

Global market research firms predicted that in 2017-25, the number of online consumers in Việt Nam would surge, with a diverse range of buyers and sellers.

Therefore, enterprises should engage in high technology to introduce products to many online consumers in the era of technology development.

The event was organised by BCSI in accordance with the Vietnam Economic Times (Thời báo Kinh tế Việt Nam) newspaper. — VNS