Vietnamese coffee products sold on Amazon.com.  Vietnamese firms are urged to export through the US website to access over 300 million customers in 185 countries and territories. — VNS Photo

HCM CITY — Vietnamese businesses, especially small- and medium-sized ones, should export their products through the Amazon e-commerce sales platform, a seminar heard in HCM City yesterday.

Speaking on global export trends through the Amazon platform, Trần Xuân Thủy, managing director of Amazon Global Selling Việt Nam, said by putting their products on the platform, businesses would have the chance to access over 300 million customers in 185 countries and territories as well as develop their brands at little cost.

Global e-commerce had grown strongly in recent years, rapidly transforming consumer behaviours as an increasing number of people opt to shop online, he said.

Previously they bought goods based on the prestige of a brand, but now, instead of relying only on brand credibility, they often assess products through a variety of tools such as online reviews, descriptions and user product ratings, he pointed out.

“The scale of cross-border e-commerce will exceed US$3.3 trillion in the next two years. In 2022 the e-commerce growth rate will far exceed the growth rate of in-store sales.”

Trần Quý Hiến of Amazon FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon) Freedom Group, a group of Vietnamese companies that have already sold or will sell their products on the US website, said many Vietnamese products such as coffee, broom, handicrafts, and others are globally popular on Amazon.

He quoted Lê Thị Thiện Ngân, cofounder and CEO of Paper Color, as saying: “Our business has grown from just two members initially. We have exported to more than 30 countries all over the world and continue to grow our brand.”

Some companies sell their products through intermediaries and agents, and this middle stage could be abolished if they sell their products through Amazon, and they could cut costs and better build their brands, he said.

The quality of many Vietnamese products fully meets Amazon’s requirements, and they should quickly start selling their products on the website, he said.

Among Vietnamese items that are very competitive on Amazon are handmade products, leather products, clothing and accessories, footwear, natural products, children toys and educational equipment, he said.

Phạm Thiết Hòa, director of the Investment and Trade Promotion Centre of HCM City (ITPC), said: “About 98 per cent of businesses in HCM City are super-small, small or medium-sized with limited capital and technology.

“So it is necessary to support these enterprises, especially in promoting exports.

“Through the Amazon platform, ITPC will support micro, small and medium-sized enterprises to promote exports to the world market, while helping them build and develop brands on a global scale.”

At the event, Thủy told local firms how to open accounts to sell their products on Amazon.

Hòa said ITPC would continue to co-ordinate with the US website to organise training for enterprises exporting on its platform. — VNS