10 Days In Vietnam
Hanoi
Day 1: Singapore to Vietnam
Day 2: ToTo Vietnam Co. Ltd., UniWorld Int'l School
Day 3: Honda Vietnam Co. Ltd., Yamaha Vietnam Co. Ltd.
Day 4: Ha Tay Brewery, Hanoi Open University, Ciputra Int'l City
-Hanoi to Ho Chih Minh City-
Ho Chih Minh City
Day 5: My Tho, Ben Thanh Market, Cyclo Tour
Day 6: Cu Chi Tunnel, Tay Ninh Province, An Dong Plaza
Day 7: Quang Trung Software City, ITPC Showroom, Networking Dinner
Day 8: HCMC Int'l Exhibition&Convention Centre, Vietnam-Sinapore Industrial Park
Day 9: Vietnam Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Vopak
Day 10: Ho Chih Minh City to Singapore
Day 10 - Ho Chih Minh City to Singapore
Alas our international study mission had sadly come to end and we had to unfortunately, depart for Singapore.
Day 9 - Last Meal
After the trip to the petroleum company Vopak, we proceeded to having our last meal of the entire Vietnam trip. The meal was a steamboat dinner on board a ship and halfway through our meal, the ship started moving! Overall, the dinner was extremely pleasant and enjoyable experience and a fine way to cap off the study mission.
Day 8 – Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Park
Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Park is a fully integrated industrial park located in Binh Duong province. VSIP is highly accessible as it is only 17km from Ho Chih Minh City, it is also a 40 minute drive from Tan Son Nhat International Airport and 45 minutes away from major sea ports. In addition, Ho Chih Minh City is only a 2 hour flight away from Singapore. As a significant number of tenants in the industrial park are Singapore based companies, this short 2 hour flight is much more attractive as compared to 5-7 hour flight to China.
Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Park is one of the best industrial parks in Vietnam and this is due to the fact that the industrial park has a very stable and well-built infrastructure with ready-built factories, roads, buildings etc.
Such modern industrial parks are in high demand due to the one-stop facilities that the Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Park offers such as on-site custom approvals, an efficient estate management team and system, reliable security etc.
In fact the Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Park is thriving so well that plans to set up at VSIP 2 are already underway and it will offer the same customer service that VSIP currently offers.
Group photo
Day 7 - Networking Dinner
We had our second networking dinner with Singapore personnel in Vietnam at Windsor Plaza Hotel, Ho Chin Minh City. The guest’s speakers present were:
Mr. Goh Boon Keng from Tan Cheong Machinery
Mr. Benjamin Yap who is a renown Lawyer
Mr. Thng Tian Tat the Vice-President of UOB
Mr. SK Nair who is the General Director of Singapore Informatics & Business Management Education Ltd
Mr. Peter Cheong who is the coordinator of the Singapore Business Group in Vietnam.
Each of the speakers gave short speeches and they shared with us valuable and at the same time interesting experiences about the culture and norms of the Vietnamese when doing business in the host country.
Each of them brought up important points about doing business in Vietnam. For example, Mr Peter Cheong stressed the importance of keeping an open mind when first entering the market in Vietnam and one has to adapt to the culture in order to thrive in the Vietnamese market.
The guest whom my group were accompanied by was Mr SK Nair. Mr SK Nair shared with us one of the first few obstacles he faced when first coming to Vietnam was communication and a language barrier. He also told us that doing business in Vietnam is very much different from doing one in Singapore. In Vietnam for example, one cannot take a lot of things for granted such electricity, water supply etc. Such basic necessities are commonly taken for granted by Singaporeans in Singapore and when faced with a power failure in Vietnam for example, we might not know or be able to handle the situation. The difference in living condition between Singapore and Vietnam is vast and one has to adapt very well in order to get use to the lifestyle of the Vietnamese.
Day 6 - Cu Chi Tunnel
The Cu Chi tunnel is a network of underground tunnels constructed by the Vietnamese guerrillas during their war against the United States of America. The tunnel stretches for more than 70 miles and it consists of several levels for different purposes. The purpose for the construction of the tunnel was to hide from the Americans during the war. However, by understanding the significance and reason behind this tunnel, one can see ‘deeper’ into the Vietnamese culture and their general characteristics.
For example, we learnt from our tour guide Kah that the tunnel was dug at a rate of 5 metres per day in small groups and by the end of the war, the complex network of tunnels stood at an astounding 70 over miles in length. From this, we can already derive how resilient the Vietnamese people were and how strong their willpower and perseverance was.
Another reason why the tunnel managed to reach such a length was due to the fact that the guerrillas kept digging non-stop throughout the war. This again shows the dogged surviving instincts of the Vietnamese as well as the sheer determination to win the war even though they were up against arguably the strongest military army in the world.
inside the chu chi tunnel
entrance into the tunnel
Day 5 - Ben Tanh Market
Ben Tanh Market is perhaps one of the most famous and popular shopping place for tourists. The market offers a large variety of products from coffee powder and tea leaves to clothes and accessories.
One of the things that struck me most was the amount competition that exists within the market. Many shops were selling similar if not the same products and as a prospective customer, I could feel the intense rivalry and competition between the shops. There was plenty of touting going on and the shop keepers were always trying to pull you to their shop to have you view their products and entice you to make a purchase.
Another significant cultural aspect of the Vietnamese would be bargaining. As mentioned earlier, there is an extremely high level of competition between the stores and as a result, when bargaining with the store vendors, one will never hear a straight “no” from the Vietnamese. Instead, the store vendors would try to strike a deal with you no matter how ridiculous a price a customer quotes. In addition to that, whenever a customer request for example a white coloured t-shirt he wishes to purchase, the store vendor will never say “no” even though he does not have the colour. They will instead take out more and different coloured t-shirts and try to convince the customer that the other colours are actually nicer.
This ‘theory’ of not saying “no” is largely due to the fact that Vietnamese place a great deal of importance on saving face and there is also the fear of offending the other party should they be too straight forward in rejecting them.
Also at Ben Tanh Market, I was astonished at the thriving market of counterfeiting goods and the amount of fake products that are in circulation. This is especially in the clothing line where imitations of famous international brands such as a Ralph Lauren and Abercrombie are rife.
With that, I feel that counterfeiting is a prevalent problem in Vietnam as patent and intellectual property rights laws are not clearly established. Often, counterfeit products with the same logo and packaging will appear on the market soon after a product is launched, at a much cheaper price.
Day 4 - Hanoi to Ho Chin Minh City
On the 4th day in Vietnam, we departed Hanoi for the second of our places we were scheduled to visit, Ho Chih Minh City.
Day 3 - Honda
The visit to Honda was definitely an eye opener as was able to see first hand what it is like to in the manufacturing front line.
From the host, we learnt that Honda entered the market to meet the growing demand for motorbikes in Vietnam. In 2005, Honda experienced a significant increase in its sales volume as the government had amended a rule that previously restricted one person to having more than one motorbike.
In addition, Honda is constantly trying to promote road safety amongst the Vietnamese as it is common practices amongst the locals to not wear any helmet or protective head gear when riding a motorbike. A survey conducted revealed that many Vietnamese found helmets unsightly and ugly. As a result, Honda held events such as fashion shows where models wore helmets in a ‘fashionable’ way so as to entice the locals to start wearing helmets.
Day 2 - Toto Vietnam Co. Ltd
Toto Vietnam is a 100% foreign invested company located within Thang Long Industrial Park, Hanoi. They are a one of the leading manufacturers in advanced sanitary ware products in the world.
Toto Vietnam is a 100% foreign invested company located within Thang Long Industrial Park, Hanoi. They are a one of the leading manufacturers in advanced sanitary ware products in the world.
What sets Toto apart from other sanitary manufacturing companies would be a technology that the company has developed over the years called CeFionTech. The name CeFionTech is derived from the words Ceramic, Fine, Iron and Technology. This breakthrough in technology prevents waste particles and bacteria from attaching themselves onto the surface of Toto’s sanitary products.
Apart from CeFionTech, Toto has a variety of products that have special flushing abilities as well as unique functions such as being able to adjust the temperature of the toilet bowl seats and water.
All these add to the competitive advantage that Toto has over her competitors and sets her apart from rival companies as a world leader in sanitary products.
Mr Bao.
I also learnt from Mr. Bao, the host and tour guide during our visit to Toto about 5 important values that the company believe in and follow as part of their working norms that helps improve efficiency and productiveness. They are known as the 5 “S”:
Seiri = Sort Out
Seiton = Tidy
Seiso = Clear up
Seiketsei = Seriousness
Shitsuke = Maintenance
Day 1 - Singapore to Hanoi
On the 18th of September 2007, 38 of us including 3 lecturers gathered at Singapore Changi Airport to get ready to depart on our IBSM Vietnam trip!
Group Photo at Changi Aiport
.jpg)
