Trung Nguyen Coffee: Honouring Vietnamese Trademarks

3:26:19 PM | 7/8/2005

Together with three other entrepreneurs from Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia, Mr. Dang Le Nguyen Vu, director general of the Trung Nguyen Coffee Company of Vietnam, won the title as ASEAN’s most excellent entrepreneur 2004. After Mr. Vo Quoc Thang, director general of the Dong Tam Tile Company, received the same prize in 2003, it is encouraging to see another Vietnamese recognised as a top entrepreneur in the region.

Developing a trademark

The prize is in recognition of the contribution of Trung Nguyen Company in economic development and international integration. The company was established in 1996 in Ban Me Thuot city (Dak Lak). Like other private companies, it was confronted with many difficulties in initial stages. In 1998, with the slogan “Impressive creation”, Trung Nguyen opened its first cafeteria in Ho Chi Minh City with a strong cultural sense of the Highlands. In 2000, the number of Trung Nguyen cafeterias increased to over 100 in HCMC and in 2002 to nearly 400 nation-wide. The company established four branches in Hanoi, Da Nang, Nha Trang and Can Tho and a head office in HCMC. Its cafeterias have also been established in Singapore, Thailand, Cambodia and China. Trung Nguyen trademark emphasises the remarkable progress of Vietnamese agricultural products.

In 2003, the company built the Tra Tien factory in Lam Dong, started the construction of the biggest coffee processing plant in Ban Me Thuot and undertook Phase 1 of the G7 instant coffee plant in Binh Duong with a production capacity of 1,000 tons/year and total investment capital of some US$10 million. The output of G7 instant coffee is expected to be consumed at home and abroad: 40 per cent for domestic consumption and 60 per cent for export.

Currently, Trung Nguyen has nearly 500 cafeterias and nearly 30,000 sales agents throughout Vietnam. Consequently the Trung Nguyen trademark is familiar to Vietnamese and foreigners. According to the TNS market research company (UK), Trung Nguyen trademark is recognised by 90 per cent of Vietnamese customers, the highest record in Vietnam.

Trung Nguyen company exports coffee to 16 countries including the US, Canada, Australia, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, Czech Republic and Thailand. In 2003, its export value hit VND51 billion and turnover reached VND117 billion.

Honouring Vietnamese Trademarks

Although Vietnam is an agricultural country, its agricultural exports are without trademarks and are relatively unknown in the world market. Trung Nguyen together with relevant associations and organisations has tried to develop trademarks for Vietnamese agricultural products. In conjunction with the Vietnam Youth Federation and the Thanh Nien (Youth) daily newspaper, Trung Nguyen initiated the programme “Creativity for a Vietnamese trademark”, encouraging Vietnamese to use Vietnamese products. In coordination with Saigon Times weekly, the College of Economics - HCMC and Vietnam Marcom, Trung Nguyen organised the “Programme of Vietnamese agricultural products” for 30-50 projects trying to develop trademarks for Vietnamese agricultural exports. Since then, several trademarks have been developed, such as Hoang Gia Nam Roi grape fruit, Hoang Hau dragon fruit, Tam Binh Van Xuan orange and Hoa Loc Song Hau mango. Most notably, Trung Nguyen and Saigon Times weekly have founded the Vietnam Agriculture Trademarks Club with 40 members involving the State, businesses, banks, scientists, farmers and mass media in the aim of developing trademarks for Vietnamese agricultural products. The programme will last for three years with a budget of over VND1 billion. From now on, Vietnamese agricultural products will be lead by teh well-deserved trademarks of Cai Mon dorian rice, ginger tea, Trai Nhau vodka, Song Hau dried banana, Thanh Ha litchi, Hung Yen longane, Hai Duong green bean cake and Phu Quoc pepper.

Trung Nguyen does not only work for the promotion of its interests but also for those of Vietnamese farmers and enterprises. The company is indeed a true representative of the region.