Adding Values to Tourism Products

This information was shared at the International Conference on Vietnam Creative Industry 2016 (VS 2016) themed “Creative Design: Research and Product Development for Tourism Industry” held in Hanoi by the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency (Vietrade) under the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Vietnam in cooperation with the Korea Institute of Design Promotion (KIDP).

As part of the national trade promotion programme, the international conference aimed to discuss opportunities between organisations, enterprises and designers, suggest activities and effective solutions for the country’s designing and creative industries, and promote cooperation between Vietnam and the region’s design industry.
At the conference, Vietrade and KIDP signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on expanding cooperative activities to support Vietnam’s design industry. Accordingly, KIDP will support Vietrade in establishing and operating a design centre in 2017 to provide training and boost design consultancy for Vietnamese enterprises and improve added value in Vietnamese products and services in the international market.

According to specialists present at the conference, Vietnam is also very actively engaged in design, renovation and innovation cooperation and exchange programmes in the region and the world to promote the development of Vietnam’s industrial design sector. For example, the Asia Design Sharing Programme initiated by South Korea has drawn the active participation of Vietnam.

Vietrade has also deployed various activities in improving the design ability of enterprises, including workshops, training courses, and design consultancy in the past years. The agency aims to further support enterprises to develop brands and improve designs.

Mr Vu Hy Thieu, an expert in Vietnamese handicrafts, said, handicrafts made for tourists are relatively backward, typically many products kept unchanged in 10-20 years with poor functions. Handicrafts depend on tradition and can be bulky, which makes them unpopular with many tourists.

A representative from the Vietnam Design and Creativity Association said gifts and souvenirs are poor in design, and lack uniqueness and creative features. Although tourism products and services are varied, tourists sometimes cannot distinguish specific products by region because most are similar in different tourist attractions. The capacity and competitiveness of tourism product manufacturers is limited.

Many reasons are behind this reality. Product design is unfitting customer tastes and products do not carry the message of destination. Most importantly, products lack adequate investment in brainpower and finance. Copying and relying on existing products kills two most important criteria: Uniqueness and compactness. Besides, the lack of cooperation, sharing and support among manufacturers, leaders and service providers in grasping consumer tastes and demands results in the creation of uninteresting products. Artisans are proficient but limited to making similar products, none of which cater specifically to tourists. Handicrafts are not artistic and sophisticated enough. Furthermore, the meaning of products is unclear or too simple.

Solutions to developing tourism product designing are changing the mindset of stakeholders in designing and developing tourism products by encouraging self-designed production, including traditional culture and identity to products, diversifying product designs and materials, and building a system of tourism product development criteria. Besides, it is also necessary to open creativity competitions and design logos/products for specific destinations.

In addition, strengthening international cooperation in tourism product designing and development, acquiring international experience, organising training courses and strengthening cooperation with handicraft villages are also important solutions.