Vietnam, a Southeast Asian market with a population of over 100 million and rising young consumer spending, is becoming a preferred destination for Chinese brands expanding overseas. Behind the seemingly familiar consumer logic lies a fundamentally different underlying dynamic from China.
FMCG retail here still relies heavily on traditional channels, with mom-and-pop stores, street vendors, and wet markets accounting for over 80% of market volume, while modern supermarkets, e-commerce, and convenience stores are also growing rapidly.
Overall, Vietnam's channel logic shares some similarities with China's past: content e-commerce is beginning to explode, consumers are increasingly willing to pay for brands and marketing, and traditional distribution channels still form the bulk of the market.
However, the path Chinese brands are accustomed to—using e-commerce to create hit products and advertising to build momentum—may not fully work in Vietnam.
The explosion of content e-commerce offers opportunities for new brands, but it also means that from day one, brands must simultaneously build local content capabilities and ground-level distribution.
Therefore, I often say that Vietnam is an excellent market for FMCG new consumer brands to go global. But for Chinese brands, Vietnam is both a traffic game and a channel battlefield, and a comprehensive test of organizational strength, patience, and local understanding.
In this article, we will continue to clarify the real state of Vietnam's FMCG market, from channel structure to consumer behavior and distribution systems, to help Chinese brands avoid pitfalls in their overseas expansion.
Vietnam's Channel Structure Characteristics
In Vietnam, traditional channels remain the foundation, but modern channels are accelerating their replacement.
Vietnam's FMCG retail offline outlets are extremely fragmented, with approximately 665,000 outlets in total, of which traditional channels (mom-and-pop stores, grocery stores) exceed 650,000. In terms of sales, traditional grocery channels still contribute about 84% of retail sales, modern channels (supermarkets, convenience stores, etc.) about 15%, and e-commerce penetration is still small (about 1%) but growing rapidly. This structure means that traditional mom-and-pop stores remain the foundation of consumer goods sales in Vietnam.
Nielsen's survey on the 2025 Lunar New Year (Tết) shopping season confirms the dominance of traditional channels: 84% of consumers preferred traditional grocery stores for their New Year purchases, while modern chain channels contributed only about 14% of holiday sales.
Despite the gradual expansion of modern supermarkets, most Vietnamese still prefer to shop at familiar traditional stores in their communities during festive periods. This inertia reflects the deep-rooted position of traditional channels in Vietnamese consumer spending.
For brands, the Vietnamese market cannot simply replicate the path of first building modern chains and then going downmarket. Traditional grocery channels will remain the primary battlefield for the foreseeable future and must be treated as a long-term investment priority.
Vietnam's offline channels have a three-tier structure: traditional distribution, modern channels, and convenience systems.
From a structural perspective, Vietnam's offline retail can be divided into three levels:
Traditional Trade (GT): This includes wet markets, street vendors, and mom-and-pop grocery stores (tạp hóa) spread across urban and rural areas. These formats have the widest coverage, with high purchase frequency but low average transaction value. For FMCG brands, success in traditional channels hinges on: establishing a high-density distribution network, ensuring frequent and timely replenishment, and using ground teams to secure shelf placement and sell-through, while strictly managing credit terms. Sales in this channel rely more on agile, step-by-step operations rather than just advertising.
Modern Channels: This mainly refers to chain supermarkets, hypermarkets, and small community supermarkets and convenience stores. Vietnam's modern grocery retail industry is highly concentrated. According to statistics, in 2023, the top seven players in the modern grocery channel accounted for approximately 86% of sales. Key players include:
- Community supermarkets and convenience stores (Minimart): Typical representatives include WinCommerce's WinMart/WinMart+, Masan Group's Bach Hoa Xanh (BHX), Saigon Co.op's Co.op Food, and Satra Group's Satrafoods. These small supermarkets are usually located in communities, offering daily consumer goods. Notably, different players have different focuses: BHX and Satrafoods are almost 100% focused on community supermarket formats, while WinCommerce derives about 70% of its sales from WinMart+ mini-stores, with the rest from hypermarkets. Saigon Co.op performs well in the hypermarket segment while also expanding community stores through Co.op Food.
- Large supermarkets/hypermarkets and membership stores: Including Central Retail Group (with GO! Big C and Tops Market), AEON, and South Korea's Lotte Mart, primarily operating large and medium-sized supermarkets or general merchandise stores. Additionally, Thailand's CP Group's MM Mega Market is a membership wholesale store focusing on bulk purchases for restaurants and small merchants.
- Local general supermarkets: For example, Saigon Co.op operates Co.op Mart hypermarkets and also covers different store sizes through sub-brands like Co.op Xtra and Co.op Smile. These leading chains have been accelerating expansion into lower-tier markets in recent years. Currently, Masan Group's WinCommerce is expanding into rural markets at a pace of nearly 50 new community stores per month, having opened 1,500 WinMart Rural township stores by April 2025, with plans to reach 1,900 by year-end. Modern chains are extending their reach into township markets previously dominated by mom-and-pop stores.
Convenience Stores: Dominated by foreign and joint-venture brands, concentrated mainly in major cities, especially Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi. Typical examples include Circle K, 7-Eleven, South Korea's GS25, and Family Mart. Convenience stores are small, densely located, and cater to the needs of young people in high-tier cities for grab-and-go, late-night consumption, and ready-to-eat meals for office workers. These stores typically operate 24/7, offering mainly ready-to-eat food, beverages, and small-packaged daily necessities. Although the number of convenience stores is still small compared to grocery stores, they have become part of the modern lifestyle in first-tier cities.
Regarding the online segment, Vietnam's online ecosystem can also be broadly divided into several main models:
1. Shelf E-commerce (Platform E-commerce): Represented by comprehensive e-commerce platforms, offering a search-based shopping experience. Vietnam's current mainstream e-commerce platforms include Shopee, TikTok, Lazada, and local platforms Tiki and Sendo. The Vietnam E-commerce Association (VECOM) estimates that Vietnam's e-commerce market reached approximately $32 billion in 2024 (up 27% year-on-year), with online retail of goods at about $22.5 billion, up 30% year-on-year. Online retail accounted for about 12% of total retail sales of consumer goods, up from 10% in 2023. Notably, in the first three quarters of 2025 alone, the GMV of Vietnam's four major e-commerce platforms (Shopee, TikTok, Lazada, Tiki) reached 305.9 trillion VND (about $11.6 billion), up 34% year-on-year. Shopee maintained about 56% market share, while TikTok Shop surged to about 41% thanks to content-driven sales, rapidly narrowing the gap. Lazada and Tiki hold relatively small shares, around 3% each, in the tail positions. Overall, Shopee and TikTok have become the twin giants of Vietnam's online retail.
2. Content E-commerce (Shoppertainment): The structural change in Vietnam's e-commerce lies in the rise of short-video and livestream selling—transforming from a marketing aid to a primary transaction venue. Content e-commerce models like TikTok Shop use algorithmic recommendations, influencers, and entertaining content to strongly convert user attention and consumption. In the first half of 2025, TikTok Shop sales surged 69% year-on-year, with market share rising from 29% to 39% compared to the same period last year. Short-video and livestream e-commerce have become the mainstream form of online shopping in Vietnam. For brands, this means online growth increasingly depends on content operation capabilities, including platform strategy, influencer matrix, short-video advertising, and livestream events, all of which directly impact online market share.
(Image: Vietnamese influencers livestreaming local food and agricultural products on e-commerce platforms)
3. Instant Retail: This includes fresh food e-commerce, food delivery, and O2O delivery models. In Vietnam, on one hand, there are super-app ecosystems (like Grab) offering delivery and flash services; on the other hand, e-commerce giant Shopee has expanded into instant delivery services like ShopeeFood (formerly Now.vn). Some consumers are now accustomed to ordering beverages, snacks, fresh produce, and daily necessities through these platforms, with delivery in 30-60 minutes. In 2024, the top two food delivery platforms in Vietnam, ShopeeFood and GrabFood, together held nearly 90% market share (ShopeeFood at about 43%, slightly ahead of GrabFood's 40%). Additionally, local startups like Be Group have launched BeFood delivery and BeMart grocery delivery, with Korean company Baemin also competing. This type of instant retail is significantly changing consumer shopping habits—more and more people are using apps rather than traditional markets or convenience stores for their daily food and grocery needs. Data shows that in 2023, the fastest-growing category on Vietnam's online platforms was fresh groceries, with sales surging 76.3% year-on-year, indicating a massive shift of consumers from markets and supermarkets to apps for daily necessities.
(Image: GrabFood delivery rider delivering an order to a customer in Ho Chi Minh City)
4. B2B Digital Distribution: Like China, Vietnam also has B2B platforms offering digital ordering and delivery services to mom-and-pop stores. A typical example is VinShop under Vingroup, which aims to connect hundreds of thousands of traditional small stores with brands/wholesalers, helping them order and replenish more efficiently. Since its launch in 2019, VinShop claims over 100,000 grocery stores use its service. By providing one-stop ordering, payment, and logistics services, VinShop is expected to digitally transform Vietnam's vast GT channel, improving supply chain efficiency and terminal control. However, this track also faces significant challenges. Another once-high-profile B2B e-commerce startup, Telio, burned through multiple funding rounds and ceased operations in late 2024. Telio's case shows that even with market demand, the unit economics of B2B distribution in Vietnam are too high, making it difficult to sustain the model without sufficient capital. Overall, B2B digital distribution in Vietnam is still in the exploratory stage, and the participation of giants and long-term investment will determine its future direction.
Vietnam Consumer Market Differences:
Three Fundamental Differences
Entering Vietnam's FMCG market requires a thorough understanding of local market characteristics.
Difference 1: Channel Landscape In the Chinese market, many new categories can quickly scale through e-commerce channels and then supplement coverage with offline chains. However, in Vietnam, relying solely on online will quickly hit a ceiling because mainstream consumption still heavily depends on traditional grocery networks.
Difference 2: Price Points and Packaging Strategy Vietnamese consumers are more budget-conscious, with high-frequency, small-ticket purchases prevalent. With lower per capita income, many consumers base purchase decisions on a "daily budget," buying small quantities but frequently.
Therefore, companies need to adjust product planning to this consumption habit: small packaging is particularly important in Vietnam, making it easy for consumers to buy at low unit prices.
At the same time, bundle packs and aggressive promotions are effective ways to boost sales, especially during key occasions like Tet, where "buy one get one" and "gift sets" are common. Every year during the Lunar New Year, manufacturers launch festive gift boxes to stimulate gifting and family reunion demand.
Difference 3: Brand Communication Path In Vietnam, online relies more on content-driven engagement, and brand building tends to be "Douyin-ized." In China, despite the rise of short-video e-commerce in recent years, traditional e-commerce platforms and brands' own channel power remain important; in Vietnam, content e-commerce carries more weight.
The fact that TikTok Shop has rapidly approached Shopee's share in two years shows that Vietnamese consumers are very receptive to "content-driven transactions." Short videos, livestreams, and KOL-driven sales have a more pronounced impact on sales than in other Southeast Asian countries (like Thailand, Malaysia), closer to the development logic of China's Douyin e-commerce.
For Chinese brands going global, this means content operation capabilities must be built as a foundational skill, including establishing a local influencer matrix, regular livestreaming, and short-video seeding. Unlike in China, where you can first sell through Taobao/JD and then gradually build content marketing, in Vietnam, brand content building must happen almost simultaneously; otherwise, it's hard to gain consumer attention in the fiercely competitive social media battlefield.
Vietnam's Distribution and Distribution Characteristics
Vietnam maintains a multi-tiered, regionalized traditional distribution network.
Vietnam's traditional GT channel distribution system typically has a multi-tier structure: "National/Regional General Agent → Provincial Distributor → District/County Secondary Wholesaler → Terminal Mom-and-Pop Store."
National brands typically seek strong general agents in each major region, who then develop sub-networks. Due to Vietnam's elongated geography and significant North-South differences, most distributors' influence is limited to specific regions. There is no single distributor covering the entire country like China's "national general distributor"; instead, a dense regional distribution network is required for deep distribution.
This organizational form brings several characteristics:
- Coverage relies on tier density, not a single large distributor: To achieve deep distribution, brands need to establish reliable distribution points in each province and city, penetrating layer by layer. You cannot rely on one distributor to conquer the market; you must manage a network of distributors.
- Credit terms and payment collection: Multi-tier wholesale brings working capital pressure. Each layer may have credit practices, and without strict credit term management, high bad debt risk can cripple the supply chain's cash flow. Therefore, brands must set clear credit policies and strictly control payment collection. This is considered a top priority in distributor management in Vietnam.
- Terminal sell-through depends on manpower and operations, not just advertising: Facing thousands of small stores, whether products sell depends largely on the execution of ground promotion teams—such as store visits, shelf placement negotiations, small gifts, and promotional activities. Therefore, companies skilled in e-commerce traffic operations but lacking ground sales team management experience will be at a natural disadvantage in Vietnam.
Regarding modern channels, although Vietnam's modern channels account for only about 15% of total sales, the industry is highly concentrated, with the top 7 chain retailers accounting for about 86% of modern channel sales.
These leading retailers (such as WinMart/WinMart+, BHX, Co.op Mart/Food, AEON, Lotte Mart, etc.) mean that for brands, entering a few major accounts can control most of the modern channel market.
Entering these channels can quickly reach mainstream urban consumers; however, entry barriers and cooperation requirements are relatively high:
- Entry terms: Large supermarket chains typically charge entry fees and barcode fees; new brands may need to pay fees or provide marketing support to get listed.
- Shelf placement and promotion negotiations: Shelf positions, display materials, and promotional slot resources often require repeated negotiations with the channel, potentially involving additional costs or joint investment.
- Back-end support: Including a certain percentage of back-end rebates, year-end rebates, and data sharing are part of KA cooperation. Suppliers must provide stable supply, quick replenishment response, and cooperate with stores on various operations.
- Contracts and settlement: Leading chains typically have unified contract terms, with payment settlement periods ranging from 30 to 60 days.
On the other hand, Vietnam's modern chains are still rapidly expanding and pushing into lower-tier markets. For example, Masan Group's WinCommerce is accelerating store openings, particularly focusing on rural small supermarket models, aiming to seize opportunities in townships dominated by traditional mom-and-pop stores.
This means that the coverage of modern channels will gradually expand, and the channel landscape in lower-tier markets may change. Brands should monitor these retail giants' moves and seek cooperation during their expansion to share the dividends of new channel growth.
Chinese FMCG Brands Going Global to Vietnam:
Key Strategy Recommendations
1. Channel Strategy Sequence: Focus on Key Channels, Expand from Points to Areas
Validation Phase (0→1): In the initial entry into Vietnam, it is recommended to prioritize e-commerce channels to test products. Choose shelf e-commerce like Shopee and content e-commerce like TikTok Shop, launch a few core SKUs, and quickly obtain sales feedback and price band validation.
Growth Phase (1→10): Once the validation phase identifies "hit" products and appropriate price points, rapidly expand scale. In this phase, it is recommended to focus on breaking into local leading chain channels.
Use urban chain community supermarkets (minimarts) as a breakthrough, such as WinMart+, Bach Hoa Xanh, Co.op Food, etc., to distribute in major cities like Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi.
These small supermarkets not only provide brand endorsement (being listed in chain supermarkets is seen as a legitimate brand) but also cover areas with concentrated target consumers, offering high sales elasticity.
At the same time, you can start building the GT distribution network—recruiting distributors in more cities to push products into traditional grocery stores. The overall policy is: "Modern channels build the brand, traditional channels build scale," advancing on both fronts.
Scale Phase (10→100): When sales enter a high-growth expansion phase, deepening traditional channel penetration will become the main battlefield. This means establishing a comprehensive national distribution system, covering as many provinces and townships as possible.
At this stage, more resources should be invested in expanding the GT network, such as increasing distributor teams, personnel training, and terminal display incentives, to consolidate channel depth. Modern channels still need maintenance, but since their stores are relatively concentrated, management complexity is lower than the tens of thousands of grocery store networks.
2. Adapt to Local Conditions: Emphasize North-South Differences, Advance Step by Step
Vietnam has long had a "strong South, stable North" regional consumption characteristic. The South (especially the southern region around Ho Chi Minh City) is more open and diverse, with consumers willing to try new brands and products; the North (Hanoi and surrounding areas) is relatively conservative, valuing local traditions and brand reputation, preferring well-known established brands.
Therefore, entering Vietnam should adopt a "South first, North expansion" strategy: First, use Ho Chi Minh City in the South as a base, invest resources to create a successful model (whether in channel development or marketing). Ho Chi Minh City consumers are more entrepreneurial and fashion-forward, open to foreign brands. After establishing a foothold there, replicate the experience to northern markets like Hanoi.
When entering the North, consider that local consumers place more emphasis on brand credibility and localized communication. Marketing should emphasize tradition and quality, with a more formal communication style, gradually earning trust.
Additionally, central second-tier cities (like Da Nang, Hai Phong) also have significant populations and purchasing power, and can be a third step beyond the North and South poles. Following the geographic progression of "South first-line → North first-line → then nationwide expansion" helps reduce risk and optimize resource allocation.
3. Product and Pricing Strategy: Win with High-Frequency, Essential, Small-Pack Products
Facing price-sensitive Vietnamese consumers, positioning as "affordable high-frequency consumption" is the key to success. Specifically, brands should build a tiered price band and packaging specification system, closely aligning with Vietnam's mainstream purchasing power.
For example, launch more small-pack or mini-size products to lower the unit price threshold, catering to daily pocket-money purchase habits. At the same time, develop large-pack/combination packs suitable for families to increase average transaction value and usage stickiness. During important festive periods (like Tet), prepare customized gift boxes or limited-edition packaging to meet gifting needs and enhance brand image.
Additionally, Vietnamese consumers love promotions, so brands need to plan a year-round promotional calendar, offering attractive discounts or gifts during key shopping seasons. Learn from local practices, such as the "big promotion month" before Tet, back-to-school season, and major online shopping festivals.
In summary, accumulate big wins with small advantages: win consumers' daily choices through high-frequency, high-value products rather than emphasizing premium positioning. After gaining market share, gradually introduce mid-to-high-end series to meet consumption upgrade needs.
4. Growth Methodology: Content-Driven Brand, Long-Term Refined Operations
In the Vietnamese market, brand growth increasingly reflects the characteristics of "content e-commerce driving." The rapid development of content platforms like TikTok Shop indicates that for a considerable time to come, short videos and livestreams will dominate consumer attention. This requires brands to make "content seeding - conversion - repurchase" a fundamental skill, integrated into the entire marketing chain:
- Influencer and streamer matrix: Cultivate and bind a group of local KOLs/KOCs that align with the brand's tone, forming a stable content output camp.
- Self-broadcasting and community: Establish your own livestream account, persist in regular livestreams, and interact with consumers in real-time. This not only drives sales but also builds brand affinity. Simultaneously, operate social media communities to turn loyal customers into word-of-mouth promoters.
- Short videos and UGC: Invest in creating localized short-video content, showcasing product selling points in ways that appeal to young people. Encourage user-generated content (UGC), such as launching challenges and hashtags, to involve consumers in brand communication.**
The key is long-termism. Content operations are not one-off activities but daily refinement. Learn from brand strategies on Douyin in China—build an internal content team and continuously optimize video scripts, livestream scripts, and fan operation strategies like product iteration.
Vietnamese consumers, especially the younger generation, are highly social media-oriented. Brands that ignore the content battlefield may miss an entire generation of emerging Vietnamese consumers.
Final Thoughts
Vietnam's FMCG market has both traditional distribution markets and rapidly developing interest-based e-commerce channels, making it a typical dual-track opportunity market. If Chinese brands can precisely match local channel structures and consumption habits and build diversified strategies, they can establish local first-mover advantages and achieve long-term growth.
For this reason, New Distribution will host the "FMCG Going Global Channel Construction Forum" on March 16-18, 2026, in Chengdu.
This will be a deep-dive and matchmaking event specifically designed for Chinese brands going global—we will join forces with leading platforms, core channel partners, regional operation service providers, importers/exporters, and industry experts to systematically dissect the latest trends, channel strategies, and growth cases for Chinese brands going global, and build an efficient, actionable, and truly collaborative overseas business connection platform.
Here, you will gain:
Learn Methods: Hear first-hand operational experience from core markets in Southeast Asia, North America, Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America; Understand channel structures and RTM strategies in different countries; Master how brands build overseas organizations, supply chains, compliance, and channel pathways from 0 to 1.
Facilitate Connections: On-site access to a brand × channel × service provider industry exchange group; face-to-face meetings with 50+ overseas distributors, platforms, and supply chain partners; meet all the people who can truly help you with distribution and implementation in one go.
Solve Problems: Directly confront the three most painful issues in brand going global—How to find the right partners? How to do the right channels? How to spend money most effectively? The forum will build a tripartite dialogue platform for brands × channels × service providers, using the shortest path to resolve cooperation difficulties.
Welcome to join us, together with 3,000+ FMCG industry peers, to gain insights into overseas markets, connect with global channels, and find the true foothold for the next phase of growth for Chinese brands!