(DNTO) – Although last year was heavily affected by the pandemic, Cholimex Food still maintained a revenue of 2500 billion VND, a growth of about 10% higher than that of 2020. The unit also received a number of awards, such as Ho Chi Minh City Gold Brand, Ho Chi Minh City Typical Products and Services, Top 500 largest private enterprises in Vietnam, etc.
On this occasion, Mr. Diep Nam Hai, CEO of Cholimex Food, shared with Doanh Nhan Tre newspaper the methods to help businesses successfully overcome the pandemic in the past year.
Reporter: Can you tell me what helps Cholimex Food achieve such results when the business located in Ho Chi Minh City is significantly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic?
Mr. Diep Nam Hai: During the period of strong outbreak in Ho Chi Minh City from July 15th to September 30th, we organized “3 on-site” production to ensure the flow of business, export, and import system. supply of goods for the domestic market. Of course, during difficult times, we also experienced a drop in sales of 20–30%, but only in the third quarter, the company returned to business scale in the new normal period quite quickly and stable.
During the 3 on-site productions, the workforce participated by about 60% (about 1000/1,800 employees of the company). The company has created adequate conditions and coordinated with medical facilities to give the first injection of vaccination for workers from June 2021 to ensure health. In addition, the factory has many compensation policies for workers so that they can work with peace of mind. Thanks to that, we had a timely comeback, reaching a revenue of 2500 billion VND, an increase of 10% over last year, which is a positive sign when achieving the set plan.
In your opinion, in order to achieve business efficiency, what role does the initiative play in the response scenario?
– We strictly follow the guidelines of the medical industry. During the time of doing 3 on site, there were also many cases of F0 among workers, but due to proactive situations, we prepared isolation areas for F0 and F1 during the stressful epidemic period according to 5K regulations, so there was no major contagion.
Therefore, the production processes were not interrupted, which helped the company through the most difficult period. This is also how we keep our commitment to our customers: by saying no to interruptions and missing goods. This guarantee also gives credibility to the company, demonstrating its potential and competitiveness.
Cholimex is considered a big brand and has many competitive products in the market. How does the company maintain its market share in that condition?
– Currently, the company has two market segments: export and domestic, from which 70% of revenue comes from the domestic market and 30% from exports. In order to maintain the market, we do not stop at traditional sauce products but diversify our convenient seasoning products. Currently, Cholimex has many products such as BBQ sauce, marinated char siu, prepared fish sauce, prepared vinegar oil, hot pot seasoning, beef noodle soup, braised beef… supporting families and women . With convenient seasonings, people do not need to spend much time preparing nutritious meals for their families, especially during the past pandemic months, without requiring much effort.
Therefore, this product line has received good support over the past few years, with very high growth. This is also how we compete, because Cholimex is always the focus of competition for similar products. When there are many products, we reduce the risk. The competition is not centralized but distributed, which does not affect the market share of the company.
Cholimex Food’s frozen product line is currently available in demanding export markets, but the domestic market is not well known. The reason for this difference?
– Cholimex Food’s frozen products such as spring rolls, wontons, dumplings, etc., for many years, have been very popular in the markets of Germany, France, UK, USA, Switzerland, etc. Every year, we export thousands of tons with an average of more than 200 containers per month, but still cannot meet the demand from supermarkets and distributors in other countries.
This is a big market, so we are trying to develop to meet the needs of our customers. This comes from the needs of foreign consumers. They are used to using frozen goods with the correct freezing criteria and fresh products according to regulations, which keeps the deliciousness of the products longer. While Vietnamese consumers still do not have this habit, Most housewives go to the market every day, so they rarely buy frozen food. Many people do not understand that these are the products with the most consistent freshness.
Has the enterprise decided to share this interesting issue with the domestic market, sir?
– This is a common development trend, so of course, the company also pays attention to developing these products in the domestic market in the near future. Currently, the company also offers about 20 products to the market, available at supermarkets and retail distributors, but the communication stage is incomplete, so perhaps customers have not noticed. They think we are just providing sauces and seasonings. We also have plans for this, as these products have been Cholimex’s strength for many years.
A year of many fluctuations. However, at the end of the year, Cholimex Food received many awards. How does this joy and meaning affect the company’s plans for next year?
– This is a great encouragement to all employees and business leaders. Over the past two years, we have worked hard and have been fortunate to be recognized with many awards that surprised everyone. There are many impressive awards, such as the National Brand Award, Corporate Gold Brand, etc., that make us more confident and excited.
We have planned to strive to achieve growth next year of about 20% higher than last year, proactively plan production under new normal conditions, and comply with the anti-epidemic plans of the authorities.
With a history of 39 years, Cholimex is committed to bringing to the market quality products with the same production and supply capabilities and wishes to accompany Vietnamese consumers with a supply system that is exactly what it was recorded to be.
Thank you for the exchange.
Cholimex Food’s products were recognized as “Typical Products and Services of Ho Chi Minh City in 2021” by the Ho Chi Minh City Business Association (HUBA) on December 20th, 2021, out of 96 typical businesses.
Cholimex Food is one of 30 businesses with excellent results in building and developing product and service brands at the “2nd Ho Chi Minh City Gold Brand in 2021” Award Ceremony held on the same day as January 6, 2022.
Cholimex Food was named in the ranking of “Top 500 Largest Private Enterprises in Vietnam” (VNR) announced by the Vietnam assessment organization (Vietnam Report) on January 14th, 2022, ranked 282, up 40 places compared to 2020 (322). In 2021, Cholimex Food will also be in the top 50 fastest-growing enterprises in Vietnam.
Cholimex Food is one of five collectives in Ho Chi Minh City awarded by the Ministry of Planning and Investment with the certificate of merit “For outstanding achievements in the construction and development of industrial parks and economic zones over the past 30 years” on 11/1/2022).
Cẩm Lệ – Doanhnhantrevietnam.vn