Hồi đầu năm, mình có làm chuyên gia cho Hiệp hội thương mại Hàn Quốc, chủ đề về thị trường dữ liệu của Việt Nam, một trong các lĩnh vực mà phía HQ đang rất quan tâm. Thông tin chi tiết có thể dùng Google Translate để đọc tại ĐÂY.

- từ 2017 tới giờ, VN vẫn đang được hưởng lợi từ chuyển dịch chuỗi cung ứng toàn cầu, điều này có phần “ăn may”, điều quan trọng là mình phải nhận ra là mình “may chứ chưa phải hay” để chuyển hóa thời cơ thành lợi ích bền vững;

- cùng 1 việc hưởng lợi từ chuyển dịch chuỗi cung ứng, nhưng trên đất VN này, giai đoạn 2018-2022 hàm lượng giá trị gia tăng nội địa của VN (cái ng VN nhận đc) tăng trưởng kép 14%/năm, nhưng TQ tăng trưởng kép… 55%/năm; khá tương đồng với số liệu thời sự vừa đưa là 75% xuất khẩu là từ FDI.

- VN có nhiều thành tựu về ngoại giao, nhưng chuyển hóa thành thành tựu kinh tế tương xứng cho nhân dân vẫn là một vấn đề băn khoăn của các lãnh đạo. Vấn đề của mình vẫn là khâu thực thi, ký xong để đấy, ko giám sát, ko đối mặt với kết quả thực chất, tổng kết lúc nào cũng tốt;

- những điểm nghẽn cố hữu: công nghiệp hỗ trợ, quá tải hạ tầng, thiếu nhân lực chất lượng: hiệu quả hay ko vẫn luôn nằm ở thực thi, ở giám sát, chứ sách vở thì giờ biết học chung với mấy thằng á đông rồi;

- những thách thức của thế giới: nguy cơ hàng TQ lẩn tránh, tiêu chuẩn ESG của các thị trường xuất khẩu → quan trọng là mình phải xem đây là cơ hội để nâng chuẩn hàng hóa, ko chọn làm đồ rẻ tiền, biên mỏng nữa :)

Cơ bản là thế, nói như chú Quý là “nói mãi rồi, nhưng nước đến chân mới nhảy”. À, điều có ích nhất của cả buổi sáng thứ 2 đi bốc phét là connect được với chú, để hôm sau có cơ hội đi nghe chú vào SG nói chuyện ngoại giao.

Nhiều lúc chuyện vui đơn giản thế thôi.

The foundation from this research helped me complete my PhD program at Tomas Bata University, even though I’m not someone working in academia. Currently, I still use my research skills to improve my work in investment and asset management, as well as serving as a lecturer/reseacher at UFM, and consultant for several international organizations.

1. Vocational Training School Project

We has a long list of major restaurants and hotels in Saigon, so we could guarantee job placements for students. But I wanted more than that—I wanted to focus on trades facing labor shortages in Australia and other developed countries, like chefs, hotel maintenance workers, or healthcare aides.

The proposal kicked off. We had nearly 9 ha of land from the owner. I presented the plan in the first and second rounds to the General Department of Vocational Training under the Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs in 2020 and 2021. They fully supported it.

But right before the college was set to be established, an unexpected event happened, and the project was paused with no clear restart date :)

2. Elderly Care Center Project

This started similarly to the vocational school project because we wanted to get involved in training healthcare aides. However, instead of building from scratch, the owner assigned us the base (5 floors) and public space of a serviced apartment complex for this project.

Basically, it’s like a model China is using: elderly people pay a refundable deposit (returned when they leave) and a small monthly fee. In return, they get daily care (morning to afternoon) or overnight stays (renting a serviced apartment in the city center by the month). In China, people have to sign up and wait for a spot, and we think Vietnam is at the start of this cycle.

In the end, this project was also paused, with no set date to resume.

1. Renovation of Turtle Lake (Hồ Con Rùa)

We proposed turning Turtle Lake into a Cultural-tourism Square for District 3. Our plan was to invest in renovating the entire public space in exchange for the right to operate it at night as a pedestrian street.

After a few meetings with government, the DPI supported us in pursuing it under the BOT (Build-Operate-Transfer) model. However, we failed in assessing the traffic impact—sidewalks were too narrow, and we couldn’t get the authorities’ agreement to block roads and turn it into a pedestrian zone. To make up for the revenue shortfall, we suggested expanding advertising rights beyond the area we were developing, but they said that the legal regulations at the time didn’t allow it.

Since it was taking too long, we paused the project.

Even now, the areas we proposed for advertising have been taken up by other companies, but Turtle Lake still hasn’t been renovated :)

2. A new construction for District 3 Children’s House

Another project, also in District 3, where the district government proposed that we build a new District 3 Children’s House under the “socialization” model. In the end, the project didn’t go ahead. The issue was a conflict within the district government between the “socialization model” and the “BOT model”. They wanted to proceed with socialization (where investors would be exempt from land use fees), but I believed it wasn’t feasible because the project didn’t meet the requirements of Decision 1466 and Decision 693, meaning we’d still have to pay land use fees. Legally, if this project were to move forward, it would have to follow the BOT model with an operating period of about 30 years for us.

After a few meetings at the DPI, the district government gained a better understanding of public-private partnership models. However, we backed out due to complications in the payment mechanism. I still believe PPP is a good way for private companies to contribute to society, but it always requires capable government counterparts to execute it effectively.

3. The logistics hub for agricultural products in Dong Thap

One project I found feasible and capable of solving multiple issues was the construction of a small logistics hub in Dong Thap. Since the owner had other projects in this province, the local government asked us to explore ways to increase the value of the province’s fruit. Our solution was to build a logistics area and a preliminary processing plant right at the local wholesale market.

This spot is where local farmers bring their agricultural products (by boat), and 30% gets lost during transport. We wanted to build a cold storage facility at the collection point to preserve top-grade produce and a processing plant to turn lower-grade, less attractive produce into puree. We collaborate with SVM Lab from France on production technology. Everything was aimed at export.

In the end, the project didn’t go through due to changes in the owner’s strategy. Dong Thap is a province with a very business-friendly government, delicious food, and kind people. Even though the project wasn’t completed, the folks from the local government are still good friends of mine today.

1. Cocochin Foodcourt

Cocochin was one of our efforts to create a foodcourt with a strong Vietnamese vibe. It lasted 7 years until the property owner took back the space. We borrowed the model from Singapore’s mall foodcourts but tweaked it with some Vietnamese style:

(a) Decorated it like a fine-dining restaurant, not a basic mall foodcourt, which meant investing more in dishes, tables, and chairs.

(b) Staff served the food instead of customers carrying it themselves.

(c) Customers paid after eating, not before.

After years of running it, I think the Singaporeans are truly masters at optimization when it comes to financial efficiency. Back when we started this project, a fully Singapore-style foodcourt (pay upfront, inside a mall, self-service) at Bitexco had to shut down due to no customers. So, I believe Vietnamese people might be okay with paying upfront, but they still want to be served when they’re not cooking at home. Items (a) and (c) could probably be cut in today’s context. Even now, I think I could’ve done better with Cocochin if I had the chance to try again.

2. Le Royal Saigon

This was a project at the Majestic Hotel, with a 450m² space, in collaboration with Saigontourist. We had to close it during the COVID-19 pandemic.

I learned a lot from setting up this restaurant, which helped when I later got involved in Vietnam House project — a place recognized by the Michelin Selected in 2023 and 2024.

Overall, I still enjoy and feel I’m better suited to working on foodcourts. Running a fine-dining restaurant is really tough :)

1. Saigon Garden

Saigon Garden is one of our typical boutique mall projects focused on F&B. We turned a complex group of single houses into a modern, lively complex. This investment helped us attract international tenants willing to pay higher rates, and we recovered our renovation costs in 2.5 years. Now, in its ninth year, it’s fully occupied at over 90%.

Saigon Garden during renovation (2015).

Saigon Garden today. We still have a 600m2 space on the 3rd floor and frontage on Nguyen Hue street. If you are interested, please contact me.

A typical corner: the renovation gave us a skylight in the alley and let us use the inner spaces. Before, these were just alley houses with no rental potential. Currently on the left of this area is a barbecue restaurant, on the right is a vegetarian restaurant, and the rooftop is a seafood buffet with beer, very comfortable for an afternoon after work in Saigon.

2. The Garden Mall

The Garden Mall (formerly called Thuận Kiều) is a memory-filled building for Saigon people. It was once the tallest building in the city, built to welcome the wave of Chinese coming to Saigon after Hong Kong was returned to China in 1997. But then, for many reasons, it was abandoned. Twenty years later, we approached the building with an idea to breathe new life into it—turning it from a closed space into an open one, targeting young customers to shake off the gloomy reputation the media often painted around it.

Working on The Garden Mall was probably the most tiring time, but also fun and full of lessons. Then, in 2017, it finally opened.

The team who built The garden mall (2017) ^^

TGM had to restructure twice because getting people to visit the 2nd and 3rd floors was a challenge for a long-structured building like this. We came up with the idea of cutting the floor to add stairs, so ground-floor tenants (restaurants) could rent the 2nd floor too for their business—and some agreed. But then COVID-19 hit, and the owner decided to turn it into a field hospital.

Okay, fine. From a mall, it became a field hospital with nearly 1,000 beds for mild cases. During the pandemic, we worked until 10 p.m. to make sure supplies arrived on time for the workers. After two weeks, it was done and handed over to the government. Personally, even now, I think it’s better suited as a hospital or some kind of medical service facility rather than a shopping mall.

Four years after COVID-19, now that the government has returned management rights, we’re still running part of the mall. When I first came here in 2016, it was a crumbling building. Now, almost 10 years later, it feels like a full cycle again.

3. The Mall

The Mall is a shopping center project we acquired in 2018 after successfully opening The Garden Mall. It took quite a bit of time to evaluate the legal aspects and investment options. The ceiling height was pretty low, and the layout was poor with lots of hidden corners—a real shame because its location was great, right in the heart of District 10. It had the potential to become another Vạn Hạnh Mall.

In the end, we couldn’t figure out a way to make it profitable, so we decided to transfer it through a company split transaction in 2021. Some things aren’t meant to be exploited.

There are still a few images of the ideas we planned to implement. We didn’t achieve much with this project, but I learned a lot about due diligence, buying and selling assets, and dealing with banks for loans.

As of now, it seems like it’s still not operational :)