VIETNAM. Vietnamese market leader Imex Pan Pacific (IPP) plans to take advantage of new border free zones created in the country with plans for five major new stores this year.
The three governments of Vietnam, Thailand and Cambodia joined together last year to create new free trade zones on major international highways, including measures to stimulate the major tourist routes between the countries. The Prime Ministers of Vietnam and Thailand met recently in Danang to sign the final deals.
IPP has opened its first two border stores recently, one a 300sq m (3,228sq ft) outlet in Mong Cai on the border with China in Vietnam’s Quang Hinh Province and the other a 500sq m (5,380 sq ft) store in Lao Bao on the border with Laos in Quang Tri Province. Here IPP has the third licence to be granted for a duty free shop. Its new store opening later this year will be an exclusive licence on those border crossings.
IPP president Johnathan Nguyen told The Moodie Report: “There has been nothing like this before in Vietnam. The floor plans of the stores are not yet completed and our sites are under construction. But by May we will be ready to sit down and talk with suppliers at the Singapore show and discuss details. This is a big investment for us.”
Plans for new duty free shops opening in 2004 include a 3,000sq m (32,280 sq ft) megastore with traveller centre in the new Chu Lai Duty Free Zone in Quang Hinh Province on the Chinese border. This will become the largest duty free complex in Vietnam when it opens at the end of the year. Other locations are a 2,000sq m (21,520 sq ft) Moc Bai border shop in Vietnam’s Tay Ninh Province on the border with Cambodia and a 1,000sq m (10,760 sq ft) Tinh Bien border shop in An Giang Province also on the Cambodian border. Two smaller border posts will be the 200sq m (2,152 sq ft) Lao Cai border shop in Lao Cai Province and the 100sq m (1,076 sq ft) Lang Son border shop in Lang Son Province – both on the frontier with China.
Altogether the new store plans for 2004 will raise the company’s sales area by a factor of seven fold.
IPP also opened a new 100sq m (1,076 sq ft) departures/arrivals store in Danang International Airport recently, replacing Hong Kong company Sundance Duty Free which pulled out.
“In Danang we have a small store in the old terminal. But we are waiting for two years time when the new terminal will open with a much bigger duty free area,” said Nguyen.
“With the border stores open I will easily increase sales to US$100 million,” he said. “We are already past the US$60 million target. This is an important year for Vietnam.”
IPP also operates departures and arrivals duty free at Tan Son Nhat Airport in Ho Chi Minh City and Noi Bai Airport in Hanoi, in addition to the Vietnam Airlines and Pacific Airlines inflight business; Saigon Duty Free downtown in Ho Chi Minh (a joint venture with the government); a Ho Chi Minh City port store, Qui Nhon port store in Binh Dinh Province and diplomatic business.
