On the brink of 2020, we made a chess move to protect our market position and to position Masan for the next decade – the merger with VinCommerce to establish The CrownX, an integrated retail consumer platform. Had we not made our Queen’s Gambit, this would have marked the “beginning of the end” for Masan, said Chairman of Masan Group Nguyen Dang Quang.  

For the owner of Vietnam’s biggest retail chain, the future of consumer goods is decided by modern retailers. With the largest supermarket/convenience store system in the country, Masan has built a solid foundation to take the opportunity and serve consumers.

The system is the ideal destination satisfying all consumer demands by integrating “one-stop shop” services. WinMart/WinMart+, formerly known as VinMart has clearly proved outstanding efficiency thanks to its integrated model.

Three demand circles of Masan

Consumer goods has become the backbone that supports the development of Masan Group, which focuses on the consumer goods segment with a large market size. Simultaneously, the Vietnamese conglomerate promotes existing business activities, accelerating growth by mergers and acquisitions in focused areas.

Paving the road for Masan’s consumer goods to enter the largest modern retail channel in Vietnam is not the only goal set by Masan’s leaders. The group’s roadmap is to create a unicorn of modern consumer goods market based on the theory of “3 circles of demand”. The elements of the three circles include the necessities, the demand for financial products, and finally the social needs.

Daily essential consumer products are overflowing on store shelves. Photo: Masan

For several years, Masan Group’s subsidiaries and affiliates have been leaders in the fields of processed food and beverages, retail, fresh meat, personal and home care products, industrial chemical, and financial services. The businesses operate in areas with high growth rates of the economy. Their products serve the basic needs of consumers. These sectors account for about 50% of Vietnamese consumer spending.

The year 2021 is considered a pivotal year for the 2020-2030 strategic restructuring of Masan. After merging WinCommerce to establish The CrownX in June 2020. In 2021, Masan continuously formed a strategic partnership, purchasing shares with companies that match the elements in the “3 circles of demand”.

In May 2021, Masan spent $15 million to buy 20% shares of Phuc Long Heritage JSC. This enterprise owns the leading tea and coffee retail chain in Vietnam. After that Masan cooperated with an investor group led by Alibaba to take advantage of the $400 million capital and the strength of the retail industry, outstanding technology of foreign enterprises. The step enables Masan to create a premise for accelerating the integration process from offline shopping to online shopping for the largest retail chain in the country of Masan.

Phano Pharmacy brand officially appears in CVLife store. Photo: Masan

In September 2021, Masan purchased 70% stakes in the virtual mobile network operator Mobicast. The deal helps Masan to integrate telecom into the “Point of Life” consumer ecosystem, meeting the number 3 element in the demand circle. Each member company, strategic partner contributes to creating important pieces in the consumer ecosystem, helping to meet the ever-changing demands of customers.

The “Point of Life” strategy brings conveniences to customers

Together with strategic partners, Masan’s business pillars provide customers with multiple conveniences.

The CrownX, a retail consumer platform that owns both MasanConsumerHoldings, the branded consumer goods business, and WinCommerce, the retail business,  Masan MEATLife, a fully integrated meat value chain business with the goal of increasing the productivity of the animal protein industry and providing consumers with safe, branded and source traceable meat products.

Its associated company Techcombank is the leading joint-stock commercial bank in Vietnam, which has a strategy of focusing on the retail market through the application of high technology to capture growth opportunities in the industry.

Currently, Masan has opened 4 multi-convenience stores in the 2 largest cities Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. Customers who visit these WinMart+ stores can buy essential goods, drug from Phano pharmaceuticals, financial services from Techcombank, and tea and coffee drinks from Phuc Long. Mobicast network service will be available at the stores.

This “Point of Life” business model meets the needs of a large number of customers of different ages, needs, and interests.

Masan believes that modern retail does not only attract customers with promotions and discounts. Instead, the group is always exploring and creating breakthrough business models that can provide innovative solutions and strong brands to bring consumers more value.

Branded meat is one of the key pieces of the Point of Life strategy. Photo: Masan

Leading the retail market with nearly 2,500 WinMart/WinMart+ supermarkets/stores, the group is expected to take the lead and create a trend of modern, multi-utility, multi-experience retail.

“Though being in the early stage, Point of Life has already gathered all of the strategic pieces needed to engage consumers. The strategy helps consumers to use services and products at a cheaper cost. This is our goal when building this platform”, said Mr. Danny Le, CEO of Masan Group.

The modern retail revolution is taking place and expected to explode in Vietnam when the urbanization rate reaches 50% and the middle-class population emerges. Modern forms of shopping are expected to account for 30% of the retail market in the near future from the current 8%. Masan is performing firm steps to be ready to accompany and serve consumers, accelerating the modernization of the retail industry.

The change of WinCommerce since it was acquired by Masan reminds people of the US largest retail group – Walmart, which has nearly 10,000 retail stores in 28 countries around the world. Of the amount, more than 4,700 stores were installed in the US.

Walmart’s success has proven that it is possible to build a retail system with lower prices but better service. Masan is steadfastly pursuing its mission of providing quality products and services to nearly 100 million Vietnamese while helping them pay less for their daily necessities.