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Vietnam: Vingroup exits completely from retail market

The Hanoitimes – This move is part of Vingroup’s restructuring process, aiming to reallocate its resources to core businesses of industry and technology to compete globally, said a company executive.

The merger of ecommerce platform Adayroi, operated by Vingroup’s retail arm VinCommerce, into the conglomerate’s ecosystem VinID and the dissolution of its electronic retail business VinPro marked Vingroup’s withdrawal from Vietnam’s retail market.

The dissolution process of VinPro is scheduled to be completed by the end of this month.

On December 17, VinCommerce sent a letter to its suppliers announcing its decision to suspend selling products on the Adayroi website, stating it would liquidate all financial obligations until January 15, 2020.

The move came shortly after Vingroup decided to transfer VinCommerce and its farming subsidiary VinEco to Masan Consumer Holdings, the consumer business of Masan, and form the country’s largest retail group in Vietnam.

Vingroup CEO Nguyen Viet Quang told local media this is part of the group’s restructuring process, aiming to reallocate its resources to core businesses of industry and technology and turn Vingroup into a global corporation.

The restructuring process, comprised of merging and dissolving companies in the retail business, would be carried out in compliance with Vietnamese regulations and ensure the lawful rights of partners and customers, said Quang.

Vingroup also decided to upgrade its e-commerce business into the “new retail” model, where online and offline retail are integrated.

The merger of Adayroi into VinID, originated as Vingroup’s loyalty program, not only helps Vingroup better analyze customers’ behavior, but also create a new platform that puts customers at the center of its services, Quang continued.

E-commerce platform Adayroi started operation in August 2014, followed by the VinPro electronic super market chain in March 2015.

Under the agreement between Vingroup and Masan on December 3, Masan would set up “the country’s largest retail group in Vietnam” once the merger is completed.

Vingroup would swap its stake in VinCommerce for that of the new company and become a stakeholder. As of present, the two sides are finalizing details for official signing, which is considered the largest business deal in Vietnam this year.

The new company would own VinCommerce’s network of 2,600 VinMart super markets and and VinMart+ convenience stores across 50 provinces and cities in Vietnam, along with a customer base of millions.

Additionally, Masan is set to take over 14 hi-tech farms currently operated by VinEco.

Source: http://hanoitimes.vn/vingroup-pushes-for-complete-exit-from-vietnams-retail-market-300533.html