Phu My Hung - The Crescent
Friday, 20 April 2007
Hanoi - Property Market Briefs Q1 2007.
Download hanoi_office_brief_q1_07.pdf
Download hanoi_retail_brief_q1_07.pdf
Download hanoi_hotel_brief_q1_07.pdf
Download hanoi_apt_for_sales_brief_q1_07.pdf
Download hanoi_apt_for_lease_brief_q1_07.pdf
Some market briefs from our complete market reports. Enjoy ;)
Thursday, 22 March 2007
Profile - Mark Farquhar, Associate Director / Retail Consultancy
First part of a series of talks with staff from all levels of Chesterton Petty Vietnam. First up - resident retail guru Mark Farquhar from the Hanoi office. Mark is an Associate Director of the company and also looks after the retail business nationwide. [Vietnamese version at the weekend.. too busy..]
How long have
you been in Vietnam now?
Only 2 years so far.
What’s your
background BV (...Before Vietnam)?
Over 15 years in property covering retail, commercial, mixed-use,
development management, redevelopments, leasing, sales and management.
How did you
end up here?
I’ve worked in very mature markets so I was keen to work in a developing market. I heard about this position while looking at retail opportunities in Hong Kong and China.
How would you
sum up the Vietnam retail market in 3 words?
Hot, Hot, Hot !!!!!
What do you
find exciting about the retail market here?
We are at the beginning of the retail market here but I expect to
see some leap-frogging of progress in terms of retail environments. This
industry is growing rapidly and customers appetites for
sophisticated, modern retail environments is massive. It’s an exciting
time for all stake-holders (landlords, retailers, customers) to be in
Vietnam.
What cautionary advice would you
give to retail developers who are not yet fortunate enough to be a client of
yours?
Funny guy… Firstly please get a retail consultant. Then make sure your
retail consultant truly understands retail and can demonstrate that. I have seen more examples of
what NOT to do in respect to some retail projects here and these are
now starting to suffer. A retail project is only successful if it can sustain
itself. High turnover of tenants can be a sign that the tenant
mix is wrong, target market was wrongly identified or the quality and
experience of retailers is lacking.
How about
actual retailers (present or yet-to-be present)?
Retailers should start to think about business plans, occupancy costs, market research etc. They should track their daily, monthly and yearly sales figures. All this information is crucial in understanding how your business works, if it's successful, if there is a pending problem. Understand what other categories assist your category, which ones don't etc.
But retail is
easy right ;) ?
Now that's a leading statement if I've ever heard one. No absolutely not. Knowledge is power! Do your homework, study and understand your target market. Where do they shop? Is it a large market?, what is their dollar spend? Look at the retail environment you are thinking of going into. Whether it be street front, shopping centres or supermarkets, you should study the project, watch for a while, see where it is successful, where it is not. There just maybe a reason why there is a vacancy at a (what appears to be a successful) shopping centre. Ask about the history of the tenancy you are going into, it may have had 6 tenants turn over in the past 12 months (not good). Then there is marketing. You cant make money by just opening your doors, you need to tell people where you are, why they need you. Also don't be afraid to 'freshen' your offer from time to time. Retail customers are the most fickle, disloyal clients you can get. They get distracted easily by competitors so you have to keep reinventing or refining your offer, your image etc. Highland's Coffee is a great example of a company who understand this.
Namedrop for
us – who are your clients at the moment?
Too many to mention as we have over 12 retail projects nationwide in various phases of consultancy and development. I will say that once every quarter I meet with some of the leaders (most successful) in the retailer industry and information share. They are some of the most interesting people I have ever met! David Thai and Thai Anh from Highland's Coffee, Dr. Trung from Pho 24, the list is long!
Are you
worried about more property consultants coming into the market?
No I would embrace this. The industry needs good experienced retail consultants. I sat on the board of the Property Council of Australia and some of my colleagues were managing directors, chairmen of competitor agencies. We all came together, met often and worked together to improve the industry. Sure we are competitors, but at the end of the day we need to work together to help this industry grow and prosper.
What makes
you so good ??
A series of mistakes in my early career, trying to learn from other's mistakes, good teachers and be experienced enough to know that I certainly don't know everything!
What changes do you think we will
see over the next few years in the retail market?
Generally just a huge amount of growth in this sector. I hope to see growth in what I refer to as regional shopping centres. This is shopping centres that are located outside the inner city. Regional centres such as Saigon South HCMC, Westlake (Syrena) and Ciputra in Hanoi will provide services and conveniences to a large residential market that are currently under serviced.
What has been the biggest change
in the market that you have observed during your time here so far?
A good question. Probably the just the increase in chains and franchises. The building of brands, loyal customers etc did not seem so evident when I first arrived.
Sounds fun,
chit-chatting with fancy retailers all day! Got any jobs going?
Always on the hunt for very good retail people! mark@chesterton.com.vn
Tuesday, 20 March 2007
Euromoney 2007
Euromoney photoset.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mattpowelluk/sets/72157600010830385/
Sunday, 18 March 2007
This could be a dumb idea...
Ok, I may be setting myself up for a fall here, but from now
I plan to make all posts bilingual English & Vietnamese. Why? Well, a few
reasons but mainly for myself! My Vietnamese is a mash of what I've picked up,
what I've learned from several half-studied texts, and many evenings at the bia
hoi. Its actually not bad, I understand most things and can hold a good
conversation as long as 5 people aren't talking to me at the same. Being
in a country and not speaking to a reasonable standard is a bit silly really,
and quite arrogant - I'm as guilty as most other foreigners here. I've heard a
few fluent foreigners and it always makes me impressed and jealous in equal
measures - these would include Dominic Scriven the founder of Dragon Capital
(best I've heard) and Oliver Massmann of Baker & McKenzie
I believe is also pretty nifty.
I don't think I can imagine how useful it would be for my professional life to
dispense with English. Anyway, I've managed to find a good teacher so am having
a few lessons a week, and this will count as my homework ;)
Luckily, I generally don't write much (this is probably the longest post - excl
the links and copy paste stuff). Also expect mistakes, many of them!
[I will be at Euromoney conference Mon & Tues so will post updates - could be long-ish so no translation likely. I'll try and get the Vietnamese conference material]
OK, t«i cã thÓ sÏ thÊt
b¹i, nhng tõ b©yg׬ t«i quyÕt ®Þnh viÕt tÊt c¶ posts b»ng tiÕng Anh vµ tiÕng
ViÖt. T¹i sao? Mét vµi lý do nhng chñ yÕu lµ cho t«i! TiÕng ViÖt cña t«i lµ
nh÷ng g× t«i tù häc, mÊy quyÒn s¸ch tô häc, vµ nhiÒu lÇn ®i uèng bia h¬i. Thùc
ra, tiÕng ViÖt cña t«i kh«ng tåi l¾m, t«i cã thÓ hiÓu hÇu hÕt mäi thø vµ t«i cã
thÎ nãi ®êc nÕu 5 ngêi kh«ng nãi vêi t«i cïng mét lóc. Sång níc ngoµi vµ kh«ng
thÎ nãi tiÕng níc ®ã lµ ngèc nghÕc vµ khµ kiªu ng¹o – t«i còng gièng nh hÇu
hÕt ngõ¬i níc ngoµi ë ®©y. T«i ®· nghÌ mÊy ngõ¬i níc ngoµi rÊt giái vµ ®iÒu
®ã lu«n lµm t«i võa Ên tôong võa ghen tÞ – trong ®ã cã c¶ ¤ng Dominic Scriven
tõ Dragon Capital vµ ¤ng Oliver Massmann tõ Baker & McKenzie t«i tin hä
còng nãi tiÕng ViÖt rÊt giái.
T«i
kh«ng h×nh dung nã sÏ cã Ých nh thÎ nµo cho c«ng viÖc cña t«i chØ nãi tiÒng ViÖt
théi. Dï sao, t«i ®· t×m ®îc mét thÇygi¸o giái vµ häc mÊy lÇn mét tuÇn – bµi
nµy sÏ ®îc tÝnh nh bµi tËp vÒ nhµ ;)
May
m¾n, t«i thêng kh«ng viÕt nhiÌu (bµi nµy cã lÏ lµ dµi nhÊt). SÏ cã lçi, rÊt
nhiÒu lçi!
[Ngµy
mµi t«i sÏ ë Euromoney Conference ë kh¸ch s¶n Melia – cã lÏ khã dÞch lµm…]
Saturday, 17 March 2007
Land Markets Paper
A good paper from RICS on efficient land markets. I'm reading a MSc in Real Estate from UK at the moment, so coming across lots of good resources on the net. Thats why my posting can be a bit erratic - had exams a couple of weeks ago!
Download rics_land_markets_paper.pdf
Saigon 2020
Nice post by Jon Hoff on the progress in Saigon. Agreed on the dates, I've given up trying to tie projects to particular dates whether its predicted as one or twenty years. It'll come but..it'll come when it comes...
Vietnam Property & Investment News 17/3/07
Hong Kong investor likes Asia real estate
Hanoi architecture contest closes
Nomura, Vietnam's State Capital Investment in equitization link Vietnam property draws foreign cash
Investment funds continue injecting cash into Vietnam
Otis Elevator Company pursues growth in Vietnam
Hanoi’s gold land charms investors
Will urban growth trample Vietnam's charm
Thai industrial-estate developer shifts focus to Vietnam
VinaCapital London issue oversubscribed
Indochina Capital lists on London Stock Exchange
Investment funds discover Vietnam (Jaccar)
Keppel to develop in Ho Chi Minh City
APREA vows to help Vietnam
Swiss firm eyes $2.6 bln tourism project on Vietnam island
Vietnam government offers incentives to southern island investors
Jones Lang LaSalle optimistic about VN real estate market
- more professional consultants will only help to improve standards
across the board so I'm glad to see them here. Direct competitors yes,
but plenty of pie of everyone ; )
Friday, 16 March 2007
Euromoney Vietnam
We've got the Euromoney conference coming up next week in Hanoi. Quite a stellar lineup, so should be very interesting. I don't think I'll be doing live blogging but certainly will report on the highlights.
Monday March 19 2007
09:00 – 09:05 Euromoney Welcome: Tony Shale, Chief Executive Officer, Euromoney Institutional Investor, Asia
09:05 – 09:10 SCIC Welcome: Dr. Le Thi Bang Tam, Chairwoman, State Capital Investment Corporation
09:10 – 09:25 Opening Keynote Address: HE Nguyen Tan Dung, Prime Minister, Socialist Republic of Vietnam
09:25 – 09:40 Keynote Address: HE Dr. Tran Xuan Ha, Vice Minister of Finance, Socialist Republic of Vietnam
09:40 – 09:55 Welcome Address: Michael Geoghegan CBE, Group Chief Executive, HSBC Holdings plc
09:55 – 10:10 Welcome Address: Steve Targett, Group Managing Director, Institutional, ANZ
Vietnam: The Emerging Star of Asia
10:10 – 10:25 Welcome Address: Jean-Pierre Bernard, Regional Head, South-East Asia and India, BNP Paribas
10:25 – 10:40 Welcome Address: John Shrimpton, Co-Founder and Director, Dragon Capital Group Limited
11:00 – 11:55 Panel A: Post WTO Opportunities
Turning Words into Actions
Strong economic growth, successful reforms and WTO-entry mark 2006 as a remarkable year for Vietnam. The new leadership has indicated its commitment to accelerating growth and the country’s
accession to WTO should lock Vietnam onto a path of continuous reform. What will be the key challenges and opportunities in the year ahead? How will the laws of the WTO be maintained? Is there an
inherent risk in changing too rapidly? WTO membership raises the issue of opening up Vietnam’s economy. What is being done to educate the business community as to what WTO membership means
them? How are they poised to take advantage of the opportunity? Entry to WTO will provide significant opportunities for inward investors as restrictions on foreign ownership will be eliminated as a result
of membership. How are the international community preparing? It is predicted, that inflation will continue to feel upward pressure in 2007. What will be the impact of a continued rise? How is the
government tackling the issue of corruption?
Chaired by: Mark Johnson, Editor, Euromoney Conferences
Panellists: Ayumi Konishi, Country Director, Vietnam Resident Mission, Asian Development Bank
Jack Lin, Regional Managing Director, Asia Institutional, Franklin Templeton Investments
Il Houng Lee, Senior Resident Representative, Vietnam, International Monetary Fund
Sin Foong Wong, Country Manager, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia, International Finance Corporation
11:55 – 12:10 Introductory Speaker: Dang Thanh Binh, Deputy Governor, State Bank of Vietnam
12:10 – 13:00 Panel B: Reform of the Banking Sector - Creating New Partnerships
The government has adopted a framework to reform the banking sector from 2010 to 2020. Central to this will be consolidation, enabling the banking sector to operate more effectively. Post WTO-entry,
how will we see this sector develop? Foreign banks have been active in Vietnam for 15 years. In what ways can they support development of the domestic commercial banks and enhance the reform
process? From April 2007 foreign banks will be able to open a 100% foreign-owned bank. What impact will this have? What further changes will we see in the regulations determining how foreign banks
can participate? To what extent is corporate governance and better management practices improving in Vietnam’s financial institutions? What else needs to be done to encourage further reforms and
sophistication in the financial sector?
Chaired by: Alain Cany, President and Chief Executive Officer, HSBC in Vietnam
Panellists: Dr. Ly Xuan Hai, President, Asia Commercial Bank
Tejpal Singh Hora, Head and Executive Vice President, Risk Management, Asia Financial Holdings Pte Ltd, Michael Pettis, Professor of Finance, Guanghua School of Management, Peking University
Nguyen Quang Trung, Vice President, Sacombank
14:10 – 14:20 Keynote Address: Dr. Le Thi Bang Tam, Chairwoman, State Capital Investment Corporation Grand Ballroom
The Role of SCIC and the Process of SOE Reform
14:20 – 15:10 Panel C: The Privatisation of State Owned Enterprises – The Year Ahead
The privatisation process has been underway since the Enterprise Act of 2000. So far more than 2,000 SOE’s have been privatised and the continuation of the privatisation schedule is a key focus for
investors. How will the government keep the momentum and sustain investor interest? What will be the key sectors to look out for in the year ahead? In 2006, we witnessed the beginning of larger cap
listings. Is this trend set to continue? To what extent is privatisation acting as a driver of improved corporate governance and transparency?
Chaired by: Mark Johnson, Editor, Euromoney Conferences
Panellists: Dr. Nguyen Sy Hung, Chairman, Vietnam Airlines
Le Song Lai, Deputy General Director, State Capital Investment Corporation
Allanda McConnell, Partner, Transaction Advisory Services, Ernst & Young Vietnam Limited
William Stoops, Director, Dragon Capital Markets
Juerg Vontobel, Chairman, Vietnam Holding Asset Management Ltd.
15.10 – 16:00 Sector Focus I: Real Estate
Vietnam’s real estate market has experienced a freeze in recent years but in the wake of WTO
accession many are predicting that the market will boom. What opportunities will be created in the
commercial, residential and tourism sectors in 2007? With entry to WTO, how will policies on land
and housing be adjusted in line with international standards? To what extent will we see an increase
in domestic investors cooperating with foreign partners? What else needs to be done to encourage
foreign investment?
Chaired by: Chris Yoshii, Regional Director of Economics, EDAW Economics
Panellists: Frances Ba, President, Phu My Hung Corporation
Jean-Marc Merlin, Chairman, The AppleTree Group
Peter Ryder, Chief Executive Officer, Indochina Capital
Marc Townsend, Managing Director, CB Richard Ellis (Vietnam)
Sector Focus II: Infrastructure
As Vietnam continues to prosper, there is a need for high level of investment in transport,
communication and power to support economic growth. As large infrastructure projects take years
to complete, early planning, commitment and development of projects is critical. How will the
government finance projects? What opportunities will be created for the private sector? The new
five-year plan, approved in April 2006, includes targets for increasing output and improving
infrastructure, with the objective of making Vietnam a modern, industrial nation by 2020. Is this
achievable? In the year ahead, what projects should be prioritised?
Chaired by: Andrew Symon, Managing Director, Menas Asia
Panellists: Walter Blocker, Chief Executive Officer, GANNON Vietnam Limited
Roy Cummins, Chief Executive Officer, Saigon Premier Container Port (SPCT)
William Lean, Managing Director and Head of Vietnam Infrastructure Limited, VinaCapital
Saquib Mawaz-Khan, Regional Director, Emerging Markets Partnership (Brunei) Ltd
Tan Hua Joo, Managing Director, APL Vietnam
16:20 – 16:35 Keynote Address: HE Dr. Do Huu Hao, Vice Minister of Industry, Socialist Republic of Vietnam
16.35 – 17.30 Panel D: Developing the Debt Markets
Vietnam's debt market continues to develop and is slowly becoming popular as a means of raising capital. The government is initiating measures to encourage corporate bond issuances. How will we see
the domestic debt markets develop in the year ahead? To what extent are domestic companies able to look to the bond market as a realistic tool for funding? Vietnam’s first sovereign bond issue was
heavily subscribed a year ago and plans to launch a second international bond issue are highly anticipated by investors. How can investment in Vietnam be made easier for international investors? What
role will rating agencies play in the next 12 months?
Chaired by: Stephen Garton, Asia Editor, Euroweek
Panellists: Mark Adams, Managing Director and Head of Debt Capital Markets, Asia Pacific, BNP Paribas
Brian Baker, Executive Vice President, PIMCO and Chief Executive Officer and Director, PIMCO Asia Ltd
Joshua Matthews, Head of Debt Capital Markets, Vietnam, HSBC
Christina Maynes, Representative Director, Singapore, Moody's Investors Service
Le Dao Nguyen, Deputy General Director, Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam
Gilles Planté, Managing Director Markets, Trading, ANZ
Tuesday March 20 2007
08:55 – 09:00 Euromoney Welcome: Tony Shale, Chief Executive Officer, Euromoney Institutional Investor, Asia
09:00 – 09:15 Keynote Address: HE Vo Hong Phuc, Minister of Planning and Investment, Socialist Republic of Vietnam*
09:15 – 09:30 Keynote Address: HE Luong Van Tu, Deputy Minister of Trade, Socialist Republic of Vietnam
09.30 – 10:20 Panel E: The Outlook for the Equity Markets – Challenges, Opportunities and Obstacles
Investors have been deterred in the past by the perceived small size and lack of liquidity in the domestic stock market. But perceptions are changing and rightly so. In the last 12 months alone the main
stock exchange has increased nine fold with Vietnam equities hitting all time highs. What have been the catalysts for change? How easy is it for investors to capitalise on opportunities? How can liquidity
in the market be further enhanced? What obstacles remain? The international community has lauded the positive attitude of regulators and willingness to listen to investors. What key reforms would
investors like to see in the year ahead?
Chaired by: Chris Leahy, Asia Editor, Euromoney
Panellists: Dean Van Drasek, Executive Director, LIM Advisors
Fiachra Mac Cana, Director of Research, VinaCapital
Lavin Mok, Managing Director, Tremont Capital Management (Asia) Limited
Paul Nguyen, Managing Director, Emerging Markets, Wellington Management International
Kevin Snowball, Director, PXP Vietnam Asset Management
10:20 – 10:50 Special Focus: Domestic Bank Update
10:20 – 10:30 Keynote Address: Tran Bac Ha, General Director, Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam
The Equitization of BIDV – The Road to Sustainable Development and Integration
10:30 – 10:40 Keynote Address: Dr. Nguyen Thanh Toai, Executive Vice President, Asia Commercial Bank
Restructuring Commercial Banks in Vietnam - A Case Study of ACB
10:40 – 10:50 Keynote Address: Nguyen Quang Trung, Vice President, Sacombank
Facing Stock Market’s Explosion and Post-WTO Entry. What is the Right Direction for Vietnamese Banking Sector Development?
11:10 – 12:00 Sector Focus III: Power and Energy
The rich natural resource base of Vietnam offers opportunities for global players in oil and gas
exploration. How can international investors make the most of the opportunities available? Are long
term investments secured by current legal and regulatory frameworks? What will be the key
challenges for this sector in the year ahead? Vietnam’s estimated demand for electricity from now to
the year 2010 is estimated to grow annually at the rate of 10-15 percent. To meet this demand, an
investment of US$ 20 billion by 2010 will be needed to develop new power generation projects,
transmission lines and distribution lines. How does the government plan to finance this
development? What opportunities will be created for private sector participation as this sector opens
up post WTO-entry?
Sector Focus IV: Telecommunications
Vietnam's telecom sector is currently the second fastest developing telecom market in the ASEAN,
with about 14 million subscribers to telecom services and more than 10 million internet users. How
will we see this sector grow and develop in the year ahead? Entry to WTO will provide significant
opportunities for inward investors as restrictions on foreign ownership are eased. How will investors
be able to capitalise on these opportunities? How are domestic companies preparing to surmount
the challenges of fiercer competition presented by WTO membership? Should the legal and
regulatory framework be a key focus of reform?
12:00 – 12:50 Panel F – The Role of Private Equity
Private equity firms are playing an important role in supporting private sector development in Vietnam. Increasingly, they are bringing more to the table than capital and becoming actively involved in the
businesses they invest in. Is this trend set to continue? What types of companies are attracting private equity? What are the exit strategies available? What levels of transparency are investors looking for
from Vietnamese companies? What challenges are presented by the legal framework?
Chaired by: Chris Leahy, Asia Editor, Euromoney
Panellists: Michael Doran, Partner, Gide Loyrette Nouel
Chris Freund, Managing Director, Mekong Capital
Alex Hambly, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer, Prudential Vietnam Fund Management Company
Wong Heng Tew, Chief Representative, Vietnam, Temasek Holdings
Thursday, 15 March 2007
Asia Tower - 21 Feb 2007
View from the 5th (out of 7) level at Asia Tower
Some marketing info:
Completion: August 2007
Levels:
1 basement Car-parking 470 sqm
GF Retail 470sqm
1 Office 450sqm
2 – 7 Office 350 sqm
8 Roof facilities Lift access – view to HK lake & cathedral.
Roof terrace perfect for functions.
Gross Floor Area: 2,650sqm
Net Internal Area: 1,808sqm
Elevators: 2 x Thyssen
Facilities: Multi-split air-conditioning (Daiken)
Full backup generators
International standard fire safety
Column-free floorplates (pre-stressed slabs)
Exclusive Agent: Chesterton Petty Vietnam
Something to note: construction time on this project is more rapid than other projects due to the pre-stressed slabs that do not require time to ‘set’ as per normal poured slabs. This means that the structure is appearing rapidly and August is a realistic timescale.
You can view a photoset of the project here showing the progress over previous months and some of the views:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mattpowelluk/sets/72157594500374384/
Sunday, 11 March 2007
Vietnam - Investors hot to trot
There is a palpable sense in Vietnam that now is the country's time. There is some much international focus on Vietnam, we see constant visitors from overseas investors...
Two upcoming conferences in Vietnam:
Euromoney - the biggest ever in Vietnam apparently. You can see the content on the agenda link.
The Asian Public Real Estate Association - Property Leaders Forum. This is more specifically focused on public real estate investment funds.
New Chesterton Appointments
We've recently been appointed for 2 great projects
a) Asia Tower - 6 Nha Tho, Hanoi. 
Small building but great location right near Hoan Kiem Lake and in a nice area for restaurants, bars, retail etc. Its seven storeys of about 400sqm clear, open floorplates (no columns as they are using pre-stressed concrete slabs). So one nice ground floor level suitable for retail then office above. Would be good for one company to take the lot as a 'corporate headquarters' or we can look at splitting up the retail & office and having a side entrance to access the office. There are a few different ways we can do this, so a really interesting project. We've got some cool site hoarding on the drawing board too!
Flickr set for Asia Tower here
b) Press Club, Hanoi. 
A famous landmark in Hanoi. We've been instructed as consultant and agent to review the building and re-lease where appropriate. Initially looking at leasing the office floors to whole floor tenants - around 400sqm again. Again, location doesn't get much better - I'm sure the achieved rents will reflect that! Some interesting news on that front soon...
Flick set for Press Club here
So a bit more supply for the office market around Q3 this year (well, if we don't double-count Press Club... more for around 400sqm office tenants anyway). We're in the final throes of leasing the offices at Pacific Place - fingers crossed for 100% by opening... nearly there!
Thursday, 08 February 2007
Tuesday, 06 February 2007
Syrena Apartments
Onsite at Syrena yesterday checking out the status of the apartments.
The retail podium is progressing very well. Apartments & retail opening in June.
Check out these views across West Lake from the top! Click on the pic to see the full set.
Project website at www.syrenahanoi.com
Wednesday, 31 January 2007
Hanoi - Office Market
"High fever!"
Demand high - supply low - price up... is the gist.
Monday, 29 January 2007
Gloria Jean’s Coffees sets up Vietnam franchise
VietLifestyle
JSC Company will set up a chain of coffee shops in Vietnam under a
franchising agreement with Gloria Jean’s Coffees of Australia.
Following a deal signed recently, which gives it use of the brand for 10 years, VietLifestyle opened the first shop Friday in Ho Chi Minh City. The second is set to come up in Hanoi with each costing around US$200,000.
It has the right to sign up sub-franchisees who will also be supported by Gloria Jean’s Coffees Vietnam and Gloria Jean’s Coffees International in operations, marketing, management, and business development.
In the next two years another 20 shops will come up in HCMC, Hanoi, Danang, Hai Phong, Nha Trang, and Can Tho.
There are more than 1,000 Gloria Jean’s coffee shops in 24 countries and the Australian company plans to increase the number to over 3,000 this year.
Gloria Jean’s Coffees is the only brand in the premium sector in Vietnam, and is aimed at young people, expatriates, and foreign tourists familiar with the brand.
It has some 40 items including espresso based, chocolate based, cocoa based drinks.
Outlook for franchising
Foreign experts think franchising is likely to continue flourishing in the country in future.
It offers an excellent route for multinational firms to enter Vietnam and for domestic enterprises to expand overseas.
According to global franchisers, Vietnam has all the hallmarks of a franchise haven: a young market, rapid economic growth, and a stable political system.
Franchised businesses first appeared in Vietnam in the 1990s with the advent of high-profile international fast food and beverage chains like KFC, Dilmah, Lotteria, and Jollibee.
Leading coffee producer Trung Nguyen became a local pioneer, opening its first franchise in HCMC in 1998. It now has more than 1,000 coffee shops in Vietnam and some in Singapore, Tokyo, and Shanghai.
It is soon planning to enter the US, Germany, and Australia.
Source: Thoi bao Kinh Te Vietnam – Compiled by Dong Ha
Saturday, 27 January 2007
Hanoi Photos - updates
Updates posted of Hanoi Towers / retail sites in Hanoi / retailers / Opera Business Centre / city centre etc.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mattpowelluk/
Vietnam Property & Investment News Updates
Skyline Tower "gets a cut" project info
HSBC insurance arm comes to Vietnam
Game Time in Vietnam
It’s bumper time for house trading companies
Market needs to slow down: fund managers
Cement prices likely to climb this year
Vietnam Airlines’ billion dollar complexes left desolate
S. Korea's overseas investment doubled in 2006
Construction giant opens investment on $600 mln tourism complex
Consumer Price Index sees sharp rise in January
Vietnam beckons financial investors, experts say
Vietnam PM ends era of misuse of public properties
Quantas to invest in Pacific Airlines - good luck...
Wednesday, 24 January 2007
HCMC Property Updates
As Lac pointed out, there's not been much info from HCMC on this site. Our office has just moved offices into the ideally located Opera View building, but have sent me the current briefs on the Ho Chi Minh City market.
Download HCMC Residential Sector Market Brief Q4 2006 (PDF)
Download HCMC Office Sector Market Brief Q4 2006 (PDF)
Tuesday, 23 January 2007
Hanoi Retail Market Report
Download Chesterton Petty Vietnam - Retail Market Report Synopsis (PDF)
We've just finalised an extensive retail property market study for Hanoi. Here's a taster. That is all.Commercial Real Estate in Vietnam
A few months old but nice article on commercial real estate in Vietnam from RFP Magazine
Monday, 22 January 2007
Retailers Go Global
Nice article from the Urban Land Institute.
Excerpt:
..."Vietnam has also begun appearing on investment radar screens—coming up at number 3 in the A.T. Kearney study—and for much the same reasons: consumer spending is on the rise and the market’s immaturity increases its potential once barriers to investment are dismantled."...
Absolutely agree. Previous posts on Vietnam's retail market here, here & here...& here, here & here
Vietnam Property updates & links
Our esteemed counterparts in the property market, CB Richard Ellis, have put together a nice press presentation worth looking at for the HCMC property market. Nice to see some of the Chesterton projects and leasing deals in there.
HCMC market_presentation 18/1/07
Also - couple of links:
- Projects Vietnam 2007 - architectural trade show in HCMC coming up
- BCI Asia's reckoning on the Top 10 architects in Vietnam (Not sure of their criteria, I'm sure there would be some dispute amongst the architects I know here!!)
Sunday, 21 January 2007
Hanoi Urban Development - Part 3
Hanoi is bursting at the seams. The city is sprawling West, South West, Eastwards. I wonder how different this google earth shot will look in ten years... I think we will see a lot more shift of emphasis from the hoan kiem district - maybe with the river as a central divider like many other cities which have experienced recent & rapid development e.g. Seoul. Probably why Vietnam is so popular with the Korean developers as they can see the same thing happening.
Hanoi Urban Development - Part 2
From October 1898.. according to this, not sure sure about the previous one, must be from way back.
Hanoi Urban Development - Part 1
Apparently from the 19th Century - if anyone can read the characters it would interesting... I think the picture is sideways too..
Saturday, 20 January 2007
Vietnam Property News Links 20/1/07
Take-away café to boom in Vietnam?
US insurer pulls out of Vietnam
Pacific Healthcare to design & manage medical facility in Hanoi
Banyan Tree planning US$200m luxury hotel resort in Vietnam
Real estate projects numerous, but having difficulty finding investors
Vietnam’s retail market attracts European, American investors
Vietnam leads Asian consumer confidence: survey
Vietnam's vim & vigour ... haven't heard that phrase for a while...
Recent retail track record in Vietnam
This is a working document and will be updated with new projects from Hanoi & HCMC soon but gives a little taster of whats going on in some areas on the retail property market in Vietnam. This previous entry gives general commentary from Mark Farquhar who looks after the retail sector nationwide for CPV.
Download Chesterton recent retail track record (PDF)
Monday, 15 January 2007
Pacific Place Apartments to lease - Hanoi
Work is progressing well at Pacific Place. The apartment show units should be ready in mid-March for viewing by the public. If you want to be contacted regarding taking a unit send me a mail @ matthew.powell@chesterton.com.vn
1 bed - 49-55sqm / 2 bed - 81-110sqm / 3 bed - 119-167sqm
Sunday, 14 January 2007
Vietnamese Equities - HSBC report
Download HSBC Report - Vietnamese Equities - Time to go in
from September 2006.
News Update
Vietnam welcomed into WTO after 12 year wait
BBC - Vietnam's WTO membership begins
FT - In Beijing's footsteps - how a still wary Hanoi is foresaking ideology for trade.
Franchising forecast to be popular for business
development in Vietnam
Office leasing fees keep increasing
PJ Dev plans housing projects in Thailand, Vietnam
NYT - The Next China - Investing in Vietnam
InterContinental Hotels Group launches the Crowne Plaza Brand in Vietnam
Vietnam Architecture Awards
Foreign-funded projects in Vietnam hub slow, cause cost overruns
RFP Magazine - Commercial RE in Vietnam
Japanese firm okayed to develop $100 mln urban area in northern Vietnam
In other news:
Australian Culture Month in Vietnam - what're we going to do for the other 29 days? ;)
and prize for 'It Seemed like a Good Idea at the Time' goes to:
Gary Glitter could be freed in May - an official: ' he meets all the criteria for early release'. Yes, aside from being a convicted sex offender I expect he does have quite a bit of cash meet the release criteria... The Sun is there.
Friday, 12 January 2007
Pacific Place - get it while its hot...
Retail leasing is mainly complete at Pacific Place in Hanoi.
Office - not far behind...
Vital stats:
- Grade A
- Developer IMO Asia
- Mixed use office, retail & apartments
- 83B Ly Thuong Kiet, Hanoi
- Office 1,033sqm floorplate with raised cable flooring.
- Open in April this year.
- Apartment show units from mid-March.
Download pacific_place_brochure.pdf
Download brochure_floor_plan_pacific_place.pdf
Must go. TFIF! Some recent pics of Pacific Place on my flickr ---->
Tuesday, 09 January 2007
Photos - Hanoi
I'm quite enamoured with my new toy - a Nokia N73. Not only does it do all the boring stuff like SMS & phone calls, synch with my outlook calendar/address book by bluetooth (gotta love that...), it also has 3.2 megapixel camera! Which is great because everywhere I go I can get a decent photo if I see something interesting - which happens quite a lot in Hanoi generally (though you may find the following not very interesting at all if you're not a property nerd like me).
If you are interested in these types of pics for Hanoi/Vietnam I suggest you subscribe to the rss feed on the relevant flickr page using something like www.bloglines.com
Retailers - new & old retailers in Hanoi. Growing v. fast
Office buildings - current & coming attractions
Retail buildings some crossover as some projects like Pacific Place & Syrena are mixed use.
Residential here
Press Clippings
and this rather cool set of old pics of Hanoi
But I wouldn't advise you to look at anything like this or any pub crawls like that (the great Rik Mekkelholt - sadly now based in Vung Tau - of CBRE also shown ;)
"Strong Brand"
Slow news day at this particular paper... CPV (Chesterton Petty Vietnam) - strong brand....brochure text etc... Hey, I'm not complaining. Note to self - Must leave more brochures lying around!
Monday, 08 January 2007
Property Hunting? - Get in line
As Chris Harvey commented (http://chrisfharvey.typepad.com/charvey_in_vietnam/2007/01/booming_rhetori.html) - that's one annoying thing about making a flickr blog post, can't add hyperlinks - there is lots of rhetoric in the press. Long may it continue if the press are saying its good it must be really good. Makes a sea change from last years 'frozen real estate market' 'will the market thaw' stories. Mind you as headlines go I quite like this one.
Friday, 05 January 2007
Vietnam Property News Links
News of the week. Lots of 'booms' 'chances' 'rising' !
Japanese eye $500 mln commercial property in Vietnam capital
Vietnam minister speaks out against zoning hassling the public
Investors see "golden chances" in real estate business
Vietnam Snapping at heels of the Asian Tiger Economies
Vietnm joins WTO, turning heat on China
Booming Vietnam attracts Koreans
South Saigon urban area to be standard for Vietnam
Vietnam real estate market set to boom
Property Frontiers International Outlook for 2007
Ruby Plaza - retail & office
This building is coming together nicely, lots of activity on site. The lower levels are retail (cosmetics, jewelry, perfumery etc) and is has some nice office floors with good views. In central district but rent is pretty cheap.
Long week! Internet been really slow so not been able to upload any pics until today. Good weekend & happy new year from Hanoi!
Friday, 29 December 2006
Vietnam News Links
The internet still ropey in Hanoi after this earthquake problem in Taiwan. Hopefully should be back to normal soon. In the thick of leasing at Pacific Place so busy time for the emails to go down...
Nine West Store in Hanoi
South Korean Builders Rushing to Tap Vietnamese Market
Foreign investors cash in on Vietnam’s housing fever
VinaCapital licensed for $150 mln tourism-golf complex
Mobifone to finish equitization in 2007
