Women entrepreneurs

26.5 per cent of businesses in Vietnam are owned by women

“When foreign-invested companies come to Vietnam, they prefer Vietnamese women for CEOs, not only in the technology industry but everywhere. They said Vietnamese women are resilient, warm, and committed,” Tieu Yen Trinh, CEO of Talentnet, said at the Empower Program’s launching day.

As the world of work is changing, women increasingly meet the demands of their jobs. Trinh said that the top 10 skills that people need for the working environment have changed a lot since the past. She said 60 per cent of the work is not EQ, relationship building, problem-solving, and people engagement.

If men tend to be ambitious and strong, always doing things with big views or visions, women have talent and competitive advantages in focusing on humans.

“I have had many chances to work with female CEOs. They focus a lot on the environment, bringing values and benefits for customers and the community. That is one of the competitive advantages for women to engage the community to run their own businesses,” Trinh added.

According to the latest Mastercard Index of Women Entrepreneurs 2020 (MIWE), 26.5 per cent of businesses in Vietnam are owned by women, ranking ninth out of 58 economies studied.

Additionally, the country stayed in the top 10 at ninth in Women’s Advancement Outcomes that evaluate both drivers and deterrents of women’s advancement in four indicators of Women Business Leaders, Women Professionals & Technical Workers, Women Entrepreneurial Activity Rate, and Women Labour Force Participation.

However, MIWE 2020 also revealed that Vietnam needs to do a great deal to support women entrepreneurs when the country was ranked 44th in Supporting Entrepreneurial Conditions.

To support women leaders to succeed in business, Trinh said that the most important thing for women to start is building a clear strategy. “It could account for 20 per cent of their success. Women face plenty of problems all the time, but if they plan well, things can go smoother,” she advised.

Chau Dang, CEO of Topica Native, stated that the most important thing for women leaders is to take care of themselves. “If you sacrifice yourself just to take care of family and other people without taking care of yourself, how will you survive to help them?” she asked.

However, it is easier for women in big cities to chase their careers than women in the highlands or remote areas with poor conditions.

Quynh Anh, CEO of Giga 1, commented, “While women are generally hard-working, disciplined, and intelligent, and are very careful – which are all good qualities to start a business –, they need more support from their family as well as from society, especially the startup society.”

The Empower Program was launched by Zone Startups Vietnam, in partnership with Sunwah Innovations & Swiss EP. The programme includes a 4-week free one-on-one accelerator programme that works with early-stage female tech entrepreneurs. It covers topics such as product development, marketing and communications, operations, leadership, and fundraising.

By Truc Anh

Organic cosmetics are becoming increasingly popular in Vietnam as local residents become more aware of the harmful effects that chemicals used in makeup products can have on both their health and the environment.

Two Vietnamese women are pioneering Vietnam’s organic cosmetic market, giving the country’s women a handcrafted alternative to the harmful chemicals used in big-brand makeup products.

Makeup and soap bars

When Tang Boi Quan finishes her daily duties as a full-time director’s assistant at a Taiwanese bank in Vietnam, she heads home to tend to her true passion – an online business focusing on organic soap and makeup products she’s handcrafted herself.

Quan’s organic makeup is her response to the harmful chemicals used in conventional cosmetics and the high prices Vietnamese often dish out for such products.

The 30-year-old entrepreneur also holds workshops to teach others how to similar products on their own.

Though she only began selling her products three years ago, Quan has been making them for her own personal use for much longer.

“I started out with lipsticks and then became passionate about making cosmetics,” Quan said.

“I eventually branched out into making different products like soap bars and charcoal toothpaste.”

Quan specifically ensures that each of her products is made only natural ingredients that can be found locally in Vietnam.

“Vietnam has a variety of natural oils that are good for health like coconut oil, coconut butter, avocado oil, and lemongrass,” Quan explained.  “The greatest challenge is finding pure oil extracts.”

Tang Boi Quan’s handmade soap bars. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Of all the products she crafts, Quan says soap is her favorite because it allows her to get creative with the different colors and patterns she uses to decorate the soap bars.

“I want people to know what a ‘real’ bar of soap is like and I want to produce it at an affordable price,” Quan said.

“Real soap bars” are made using fatty acids found in vegetable oil and serves as a natural detergent that does not cause harm to our health, our skin, or the environment, according to Quan.

Quan says the natural oil’s skin benefits are also the main reason why people in Western countries, Japan, and Taiwan are turning to organic cosmetic and hygiene products.

“Some people even use them [handmade soap bars] to wash clothes because they do not want to use chemical detergents that pollute environment,” Quan said.

Her soap bars are cut into small pieces with prices ranging from VND35,000 (US$1.5) to 45,000 ($1.9) per piece. Each bar typically last for an entire month and is wrapped in eco-friendly paper.

Quan also encourages customers who use her other projects to bring bank the containers, such as wooden lipstick tubs, so that they can be washed and refilled in order to minimize waste.

Every month, she chooses one of her days off from her full-time job to hold a workshop focused on instructing others on how to make the DIY products she sells.

“My customers include a lot of foreigners, but I really want to expand my Vietnamese customer base because it’s important to focus on local health and environment,” Quan said.

Tang Boi Quan at a workshop instructing others how to make handmade lipsticks safe for health. Photo: Tuoi Tre

DIY perfume

Nguyen Le Quynh Nhu’s shares a similar passion. The 25-year-old has spent the last three years building a business centered around handmade scents and perfumes.

She first began experimenting with mixing scents in her bedroom, doing her best to hide the hobby from her family.

“One day, as my dad was looking for something and he walked into my room; that was when my family found out I was making my own perfumes,” Nhu shared.

“They weren’t very supportive because they wanted me to pursue a career in education or banking, not start my own business.”

Nguyen Le Quynh Nhu’s bottles of handmade perfume. Photo: Tuoi Tre

After graduating with a biotechnology degree from International University – Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City, Nhu worked as an English teacher before starting a job as an assistant for a South Korean corporate director.

Now, after striking out on her own, she not only sells organic and handmade scented candles and perfumes, but she also holds workshops where she teaches others how to make the environmentally friendly products.

For Nhu, each scent has its own story, usually reminding her of a person and the story that person represents.

Nguyen Le Quynh Nhu’s handmade candles. Photo : Tuoi Tre

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Mai Ho, 29, and Le Han Tue Lam, 26, were named in the financial and venture capital category. Chau Bui, 23, was listed in the arts category.

Mai joined Silicon Valley-based venture capital firm Hustle Fund last year. The firm seeks to invest in early-stage startups operating in software, business to business, fintech and digital health sectors. Over the past year, she led investments in Vietnam-based audiobook app Fonos and DatBike, the first Vietmanese-made electric motorbike company, Forbes said.

Outside Hustle, Mai manages her family office’s multimillion dollar portfolio of investments in healthcare and renewable energy.

Mai Ho is investor of Silicon Valley-based venture capital firm Hustle Fund. Photo courtesy of Hustle Fund.

She received a full scholarship from the University of Westminster College in the U.S. where she studied finance and accounting. After graduation, she worked with several investment funds in the U.S., including working as a stock market analyst at investment bank Goldman Sachs.

Lam joined Seoul-based investment firm Nextrans in 2019 as a general manager evaluating and investing in early stage startups in Southeast Asia and the U.S.

Le Han Tue Lam works as general manager of Seoul-based investment firm Nextrans. Photo courtesy of Tue Lam.

Earlier, she was one of earliest members of Vietnam-based enterprise software platform Base.vn, and worked as a universal banker for Citi in Hanoi.

Vietnamese model and fashionista Chau Bui has more than three million Instagram and roughly two million Facebook followers. Last year, she scored endorsements deals with world’s leading fashion brands Dior and Louis Vuitton.

Bui, whose full name is Bui Thai Bao Chau, was named the most stylish social media personality at the ELLE Style Awards 2019.

Chau Bui is a famous Vietnamese fashionista. Photo courtesy of Chau Bui.

“Selected from over 2,500 nominations and vetted by our team of reporters and a panel of A-list judges, this year’s list features 300 young entrepreneurs, leaders and change makers across the Asia-Pacific region who are braving the challenging environment brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic and finding new opportunities amidst the new normal,” the Forbes magazine noted.

The list selects 30 honorees for each of the 10 categories.

The criteria for honorees making the list include their “demonstration of leadership, how they embody the entrepreneurial spirit that is synonymous with Forbes , and their potential of success in their industry. Other factors like innovation, disruption – and size and growth of their ventures in some categories – play a role in making the final decision,” the magazine said.

Last year, Vietnam had six representatives in the 30 under 20 list.

Three Vietnamese women – two entrepreneurs and a fashionista – were in the 2021 Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list released on Tuesday.

Mai Ho, 29, and Le Han Tue Lam, 26, were named in the financial and venture capital categories while Chau Bui, 23, was listed in the arts category.

“Ho joined Silicon Valley-based venture capital firm Hustle Fund in 2020 and over the past year led investments in Vietnam-based audiobook app Fonos and DatBike, the first Vietnamese-made electric motorbike company,” reads Forbes ’ description of Ho.

“Outside of Hustle, Ho manages her family office’s multimillion-dollar portfolio of investments in healthcare and renewable energy.”

Meanwhile, Lam joined Seoul-based investment firm Nextrans in 2019 as a general manager evaluating and investing in early stage startups in Southeast Asia and the U.S., according to Forbes .

“Previously, Lam was one of earliest members of Vietnam-based enterprise software platform Base.vn, and worked as a universal banker for Citi in Hanoi,” reads her profile in the 30 Under 30 Asia list.

In the arts category, 23-year-old Chau, whose full name is Bui Thai Bao Chau, is honored as a Vietnamese model and fashionista with more than three million Instagram followers and roughly two million followers on Facebook.

In 2020, Chau clinched endorsement deals with Dior and Louis Vuitton.

She was also named the most stylish social media personality at the ELLE Style Awards 2019.

Forbes said its team of reporters and a panel of A-list judges selected the activists, entrepreneurs, scientists, and young leaders on the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia 2021 list from over 2,500 nominees as they are “unparalleled examples of determination, hard work and innovation.”

Thirty honorees make each of the ten categories — entertainment & sports; media, marketing & advertising; social impact; financial and venture capital; the arts; enterprise technology; consumer technology; retail & commerce; healthcare & science; and industrial manufacturing & energy.

The criteria for honorees include their demonstration of leadership, impact, potential of success, and the embodiment of the entrepreneurial spirit synonymous with Forbes .

“Other factors like innovation, disruption – and size and growth of their ventures in some categories – play a role in making the final decision,” the magazine said.

Last year, Vietnam had seven representatives in the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list.

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From left to right, Mai Ho, Tue Lam Le Han and Chau Bui, are listed in listed in the 2021 Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia.

Mai Ho and Le Han Tue Lam were named in the financial and venture capital category.

Tue Lam Le Han, aged 26, joined Seoul-based investment firm Nextrans in 2019 as a general manager evaluating and investing in early stage startups in Southeast Asia and the U.S.

Previously, she was one of earliest members of Viet Nam-based enterprise software platform Base.vn, and worked as a universal banker for Citi in the capital city of Ha Noi.

Meanwhile, Mai Ho, aged 29, joined Silicon Valley-based venture capital firm Hustle Fund in 2020 and over the past year led investments in Viet Nam-based audiobook app Fonos and DatBike, the first Vietnamese-made electric motorbike company.

Outside of Hustle, Ho manages her family office’s multimillion dollar portfolio of investments in healthcare and renewable energy.

Chau Bui, 23, was listed in the arts category.

According to Forbes, the 300 young people in this year’s list for 10 professions or fields were selected from more than 2,500 nominations and scrutinized by Forbes’ team of reporters, with a panel of A-list judges.

VGP