Week 10-Uyen Ngo

Last summer when I arrived in Vietnam after just one year after my last visit, Ho Chi Minh City seemed like a completely new city. Despite knowing that it was already becoming quite Westernized from my last visit, it seemed like in 365 short days, it developed exponentially. That meant there were some districts that looked as if they were a part of a first world country. But on the other hand, there were districts that were filled with broken down buildings. I remember sitting in a Starbucks near home to study and it was overfilled with people for the majority of hours of the day. It made me wondering why people did not think about investing in Vietnam. Because the competition would not be as abundance as in the West, especially with leisure companies such as food and clothes. 

Then when I read Andrew Rowan's book and when we had our discussion, it made sense. I think it is definitely a two sided story. As Rowan mentioned, it is important to do 5 things: learn the local language, local business culture, the history, the pulse of the city and country, and opportunities. These "tips" where mentioned because, as he says "the opportunity costs are real-there is a lack of both professionalism and mentors underlying many interactions" (Rowan, 236). As a so called "Viet Kieu", I have to agree with many of the criticism that he mentions. As a country, Vietnam has to accept its flaws and attempt to fix it to increase its chances of moving forward. That being said, I also hope that investors and entrepreneurs recognize that it takes some adapting but when it is done, they will be in a position of a business that has a plentiful of opportunity. As long as both sides swallow their pride, there will be a business opportunity of a lifetime waiting. But if Vietnam never allows itself to admit its mistakes, it will put a cap on its developmental potential. 

Works Cited

Rowan, Andrew. Startup Vietnam: Innovation and Entrepreneurship in the Socialist Republic. GKTA Group, 2018.