Late in the afternoon, Ms. Nguyen Thi Nga (8X generation) opened the cupboard to take out orange cookies to share with the company employees. The whole room had many people of the same generation as her, so everyone was quite surprised and delighted with these cookies. The younger group was surprised because they had never eaten them before.
For a long time, people have been familiar with imported iron boxed cakes, the orange cake suddenly awakened the whole sky of childhood. For people of the 8x generation, orange cookies were a school food because of their sweet taste and orange aroma. Each package of cake sold for 2,000 VND at that time.
“I used to bring this cake to school to eat. I still remember the sweet aroma of this cake. Now I get to eat it again,” shared an employee in Ms. Nga’s office.
Currently, orange cookies are a "specialty" sold widely on e-commerce sites. Many people, including the 2K generation, also enjoy this unique cake from the "old folks'" time.
These orange cookies are branded by Hai Chau, a decades-old company.
Hai Chau Confectionery Joint Stock Company, formerly Hai Chau Confectionery Factory, was established on September 2, 1965. In 1994, the Factory changed its name to Hai Chau Confectionery Company.
The dominance of foreign confectionery has greatly affected domestic confectionery companies such as Hai Chau. However, the company still has its own direction to maintain its position in the minds of consumers.
In addition to orange cookies, Hai Chau dry food and seasoning powder have also been associated with many generations of families until now.
In 2022, the output of food spices reached 22,653 tons, and of various cakes 6,211 tons. Hai Chau's revenue reached 794.7 billion VND, and pre-tax profit was 14.57 billion VND.
Mr. Nguyen Van Hoi, Chairman of the Board of Directors, said that to improve Hai Chau's competitiveness, it is based on beautiful, modern products, low cost, and prices suitable for many segments.
In particular, the strategic products are seasoning powder, dry food, biscuits, cream, and candy. In addition, Hai Chau also has new strategic products such as moon cakes, snacks, jelly, and soft drinks.
In 2023, Hai Chau sets a revenue target of VND 931.24 billion. Pre-tax profit is VND 16.8 billion.
Just like Hai Chau orange cakes, Hai Ha sponge cakes are also associated with many generations. At that time, soft sponge cakes with fragrant fruit flavor attracted children as well as adults. Due to economic conditions, they were not always available to eat, so the flavor of these cakes is deeply imprinted in the minds of many people until now.
Hai Ha is also a business that has gone through many stages of development in Vietnam, from the war, to the subsidy years, and then the period of economic renovation in Vietnam. The Hai Ha confectionery brand has been deeply imprinted in the memories of many generations of Vietnamese people.
Established in 1960, Hai Ha Confectionery has a long history of development. In 2003, the company was equitized according to the decision dated November 14, 2003 of the Ministry of Industry.
Like many long-standing confectionery brands in Vietnam, Hai Ha also faces great competition in the market when international confectionery giants penetrate the domestic market. However, Hai Ha still takes advantage of being a long-standing brand, while changing its business strategy, and product designs are increasingly eye-catching, making it easier for consumers to recognize.
In 2022, Hai Ha Confectionery's revenue increased by 30% over the same period, reaching more than 1,500 billion VND. Profit after tax increased by nearly 10% compared to 2021, reaching more than 52.7 billion VND.
When talking about sweets, we cannot help but mention the “legendary” Huu Nghi jam box, which has been associated with many generations from the 80s and earlier. Every Tet holiday, a pentagonal jam box with a red cover, printed with the image of the Three Gods, carefully packaged in a cellophane bag is indispensable in every house.
Huu Nghi Food Joint Stock Company (Huu Nghi Food), formerly known as “Huu Nghi Premium Confectionery Factory”, was established and put into operation on December 8, 1997. In 2006, Huu Nghi Premium Confectionery Factory was equitized.
Three years later, to match the development orientation in the new period, the company changed its name to “Huu Nghi Food Joint Stock Company”. This was an important turning point for Huu Nghi to “live well” until now.
By the end of 2022, Huu Nghi's sales revenue reached VND 2,114 billion, up 21.9% over the same period. Profit after tax reached more than VND 120 billion, up 130% compared to profit in 2021.
Not only domestically, Huu Nghi Food confectionery products are present in more than 10 countries around the world, including large and potential markets such as: China, Korea, Japan...
In the food sector, another name is Colusa - Miliket Food Joint Stock Company (CMN), owner of the famous 2-shrimp noodle brand. In 2022, Miliket had a revenue of 631 billion VND, an increase of 10% over the same period. This is the highest revenue ever, with an average daily revenue of 1.75 billion VND.
According to Miliket, more than 93% of revenue comes from domestic sources, with main products such as instant noodles, porridge, rice noodles, and instant pho.
Miliket was present in the market before 1975 and almost monopolized the market for a long time. In terms of structure, Miliket has 3 shareholders holding 71% of charter capital, of which two state-owned shareholders are the Southern Food Corporation and the Vietnam Tobacco Corporation.
Standing firm against the wave of acquisitions
Not only gaining market share, Vietnamese confectionery is also struggling with the wave of acquisitions by foreign giants. For example, the story of Bibica Joint Stock Company (BBC). Established in 1999, with the original name of Bien Hoa Confectionery Joint Stock Company, Bibica is a business specializing in producing Vietnamese-branded confectionery with many famous products on the market, imported into large supermarkets.
In 2007, looking at the prospects, Korean giant Lotte was willing to pay a high price to own Bibica shares. At that time, the price on the stock exchange was 70,000 - 80,000 VND/share, Lotte agreed to buy at 110,000 VND/share to become a major shareholder at Bibica.
Bibica's advantages are a wide distribution network, factory system, good infrastructure, and a prominent brand in the minds of consumers.
(Chart: Ngoc Cuong)
On the contrary, Bibica wants a partner with strong finance, industry knowledge, and a leading international brand in the Asian region, which can help elevate its business.
Lotte caused Bibica to stagger for a while when the Korean company intended to take over. Bibica's board of directors did not agree with the increasingly close "bond" with Lotte.
After repeatedly refusing Lotte, Bibica finally agreed to be acquired by PAN, a Vietnamese company. This company owned over 50% of Bibica shares in 2017 and over 98% in 2022.
After those storms, Bibica changed its business strategy and expanded its market share. In 2022, the company's products were sold at 160 distributors to 150,000 points of sale in 63 provinces and cities nationwide.
The rich products also reach many important international markets (more than 15 countries) including Thailand, Philippines, Singapore, Korea, Japan, China, Mongolia, ... with export market revenue growing more than 30% compared to 2021.
In 2022, Bibica had exceptionally high revenue and profit. Accordingly, revenue for the whole year of 2022 reached 1,612 billion VND, an increase of 48% over the same period. Profit increased by 761% compared to 2021, reaching more than 192 billion VND. Many of Bibica's brands are competitive enough with foreign confectionery brands.
On the stock market, shares of Vietnamese confectionery companies are always at a high level. Bibica's BBC shares have also remained at a high level over the past 3 years with a fluctuation range of about 15%, always at 60,000 VND/share. BBC shares peaked at over 70,000 VND/share in early June 2022.
The market price of Hai Ha Confectionery's HHC shares remains high, above VND 75,000/share. At the end of 2022 and the beginning of 2023, HHC shares will always be above VND 90,000/share.
Or like HNF stock of Huu Nghi Confectionery has also been stable around 25,000 VND/share for the past 3 years. This stock once jumped to a peak of 115,000 VND/share on February 1, 2019.
Meanwhile, Miliket has just announced information on 2022 cash dividend payment of up to 26%, equivalent to each share receiving 2,600 VND.
It can be seen that the major Vietnamese confectionery brands have persevered through decades of market fluctuations to survive and stand firm in the face of fierce competition from imported goods.
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