CEO Mai Kieu Lien: 2 years of comprehensive transformation, 'Vinamilk quality' remains unchanged

“No compromise on quality”

Established in 1976, on the basis of taking over abandoned factories after the liberation day, Vinamilk 's development process is closely linked to each step of the country's transformation. Ms. Lien said that throughout the journey of nearly half a century, the enterprise has changed and adjusted many times to adapt to the market mechanism as well as increase its competitiveness both domestically and internationally.

The repositioning campaign starting in 2023 is Vinamilk's most fundamental and comprehensive innovation in the past 50 years. In addition to changes from within the organization such as digital transformation, management methods, production methods, etc., consumers can easily recognize the image of a youthful and fun Vinamilk through brand design, packaging, user approach, etc. This has also been clearly demonstrated in business results, when the company reported 2024 revenue reaching a new record of 61,824 billion VND.

Ms. Mai Kieu Lien - General Director of Vinamilk shared the strategy behind the decision to reposition starting from 2023. Photo: Vietsuccess

In that innovation, the female leader said, there is only one factor that remains unchanged and will never change, which is that Vinamilk always puts quality first, and nothing can be compromised. She cited that instead of applying Codex (a common set of international standards), the pioneering enterprise produces according to strict standards from the EU, with more stringent regulations and requiring higher compliance costs.

Vinamilk owns 16 domestic and foreign dairy factories, meeting the world's highest standards of quality in food production. Photo: Vinamilk

Or with fresh milk as raw material - an important factor determining the input quality of the product, Vinamilk is the pioneer enterprise in Vietnam to initiate the "white revolution", leading in dairy farming and forming a chain of 15 modern dairy farms with the capacity to supply more than 1.1 million liters of fresh milk per day.

“Vinamilk’s operating principle for nearly 50 years has been to do what is best. Because we always think that food is a product that directly affects human health, once it enters the body, there is no chance of correction. Therefore, we must ensure the best quality,” Ms. Lien affirmed.

Vinamilk's system of 15 farms all meet leading standards of good agricultural practices such as EU Organic, Global SLP and aim to be carbon neutral by 2050. Photo: Vinamilk

This philosophy of the powerful Asian female CEO has made Vinamilk the 6th most valuable brand globally and continues to be the core of the business for the future journey.

“Creativity in the dairy industry is limitless”

To provide everyone and every household with access to high-quality nutritional products, the leading enterprise in the domestic dairy industry has developed a portfolio of nearly 300 products, covering all ages, nutritional needs and even specialized functional groups... To meet the increasingly "personalized" needs of consumers, in 2024, Vinamilk will continue to launch 25 completely new products, setting unprecedented standards in Vietnam.

Not only bringing a fun, youthful image, Vinamilk products are also constantly innovating and improving quality to meet the increasingly personalized needs of consumers. Photo: Vinamilk

For the first time, the Vietnamese milk market has introduced dual vacuum technology to create “fresh lock” milk products (retaining the original fresh taste); or ultra-microfiltration technology to create a high-protein - high-calcium - low-fat and lactose-free product line, meeting the needs of customers who need to supplement high protein and calcium but are lactose intolerant. Plant-based yogurt products are completely fermented from nut milk, targeting vegan customers. Or protein-rich nutritional products for people who want to control their weight and maintain their body…

Along with diversifying product creation to meet increasingly specialized needs, the innovation of the dairy giant is also clearly demonstrated through its bold efforts to bring the world's leading technologies to Vietnam. Photo: Vinamilk

“With a market of more than 100 million people in Vietnam and 63 exporting countries, the demand for milk consumption is extremely diverse. If we focus on personalizing user needs, we can create many different product lines. The room for creativity in the dairy industry is unlimited,” Ms. Lien shared more about future prospects.

Accompanying Vinamilk for nearly 50 years, including 33 years as captain, Ms. Mai Kieu Lien is the one who laid the foundation for the Vietnamese dairy industry, leading Vinamilk from zero to 36th place in the list of the 50 largest dairy companies in the world in terms of revenue. In 2024, she was honored by Fortune Magazine (USA) in the list of 100 most powerful women in Asia and was the only female entrepreneur honored by Forbes Vietnam with the "Lifetime Achievement" award; honored to be awarded the Third Class Independence Medal by the Party and State for her contributions to the development of the country.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/ceo-mai-kieu-lien-2-nam-chuyen-minh-toan-dien-chat-vinamilk-khong-thay-doi-2389409.html