Why Vietnamese fashion brands thrive in the TikTok era

As shoppers grow weary of Chinese fast fashion, more sustainable Vietnamese brands – beloved by K-pop artists and Western celebrities alike – are exploding online, says Nhung Nguyen, a Ho Chi Minh City-based journalist who covers gender inequality, climate change, health and culture in Vietnam.

When Jennie of the South Korean girl group Blackpink posted photos of her new eyewear collection, her fans noticed the singer’s gray mini dress. They “scoured” the internet and discovered the lace-trimmed dress by Vietnamese brand L Seoul, nearly crashing the brand’s website with orders, cementing the dress’ reputation as a favorite among K-pop stars and fashionistas alike.

The “Jennie Effect” has attracted hundreds of new fans to the Ho Chi Minh City-based brand, which is making waves on social media. Hashtags like #VietnamFashion and #VietnamFashion on Instagram and TikTok attract tens of thousands of engaging posts and millions of likes, in contrast to the growing distaste for Chinese fast fashion brands like Shein and Temu.

“This trend started about two years ago,” said Phan Hoang Hanh, a tailor in Hanoi. “I think it has a lot to do with the many viral TikTok videos of tourists showing off their tailored clothes from Vietnam.” The 25-year-old said she posts photos and videos of her brand Phoebe Vietnam on Instagram and TikTok and receives more than a dozen overseas orders each month — from the US to Qatar. She said they account for a third of her customers, keeping her workshop’s five tailors busy.

Vietnam has long been a manufacturing hub for global apparel brands including Nike, H&M and Uniqlo. The “Made in Vietnam” label sends curious tourists to tailor shops in the alleys of Hanoi and Hoi An to buy linen suits and silk dresses for a fraction of what they would pay back home. Word of the tailors’ and tailors’ reputation for quality and craftsmanship has slowly spread online, and in recent years young designers such as Cong Tri, Le Thanh Hoa and Phuong My have dressed stars such as Beyoncé, Rihanna and Katy Perry.

Celebrity attention has paved the way for Vietnamese brands such as Fanci Club, La Lune, Bupbes, L Seoul. The affordable, luxury designs of Vietnamese brands have been embraced by young KOLs (key opinion leaders) such as Bella Hadid, Doja Cat and Olivia Rodrigo, as well as K-pop bands Blackpink and Aespa. These endorsements have fueled a growing interest in Vietnamese fashion, according to Rebecca Morris, a lecturer in fashion at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology Vietnam.

“A lot of Vietnamese brands have exploded in the last few years; it really shows the power of social media,” Morris says. “ The days where people just want to wear big designer brands are long gone. Young shoppers want to stand out, maybe wear something from a lesser-known brand – something a little more unique, so they can feel like they’ve discovered something that maybe not everyone knows about.”

Vietnamese fashion has caught the attention of Jovanka Yaputra, an Indonesian fashion student in California who follows Gabrielle on TikTok. She stopped shopping at Zara and H&M two years ago because their $50 shirts were made of polyester, which “wasn’t worth it anymore.”

Then photos on Instagram of a rose necklace made by Fanci Club caught her eye. The 25-year-old quickly searched for Vietnamese fashion brands on social media and found that some small Vietnamese labels used natural fabrics like cotton and linen that were more durable, had a lower environmental impact and were affordable. She placed her first order with Red Bean earlier this year.

“I was impressed with the fit. You could tell the quality was good,” Jovanka said, describing a white lace minidress and crop top with a pleated skirt. She is currently awaiting an order from another Vietnamese label, Shu Shi. “The big fast fashion brands are gone,” she said in a TikTok post, advising her more than 120,000 followers to check out Southeast Asian brands instead.

Filipino actress and TikTok influencer Maronne Cruz believes that buying from small Vietnamese brands and tailors is a safer and better choice. “I like that it’s locally made,” she said, adding that small businesses don’t produce “unhealthy quantities that are harmful to the environment.”

Cruz also discovered Vietnamese fashion online. Inspired, she visited Ho Chi Minh City last year to shop, then shared her “short trip” with her 100,000 TikTok followers. Posing in Liniss’s outfits, she praised the fabrics, details, and flattering cuts, wondering why more people weren’t talking about Vietnamese fashion.

Cruz said the post went viral, prompting her to write more content about Vietnamese fashion. Her followers messaged her asking about the brands she featured. “I got comments saying, ‘My cart is full of all these brands because of you,’ and ‘I booked a flight to Vietnam because of your video,’” she said.

To cater to the growing number of overseas customers, several Vietnamese brands have made their presence felt on major Southeast Asian e-commerce sites such as Shopee and Lazada. L Seoul is opening a store in Bangkok for Thai customers and is eyeing Dubai. Less than a year after receiving its first international order, about 60% of the brand’s customers are now outside Vietnam.

Despite their rapid growth, Vietnamese brands are still nowhere near the level of China’s fast fashion giants. Shein reportedly had more than $30 billion in revenue last year and is considering a London listing. By comparison, Vietnam’s e-commerce fashion industry will be worth about $3 billion this year, according to Statista estimates.

Phan Hoang Hanh’s aspirations for Phoebe Vietnam are modest. She says she eventually wants to open a small store, but first, she wants to help popularize Vietnamese fashion. “I want more foreigners to know about the quality of Vietnamese fashion, from craftsmanship, design to products,” says Phan Hoang Hanh.

According to Morris, staying small can be an advantage for Vietnamese fashion brands. “I don’t think we really want to see a Vietnamese version of Shein,” she said. “I think we can create our own version, which is accessible, not necessarily cheap, but sustainable.”

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/ly-do-cac-thuong-hieu-thoi-trang-viet-phat-trien-manh-trong-ky-nguyen-tiktok-274757.html