Bidrico: Success from Understanding Consumer Thinking

 

After years of investment in products, equipment and technological innovation for quality standard perfection, Bidrico now has a world-standard large-scale beverage factory in Vietnam. The quality of Bidrico’s products is no longer inferior to the best products on the domestic and foreign markets.

 

Although the economy is showing signs of recovery in 2013, it remains very tough for companies because consumer demand shrinks. After the race in distribution channel expansion, many beverage companies were weakened by slowing sales. However, Bidrico is different. With its good anticipation of market outlook and understanding of consumer demands, we have worked out appropriate development strategies. Since the very beginning of 2013, knowing that consumers are very interested in promotions, we actively launched promotional strategies to boost sales. Therefore, since the start of this year when many businesses were struggling with hardships caused by slow sales, Bidrico’s sales remained very good and stable. Especially in the rural market, as farmers' incomes from agricultural products like rice and potatoes remained stable and were less affected by economic downturn, consumption was still very good and not as hard-hit as in cities. In the first six months of 2013, Bidrico’s sales still expanded 6-12 percent in the first half of 2013, from a year earlier.

 

Certainly, pricing strategy has been Bidrico’s goal in the past 20 years. Bidrico’s product strengths are affordable price, good quality, food hygiene and safety. Bidrico can deliver this because we set pricing as a long-term strategy. Instead of raising prices, which may deprive low-income consumers of the opportunity to use Bidrico products, especially rural consumers, we have set very strict rules to reduce storage costs, minimise losses in production, distribution, circulation, and keep inventories at a minimum reasonable level. We pay special attention to minimising losses in production because this stage usually causes the most losses. We have divided production into small stages and studied causes of losses to seek the best solutions. And, we are successful with this new direction. Bidrico’s product inventories are always at a minimum reasonable level; therefore, we can introduce the best products to the market at reasonable prices.

 

Besides, Bidrico established entrepots to make rapid delivery to consumers and facilitate the company’s sales.

 

Right from our inception, we have chosen the rural market as the hinterland to reach out the open world. For that reason, Bidrico’s product prices are always affordable for consumers there. It is conventional wisdom that a product cannot be both high quality and cheap, but this leading policy of Bidrico makes the impossible possible. With a reasonable pricing policy, we not only attract consumers in the rural area, but also make current users of high-grade products rethink. And, people who are familiar with cheap products also have to rethink, why do they not have similar products to Bidrico with a similar price? 

 

Another advantage we have over foreign competitors is our understanding of Vietnamese consumers and Vietnamese culture.

 

With a reasonable pricing strategy and insightful understanding of Vietnamese consumers and market, Bidrico’s products have reached all 63 provinces and cities across the country. Our sales in the countryside account for 70 percent.

 

Being fully aware that health standards come above all else, after 20 years of continuous investment and technological innovation, the company has proactively applied advanced international quality management standards and processes like ISO9001:2008, HACCP and CGMP and international standard certifications applied by Europe and the United States such as FDA, FCE and SID to its soft drink products. Especially, Bidrico-branded bird nest drink is the only Vietnamese product to meet all three standards of FDA, FCE and SID applied on imports to the US where requirements are the most stringent in the world.

 

Bidrico made really long strides in 2012. We invited experts to inspect equipment and technology as well as advise us on investment for additional equipment and machinery to guarantee export standards. In addition, we always strictly adhere to environmental food safety and hygiene regulations, and avoid scandals about product quality.

 

Along with investments for technological and machinery modernisation for product quality improvement, developing new products for human health is a key strategy for Bidrico. We currently have best-selling products on the market like carbonated soft drinks, non-carbonated soft drinks, Yobi pasteurised yogurt, A*nuta fruit juice, Red Tiger energy drinks, purified drinking water, bird’s nest drink, winter melon tea, fruit jelly, ginseng drinks, carbonated energy drinks with kiwi-lime flavour, strawberry and synthetic fruit flavour.

 

I see the M&A trend is quite common in ASEAN countries in general and Vietnam in particular. This suggests that domestic enterprises are in extreme difficulty and may be forced to retreat from the market at any time.

 

Before this reality, Bidrico has planned suitable development orientations as well as solutions to stabilise and maintain business, like making the second base salary adjustment in 2013, and reducing and rationalising production costs. Besides, we attach much importance to modernising machinery and equipment systems to boost productivity and output to meet the market demand. Since the start of 2013, the company has spent some US$1 million to upgrade machinery and equipment, scaling up packaging facilities, building a new automatic drink pouring line and a bird’s nest drink pouring line with an hourly output of 18,000 bottles. With these new investments, new products will meet the demand of domestic and foreign investors.

 

Obviously, the beverage market is having more strict requirements. In order to survive and develop, all companies in the industry must focus on improving product quality and ensure strict food hygiene and safety standards. Bidrico is no exception to that rule and we are fully capable of making and processing high-quality, safe and standard products for export to any market, the Japanese market in particular. Especially, with a unique direction firmly built in the past more than 20 years, Bidrico is willing to provide domestic and international customers with the best quality products at reasonable prices.

 

Currently, growing disputes between China and Japan have directed Japanese investment flows toward Vietnam. This really is a great opportunity for Bidrico in particular and food and drink companies in Vietnam in general to promote export in this fertile market. Bidrico looks forward to working with Japanese businesses in the spirit of mutual benefit. We are committed to bringing the best products to Japanese customers and gaining more trust from Japanese customers and partners.