The global crisis has not ended and many companies are bearing risks of bankruptcy. However, with effective management and leadership, Sao Mai Group has devised a good strategy to overcome crisis and grow strongly; thus quickly becoming one of the leading business groups in Vietnam.
The economy shows positive signs in the early months of 2015 but not all of them are stable. According to Mr Truong Vinh Thanh, Deputy General Director of Sao Mai Group, in 2014, the economy had both of dark and light colours. According to him, the brightest spot is the recovery of the U.S. economy. However, the economies of China and Japan expose signs of slow growth, and even the risk of repeated recession.
Truong Vinh Thanh noted that compared with 2013, the economy of Vietnam in 2014 was much better. The year witnessed steady macroeconomic growth; low inflation rate that was kept at 2 percent; reduced interest rate; and recorded volume of commodity exports that reached VND150 billion. “This reflects good signs, particularly in the context the economy is still facing shortcomings of slow restructuring, low labour productivity and weak business performance with more than 67,000 businesses suspended,” said Mr Thanh.
It is evident that in the economic crisis of Vietnam and other countries, the businesses are facing challenges, but with the right strategies, they could overcome these challenges.
In reality, there are many businesses that blame recession for their poor business performance. Differently, Sao Mai Group is patient to seek for opportunities to overcome challenges and fix their problems. This is highlighted by solidarity of the staff and high responsibility of the business leaders. This is reflected in the statement that covers the full responsibility and sincerity of Le Thanh Thuan, President of Sao Mai Group, in his remark at the Spring meeting of the group in 2015. He did not hesitate to give apology to all employees for what the company has not done to improve and enhance the lives of workers in the context of the global crisis, although the salary of the workers of the Sao Mai Group is ranked top in An Giang province.
According to the business report of the Sao Mai Group, in 2014, company turnover reached VND4,120 billion (almost 20 percent up compared to 2013), profit after tax reached VND223 billion of 4 times that of 2013. Total equity of all companies in the Group is more than VND2,840 billion. The total value of assets transferred is worth at more than VND10 trillion. These are impressive figures in the difficult context.
The success of the Sao Mai Group is also reflected in many other respects. To cope with the economic downturn, many companies have downsized their businesses by dismissing many employees while the Sao Mai Group does the opposite. The group has continued to increase the number of employees; the company now has nearly 6,000 employees. Only in 2014, the group employed more than 2,300 workers, with hundreds holding bachelor degrees.
In addition, in recent years, Sao Mai Group has restructured their business and financial systems towards specialisation for its subsidiary companies and raised their capital to be less reliant on credit. In 2014, Sao Mai Group released its stocks successfully, collecting VND1,292 billion and increasing its chartered capital from VND1,548 billion at the end of 2013 to VND2,840 billion. This has helped the group become more active in the business activities and minimize risks. The group and its subsidiaries are proving their attractiveness and confidence in the financial markets.
In regard to corporate finance, Mr Thuan revealed that Sao Mai Group is currently working with a U.S. financial institution to invest in Sao Mai Group through a purchasing of their shares. The closing price of shares will be finalised soon if everything goes well. This will lead to an increasing amount of the capital of the group.
With strong ambition and financial capabilities, Sao Mai Group is getting a boost in investment activity. Only in 2014, the investment of the group accounted for more than VND600 billion. The investment focuses on real estate projects in provinces of An Giang, Dong Thap, Kien Giang, Ba Ria- Vung Tau, Thanh Hoa, and Hoa Binh. Other projects related to aquatic materials, seafood processing plant 2 and ancillary items for the fish oil refineries.
Notably, in 2014, Sao Mai Group launched its Ranee premium fish oil products. This is a special nutritious oil that is made from refined fish oil for cooking purposes. Despite its recent launching, Ranee has been recognised by consumers and supported by nutrition experts.
Not only known for its business performance, the Sao Mai Group contributes greatly to the state budget; the group also contributes to social activities. Particularly, in 2014, the group helped build up 7 charity houses. In addition, in the recent Lunar New Year, it spent VND1.5 billion supporting poor households in An Giang, Dong Thap, Kien Giang, Tien Giang, Vinh Long, Can Tho, Ca Mau and Bac Lieu. Sao Mai Group also spent VND3.1 billion decorating two cities- Long Xuyen and Cao Lanh, and provided many other meaningful activities to the community.
In 2014, the group was awarded for being top 50 fastest growing businesses in Vietnam and top 500 largest enterprises of Vietnam, as well as top 1000 largest tax payers.
The success and achievement of the Sao Mai Group is recognised by the community. Mr Ho Viet Hiep, Vice Chairman of An Giang Provincial People’s Committee, in the early Spring Festival 2015 meeting of the Sao Mai Group, said that An Giang province is pleased and proud to have a business like Sao Mai Group. He affirmed that the company has pioneered the application of new technologies and the introduction of useful products from local strengths. He expressed his thanks to the group for their incalculable contribution to the province in recent years.
Quoc Hung
Vietnamese
