Graduating from the Da Nang University of Science and Technology in 2017, Quyen became a mechanical engineer at an automobile manufacturing enterprise in Quang Nam for which he was paid VND10 million a month.

However, one year later, Quyen resigned from his post much to the surprise of family members and colleagues.  He was very busy with his work and regularly had to work overtime.

After reading about  hydroponic vegetable cultivation on terraces, he found it interesting and decided to begin vegetable cultivation on a leased premise in Da Nang.

However, just after four months, Quyen had to declared bankruptcy and returned to his hometown with empty hands. As a mechanical engineer, he decided to provide the service of designing farms for clean vegetable farming. However, his plan once more failed, while he incurred debts.

Quyen then borrowed capital from friends to grow medicinal herbs, but the business performance was bad, while the debt increased rapidly to VND200 million.

“At the moment of insolvency, I felt discouraged and doubted my capability,” Quyen recalled.

He then was wavering between two choices, either starting a new business again or applying for a job. He feared that he would fail once again if he started once more, and that he would not be able to find a job as he had not worked as a mechanical engineer for a long time.

However, opportunities always exist. He heard from a friend about agarwood and realized that this is a product with great potential for development. In TienPhuoc district, which is just 30 kilometers from his home, there are hundreds of farming households growing ‘do bau’, or agarwood trees (Aquilaria crassna), which generate natural fragrance when eaten by worms.

However, the first step was the hardest. As a rookie in the market, who had small capital, he accidentally bought several kilograms of fake goods. 

Only after he made products from the fake goods did he realize that he had been swindled out of money.

But he did not give up. After a long time of learning about agarwood, he had better understanding about it. Once he became more knowledgeable, he took a daring move of borrowing money from a bank to set up a 1000 sq m workshop to make products from agarwood.

Unlike other workshops which specialize in making ornamental agarwood, he decided to focus on making bracelets from natural agarwood. Thanks to the high quality of products and commitment on lifetime warranty, his products have quickly become well known and cemented their position in the market.

After making initial profits, he decided to buy more machines to produce agarwood incense and powder. In early 2024, he expanded the production scale by two times. The workshop generates tens of jobs for local young men. Each worker can earn VND9-12 million a month.

Ngo Thien Hoang, a hired worker, told VietNamNet that previously he worked for construction contractors and the jobs were unstable. Since he began working for Quyen three years ago, he has had a more stable job and satisfactory pay.

After four years of ‘exploiting gold inside tree trunks’, Quyen has successfully built a brand of his own which can bring revenue of VND500 million a month on average. After paying for expenses, he can pocket VND150 million.

Asked about distribution network, Quyen said that Quoc Quyen agarwood products are displayed at souvenir shops and tourism sites throughout the central region. He also sells products via social networks, so the income from agarwood products is stable. Many tourist groups visit his workshop to see the production process and buy products directly from the workshop.

“The initial success from the typical tree in my hometown has not only helped me change my life, but also created jobs for friends and neighborers, so I am happy about that,” Quyen said.

He said that he would continue to scale up production and make every effort to advertise the value of the products made of Quang Nam’s agarwood in Vietnam and other countries.

Ha Nam