A traditional market in HCM City. The city aims to develop shopping tourism to attract more tourists. -- Photo from divui.com

The economic hub and top destination for foreign tourists in Việt Nam has been focusing on developing shopping tourism in recent years.

In 2019 its People’s Committee tasked the HCM City Institute for Development Studies with instituting a project to establish the city as a prominent trade and shopping centre in the region.

The institute’s data at that time showed that commerce accounted for the largest proportion of the city's economy structure but was not being efficiently utilised.

To accelerate economic growth, discussions have centred on transforming HCM City into a regional and national shopping and commerce hub by 2025 and a regional hub by 2030.

To achieve these goals, comprehensive solutions are needed.

While HCM City possesses great potential for developing shopping tourism, the experts said the existing offerings do not fully capitalise on this potential.

The famous Bến Thành Market predominantly offers products of questionable quality, while other shopping areas operate discretely and without cohesion, leading to a fragmented shopping experience.

The city also boasts luxury brand-lined streets like Đồng Khởi, various shopping streets ranging from low- to mid-tier like Nguyễn Trãi, and hundreds of shopping outlets with tourism-standard signage offering VAT refunds to tourists.

However, each segment operates independently without proper organisation.

A foreign visitor was quoted as saying by znews.vn that this was her second trip to HCM City for a culinary and shopping experience.

The first was in February 2023 when she brought a large suitcase to Việt Nam to shop for unique fashion items, but the weight of her luggage did not increase on the return trip.

Vietnamese local fashion brands attract her with their youthful designs, but there has been little change in the shopping options compared to last year, she said.

The prices are low, but the segments are not diverse. For example, shopping malls only sell high-end cosmetics while she wanted to buy drugstore brands, she said.

Many other visitors have made similar comments, adding that shopping areas are spread far and wide, making travelling between them inconvenient.

Reports from the city Department of Tourism underline the modest contribution shopping activities make to tourism revenues and the substantial room there is for improvement.

The department said the revenues in the first half of the year are estimated at VNĐ92.6 trillion (US$366 million) and 2.6 million foreign tourists came to the city.

Shopping is considered a promising tourism product, but the spending by international visitors in the city remains modest.

The amount spent by international tourists on shopping accounts for 17 per cent of HCM City’s total tourism revenues.

In comparison, it is 23 per cent for Bangkok, 32 per cent for Kuala Lumpur, and 28 per cent for Singapore.

How to become a shopping hub?

Lessons from neighbouring countries and developed markets in Asia are instructive for the city to foster shopping tourism.

To become a shopping hub, experts recommend improving product variety, synchronising shopping destinations and adopting successful strategies from leading shopping tourism destinations like South Korea and Hong Kong.

Hyejin Park, a lecturer in tourism and hospitality management at RMIT University Vietnam, told the media that shopping is entertainment that brings significant revenues to the tourism industry, and the shopping experience also influences tourists' choice of destinations.

These lessons have clearly been drawn by big markets like Hong Kong and South Korea with their famous shopping centres like The Landmark and Coex Mall.

These iconic shopping destinations not only gather many international brands but also provide entertainment and convenience for both local and international customers.

The experts also said HCM City could leverage its strengths such as vibrant street markets and traditional shopping areas by revamping their offerings and sales methods while preserving their architectural heritage.

This approach would offer a variety of shopping experiences, catering to different preferences and budgets, they said.

Businesses and retailers also need to understand the differences between various international customers to develop suitable products.

For instance, tourists from Asian countries like China, South Korea and Japan tend to buy cosmetics and high-end fashion items when visiting HCM City because they are often more affordable than in their home countries.

Opening duty-free stores and large complexes that combine shopping with cultural, amusement and dining experiences are also vital strategies in increasing visitor spending and lengths of stay.

Identifying shopping tourism as a main revenue source for the city's tourism industry, the department is co-ordinating efforts to find suitable areas for it and will come up with mechanisms and policies to incentivise investments in it by businesses.

That areas would be specifically identified for developing large-scale shopping centres, factory outlets and underground duty-free stores.

HCM City aims to establish itself as a premier shopping destination and enhance its tourism industry, the department affirmed. -- VNS