Editor’s note: In 2025, as Vietnam celebrates 80 years of independence and nearly 40 years of economic reform, the nation enters a new era - one demanding bold breakthroughs and institutional transformation. Resolution 68 reaffirms that the private sector is a key driver of the economy and must be empowered to grow, integrate, and even lead in strategic areas.

In this spirit, VietNamNet presents a series highlighting standout Vietnamese enterprises: Giovanni (Nguyen Trong Phi) showcases mastery over the high-end fashion value chain; MK Group (Nguyen Trong Khang) expands from identity technology to defense industries; Le Gia fish sauce (Le Ngoc Anh) elevates traditional cuisine into a national brand; and 1Metrict (Phan Duc Trung) drives the development of Vietnam’s digital asset market.

Each story reflects the entrepreneurial spirit, creativity, and drive for integration. They also demonstrate how, with transparent and fair institutions, the private sector can become a vital engine of national growth.

In Vietnam’s textile and footwear industry - an export sector worth tens of billions of dollars annually but primarily focused on subcontracting - Nguyen Trong Phi and his Giovanni brand have taken a different path. It is a path of persistence, creativity, and pioneering vision, proving that Vietnamese people can create high-end, refined products capable of competing on the global fashion stage. Giovanni’s story is not just that of a business; it is a journey in pursuit of true value and national pride.

The first shirt and the painful falls

The Giovanni story began in a small room full of fabric samples one afternoon in 2006. Nguyen Trong Phi, an engineering graduate from Hanoi University of Science and Technology, held in his hands the first Giovanni-branded dress shirt.

It was made in Thailand from soft cotton, with a collar crafted to technical standards worthy of a luxury product, and uniformly stitched seams. "I couldn't sleep that night," he recalled. The feeling wasn’t just joy - it was a promise, a burning ambition to build a premium fashion brand for Vietnam.

Few know that before stepping into the world of fabric and fashion, Phi had worked in completely unrelated fields - transportation and construction. Those were bold, challenging times in the newly liberalized market economy.

A twist of fate came from his sister-in-law, who was in the silk business. Through her, Phi discovered a new world of materials, colors, and style. "It felt like I’d stepped into a maze. Fashion intrigued me not just because of the product but the stories behind it - how it touches human emotion," he said.

Opening a fashion store on Trang Tien Street in Hanoi felt like a natural move for someone eager to challenge himself. But it quickly delivered three hard lessons.

The first came from ignorance of intellectual property law: he was sued and forced to close his store for using an international brand name without authorization. The second blow came when he became an agent for a renowned brand - only for the new owner to demand he take down the sign, even sending people to threaten staff. The third setback involved a vague contract that led to his business rights being revoked.

"Those three falls were painful and unforgettable," he admitted. But they sparked a stronger resolve - to build his own brand. A friend working in market regulation gave him a piece of advice that stuck with him: "If you don’t want anyone to take it from you, build a strong enough brand yourself."

One day, he met a young lawyer who handed him a list of hundreds of potential names. When his eyes landed on “Giovanni,” everything clicked. The name had an Italian ring to it - elegant, short, and memorable. "I said it aloud and liked it instantly. It felt like the perfect puzzle piece for my dream," Phi recalled.

And so, “Giovanni” was born, with the ambition to become a symbol of luxury fashion in Vietnam.

Choosing the path of difference

Years later, while Vietnam’s textile and footwear industry remains among the world's top exporters with about USD 70 billion in annual revenue, Phi still wrestles with a contradiction: many Vietnamese firms remain stuck in subcontracting and haven’t climbed higher up the value chain.

“The greatest value lies in creativity, R&D, design, distribution, full supply chain control, and brand ownership - yet few Vietnamese firms have mastered these areas,” he said.

Textile-dyeing and leather-material industries have yet to match the scale of Vietnam’s garment and footwear production.

Faced with this reality, Phi believed that differentiation required a new model. “Subcontracting or CMT is the bottom rung. At the very least, we must move toward ODM - original design manufacturing - and then OBM - own brand manufacturing,” he emphasized. This demands control over R&D, innovation, and supply chain management.

That’s why Giovanni chose the uphill path - building a brand and controlling the supply chain for premium products. “Giovanni was born from a desire to prove that Vietnamese people can create exquisite, high-end products. This road is hard, but if no one dares take it, it will be a long time before Vietnam has a world-class fashion brand,” he said.

To realize this philosophy of difference, Giovanni invested heavily in 2016 to establish Eurolink, a high-end atelier that combines research, design, and production, modeled after traditional Italian tailoring and leather workshops.

Nguyen Huu Thanh, Eurolink’s director, was appointed as the guardian of each product’s soul. “Here, every shirt and wallet must tell a story of meticulousness and elegance,” Thanh said.

The early days were tough - massive investment, rigorous quality standards, and a workforce unfamiliar with Italian benchmarks. Entire production lines would halt just to discuss how to finish an edge or adjust thread tension. But this uncompromising persistence laid the foundation for Giovanni’s distinctiveness.

The workshop features four Ducop machines from Germany, each worth over USD 40,000, dedicated to luxury leatherwork. “It took nearly a week to master them, but once we did, you could feel the difference in every product,” a technician recalled.

Eurolink’s bag and wallet production involves 275 steps, of which 255 are fully manual. Just thinning the leather edges takes a skilled artisan hours of work. “It takes more than two days to make a wallet - but it can last decades,” Thanh explained.

Eurolink boasts many seasoned artisans. Some trained in Italy. Among them, Lai Thu Ha, a veteran sample developer with over 20 years at leading companies, including Italian joint ventures, is revered. Her philosophy: “Every stitch I sew is for myself to wear.”

Head of quality control, Xuan Anh, is famously strict. No defect, however minor, escapes scrutiny. “Sometimes I’d laugh through tears when a product had to be rejected,” Phi said. “But Xuan Anh would not let a single flawed item through.”

Xuan Anh recalled: “Once, I noticed a seam misaligned by less than 1 mm. Others might ignore it, but I had it redone. Giovanni customers pay for perfection.”

Giovanni shirts and polos stand out thanks to fabric quality and sewing technique. They use Supima and Mako cotton - two of the world’s most luxurious cotton types, making up just 1.5–2% of global output.

Coupled with advanced tailoring, Giovanni shirts are ultra-smooth, thin, and breathable - exuding understated elegance. In Southeast Asia, hardly any other brand uses such materials and methods - Vietnam’s Giovanni is the exception.

This spirit gives Giovanni’s products a level of refinement rarely found elsewhere.

All these technologies and people come together to embody the fashion philosophy of “Sprezzatura” - natural elegance, subtle yet sophisticated. “We don’t make clothes for people to show off, but to make them feel confident and comfortable - even in the most luxurious attire,” Phi said.

Bringing world-class quality to Vietnam

Phi’s journey to partner with European suppliers was nothing short of a mountain climb. Thousands of days traveling, driven by an unyielding passion for beauty.

His first milestone came at Milano Unica 2014. There, he met the head of a top Italian knitwear company. Their quick chat became a discussion on manufacturing philosophy. The Italian executive saw a kindred spirit in Phi. Since then, over 10,000 meters of luxury fabric have been shipped from Italy to Vietnam annually.

In 2015, at Premiere Vision Paris, while resting near booths of Thomas Mason, Albini, and Milior, Phi envisioned a line of European-standard trousers and chinos - “Made in Vietnam.” A few months later, Giovanni launched the collection, marrying Italian fabrics with Eurolink craftsmanship.

He also partnered with shoemakers in Montegranaro - Italy’s handmade shoe capital - building close ties with the Romit and Franceschetti families. “When they trust you, they don’t just sell you shoes - they share their secrets,” Phi said. Thanks to this trust, Giovanni’s shoes embody Italian spirit but are tailored to Vietnamese ergonomics.

To add a global signature, Giovanni collaborated with Tim Voegele-Downing, former Creative Director of Hermes and Louis Vuitton, to launch GiorGio - its youthful sub-brand.

Studio Francesco Turchi, known for working with Brioni, Valentino, and Gucci, handles Giovanni’s product development - preserving Italian flair while optimizing Vietnamese production.

Giovanni also brings experts and artisans from Italy and Hong Kong to Vietnam annually to train local craftsmen, ensuring every stitch reflects the utmost finesse.

Over a decade, from Milan to Montegranaro, Venice, Paris, and Florence, this journey has proven: a Vietnamese brand can go global - with enough patience, artistry, and respect for the hands that craft every product.

Carrying Vietnamese values to the world

On an autumn afternoon in Hanoi, Nguyen Trong Phi sat in his Giovanni office, sipping tea. Beside him lay new Spring-Summer designs and documents detailing target markets.

“I believe a Vietnamese brand can appear anywhere on the global luxury map - if we’re determined and strategic,” he said.

Giovanni’s goal in the coming years is to collaborate with global partners to open flagship stores in upscale shopping districts across major Asian cities. “It’s not just about opening a store abroad - it’s a litmus test of whether Giovanni can compete with global brands,” Phi said.

“When going global, we must never think of ourselves as ‘newcomers.’ We must enter the game confidently - in both quality and service. Globally, luxury brands often pair with auto brands - like Ferrari and Armani, Lamborghini and Versace, Porsche and Hugo Boss. Giovanni is ready to co-brand with Vietnamese companies in other sectors to jointly conquer international markets,” he added.

Looking 10 years ahead, Phi envisions Vietnam’s textile and footwear industry undergoing a transformation. While subcontracting will continue for exports and social stability, the long-term shift will be toward a sustainable, modern model focused on high-end segments and supply chain control. Vietnam can become a hub for luxury and near-luxury manufacturing - partially replacing China’s role.

As for Giovanni, the goal is to be among the first Vietnamese fashion brands to go global in the premium segment. “This is not just a business story - it’s a matter of national pride: Vietnam can innovate and create luxury goods,” he said.

Giovanni’s story shows that the issue isn’t how many billions in exports the fashion industry generates - but how much value stays in Vietnam. If we don’t move beyond subcontracting, we’ll remain at the bottom.

After nearly 40 years of reform, Vietnam has massive garment and footwear factories, skilled technical teams, and business leaders capable of fulfilling mega orders for international brands.

But what’s still missing is creativity and the courage to build a Vietnamese brand, owned by Vietnamese people, that reaches the global stage.

If pioneering companies dare to innovate, take control of supply chains, and produce high-end goods, Vietnam can enter the global arena with a new posture - not just as a subcontracting factory, but as a nation with its own fashion brands celebrating the intellect, creativity, and craftsmanship of the Vietnamese people.

Tu Giang & Lan Anh