Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - The local retail market is forecast to grow at adouble-digit rate in 2021, so domestic retailers have rushed to open new storesacross the country to expand their market share since the beginning of the year.

Earlierthis week, Finelife - the high-end supermarket system of Saigon Co.op - openedits fourth store in Ho Chi Minh City’s District 7. The store, named FinelifeSupermarket Urban Hill, stocks more than 17,000 local and imported organicproducts like fresh and processed foods, cosmetics, deli foods, fruits,vegetables, beverages and more.

FinelifeSupermarket Urban Hill is the first high-end supermarket in Vietnam to useautomatic e-label technology and is also the first local supermarket tohave self-checkout counters.

Earlierin January, Saigon Co.op said it launched new Co.op Food stores in Phu Yen,Soc Trang, Can Tho and Ca Mau provinces.

By2025, Saigon Co.op plans to expand its network to at least 2,000stores with priority given to improving the investment efficiency of Co.opmartstores and Co.op Food stores as well as on developinglarge-scale outlets to sharpen its competitiveness, congthuong.vn quotedNguyen Anh Duc, General Director of Saigon Co.op, as saying.

Inthe short term, Saigon Co.op is working to expand its market share to between43 percent and 45 percent from the current 41 percent, Duc told the onlinenewspaper.

Anotherretail giant, Mobile World Investment Joint Stock Company (MWG) which owns the DienMay Xanh and Bach Hoa Xanh retail chains, alsoopened a number of new Dien May Xanh  stores in January.

Bythe end of 2021, MWG aimed to raise the number of Dien May Xanh  stores to 1,000 nationwide and reach revenueof 5 trillion VND, 10 times higher than 2020’s figure. The firm hopes to have1,200 Dien May Xanh  stores one yearlater, with revenue 30 times higher than that of 2020 to 15 trillion VND andaccounting for 60 percent of the electronics retail market share.

Alongwith Dien May Xanh  outlets, MWGis also striving to have more than 500 newly-opened and upgraded Bach HoaXanh stores by the end of 2021. Previously in 2020, it opened 711 new outlets,bringing the number of these stores up to 1,719. The stores last yearrecorded a combined revenue of 21.26 trillion VND in 2020, double that of 2019 andcontributing 19.6 percent of the total revenue of MWG.

Fiercercompetition from foreign rivals

Accordingto Vietcombank Securities (VCBS), the domestic retail market will reboundstrongly in the second quarter of this year with a growth rate of 14.5 percent.

However,local retailers face fiercer competition from foreign rivals as manyforeign retail brands have entered the Vietnamese market in recent years.

NguyenAnh Duc from Saigon Co.op said his firm would use digital transformation tobetter adapt to changes in the market and local consumer behaviour. Also, itwill enhance connections with localities nationwide and in overseas countries,he said, adding that these connections are hoped to ensure Vietnamese productscontinued to be the mainstay of the nation’s economy.

Meanwhile,Nguyen Dang Quang, chairman of Masan Group, told congthuong.vn thatMasan planned to turn VinCommerce from a pure shopping point of sale into aplatform serving essential needs with essential goods and services, accountingfor more than 50 percent of spending on consumer goods, including fast-movingconsumer goods, fresh food, financial services and added value services. Thiswas Masan's goal when it decided to expand into the retail sector.

ForMWG, it will still focus on the handsets, electronics and essential consumerfoods through a chain of small retail stores– a core strength that has helpedthe firm grow strongly in recent years.

Tradeexperts said although the COVID-19 pandemic had negative effects, it alsomotivated Vietnamese retailers to improve their abilities and be ready to copewith harsher competition as the country has deeply integrated into the globalmarket./.