Interview from Guillaume – Move To Asia: Open and Run a Hospitality Business in Vietnam
2022 is the year where Vietnam has finally reopened its borders to international tourism following a step-by-step plan called “binh thuong moi” (the new normal) in order to safely reopen and safely welcome travelers back to Vietnam.
Within this context, Move To Asia is helping investors and entrepreneurs to find business opportunities in Vietnam. And the hospitality sector is back in motion after 2 years of inactivity.
That is how this interview is framed: sharing how to open and run a hospitality business in Vietnam and see how interesting it could be to invest in the tourism and hospitality sector in 2022 in Vietnam.
In this video:
- Moving to in Vietnam 10 years ago (2012) from France.
- DaBlend Hostel concept (my former business)
- Why tourism is a relevant business opportunity for 2022
- Lessons learned over 4 years running the business
- Offline versus Online for sales and marketing
- What would I do differently today.
I hope you enjoyed this video and that you could learn more about my experience as a hostel owner in Saigon.
The link of my article I mention in the video is here:
https://nicolasthanh.com/4-lessons-owning-a-hostel-in-vietnam-taught-me/
Thank you for reading until the end!
Every morning, after my meditation 🧘🏽and my breakfast ☕️, I sit at my desk for one hour and write answers to my own questions, as an entrepreneur ✍️. Then I publish it on this blog, hoping to help other entrepreneurs to find answers to their questions too. And this, no matter your “level”.
To participate, ask me questions on social medias @nicolasthanhg (click on the icons below). I may answer directly or write an article about it.
Now, you can also go back to the blog page and search for articles related to your scope of interest. 🔍
Have a good day,
Nicolas Thành
Hi there,
My business partner (Australian) and I (British) are developing a business plan with the aim of opening a hostel in Vietnam in 2025. Is this something you are open to consulting us on? We need consulting on Vietnam laws and regulations around foreigners opening businesses in the country and I saw an insightful Youtube video with you in it, so I’d love you to help.
please send me an email with information on how we can move forward.
Hi Alex,
Thank you for reaching out!
This is a great project. Do you know which province or city you wanted to open it in ?
My hostel was based in District 10, in Saigon. If you open it there, I know everyone that you would need to talk to in order to get the business up and running 😇.
If not, in any case, it is important that you integrate in your plans that there are nationwide laws and then the regional if not “local” application of it. Which means two steps in the process of making the activity legal.
If you guys do not speak Vietnamese, I highly recommend hiring a Vietnamese assistant / admin for helping you with the setup and translation. I could help you find such an important employee as well.
As you have noticed, I am not a lawyer, but can definitely integrate a referral service along with my consulting service. What it would translate to is:
– assisting you in researching the right lawyer / the right administration, policemen, etc.
– assisting you in those meetings to control if the outcomes will be in your favor. Your assistant might help for translation and help navigate a bit, but she/he will not be able to proactively suggest solutions in your favor.
Now, my major expertise and what helped my hostel to become number one in Saigon was the whole online marketing strategy I put in place to be the first place travelers would see when searching for a hostel to stay during their trip preparation. If that is something you need help with, even just a simple consultation, let me know.
Another important information, I am in the process of moving to Danang after 12 years spent in Saigon. And still have some consulting ongoing in Saigon at the moment. So I am scheduling monthly trips to Saigon. If you are around and want to meet, let me know. We can also meet online, with pleasure.
Thanks for reaching out and looking forward to continuing the conversation with you, and in any case, good luck in such a great project.