Vietnam has five representatives in the 2020 list of top 50 retailers in Southeast Asia compiled by British market research firm Euromonitor International.

One of Mobile World outlets on Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Street, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City. Photo courtesy of Mobile World.

Mobile World, a major retailer of smartphones and electronics, was eighth with estimated revenues of $5.5 billion, according to the report released last weekend, which was based on estimated value of online and offline sales last year.

In Asia, it was the 59th largest and Vietnam’s only representative, said the report, which compiles data annually from 15 economies in the Asia-Pacific.

Supermarket chain Saigon Co.op was 20th in Southeast Asia with estimated revenues of $1.3 billion.

Vietnam's largest private conglomerate, Vingroup, whose retail is a major asset in the company's commercial ecosystem, was 31st with $805 million. 

FPT Retail, Vietnam’s second largest electronics retailer, was 32nd with revenues of $759 million while electronics chain Nguyen Kim was 50th ($463 million).

"Vietnam is seeing ongoing urbanization and evolving demand from young urban consumers which is driving strong growth in modern retailing channels, such as convenience stores, as well as the rapid expansion of e-commerce," the report said.

"However, a significant majority of the population continues to reside in rural areas with low levels of disposable income and low population density, which are not conducive to the development of modern retailing formats. As a result, traditional channels, such as small independent grocers, retain an important role in the market."

Retail revenues rose by 12.7 percent last year to VND3,751 trillion ($161.6 billion).

Seven & I Holdings, the Japanese operator of the 7-Eleven convenience store chain, remained the largest retailer in Southeast Asia.

By Nguyen Quy