ĐẠI HỌC QUỐC GIA HÀ NỘI KHOA QUẢN TRỊ VÀ KINH DOANH - NGUYỄN VIỆT DŨNG JAPANESE MARKET AND PENETRATING ABILITY OF VIETNAMESE COMPANIES THỊ TRƯỜNG NHẬT BẢN VÀ KHẢ NĂNG THÂM NHẬP CỦA CÁC CÔNG TY VIỆT NAM LUẬN VĂN THẠC SĨ QUẢN TRỊ KINH DOANH HÀ NỘI - 2018 ĐẠI HỌC QUỐC GIA HÀ NỘI KHOA QUẢN TRỊ VÀ KINH DOANH - NGUYỄN VIỆT DŨNG JAPANESE MARKET AND PENETRATING ABILITY OF VIETNAMESE COMPANIES THỊ TRƯỜNG NHẬT BẢN VÀ KHẢ NĂNG THÂM NHẬP CỦA CÁC CÔNG TY VIỆT NAM Chuyên ngành: Quản trị kinh doanh Mã số: 60 34 01 02 LUẬN VĂN THẠC SĨ QUẢN TRỊ KINH DOANH NGƯỜI HƯỚNG DẪN KHOA HỌC: PGS.TS NGUYỄN VIỆT KHÔI Hà Nội - 2018 DECLARATION The author confirms that the research outcome in the thesis is the result of author’s independent work during study and research period and it is not yet published in other’s research and article The other’s research result and documentation (extraction, table, figure, formula, and other document) used in the thesis are cited properly and the permission (if required) is given The author is responsible in front of the Thesis Assessment Committee, Hanoi School of Business and Management, and the laws for above-mentioned declaration Hà nội, Feb,2018 Author, Nguyen Viet Dung ACKNOWLEDMENT I have gained huge knowledge, skill and insights from my MBA course The course raised my capacity of administration and management up to the next level I am now very confident in my position of management I would like to extend my sincerest thanks and appreciation to all those who have made this thesis possible I woud like to express my great gratitude to my supervisor, Assoc Prof Nguyen Viet Khoi, for him useful comments, remarks and engagement during my process of doing this master thesis Sincere thanks are extended to the Hanoi School of Business & Management – Viet Nam National University, Ha Noi for equipping me with huge knowledge and skills through various interesting and practical subjects I also would like to thank my classmates for their friendship and reciprocal encouragement to make our class time unforgettable time Last but not least, during the process of writing the thesis, although the effort has been made, due to the limitations of the level of knowledge, practical experience, experience in scientific research, the thesis is inevitably limited I would like to receive the comments of researchers, teachers and readers so that the thesis is more complete both scientific and practical reason Hà nội, Feb, 2018 Author, Nguyen Viet Dung TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS i LIST OF TABLES ii LIST OF FIGURES iii INTRODUCTION CHAPTER THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK AND OVERVIEW OF JAPAN MARKET 1.1 Literature Review 1.2 THeory framework 1.2.1 The essence of the distribution system of goods 1.2.2 Classification of goods distribution system 1.2.3 Structure distribution system 10 1.2.4 The intermediate types of goods distribution 13 1.2.5 Organizing goods distribution system 15 1.3 japan economics overview and economics relationship with vietnam 20 1.3.1 The Japanese Economics 20 1.3.2 Trade relationship Vietnam – Japan 23 CHAPTER JAPAN MARKET CHARACTERISTIC OVERVIEW AND DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM CHARACTERISTIC 28 2.1 Japan Import - Export Overview and Japan Market Characteristic Overview28 2.1.1 Import – Export current stage 28 2.1.2 Japan Market Characteristic 29 2.2 Characteristic of distribution system in Japan market 46 2.2.1 Great number of small-scale retailing store 46 2.2.2 Various level of immediate retailers 48 2.2.3 Role and influence of general trading company on distribution system 48 2.2.4 The Keiretsu distribution system 49 2.2.5 “Special” Custom 49 2.3 Transforming trend in distribution system in Japan 51 2.3.1 The Use of Third Country 51 2.3.2 M&A between Immediate Wholesales 52 2.3.3 Direct Import in Retailers 53 2.3.4 Penetrating of Foreign Retailers to Distribution System in Japan 54 CHAPTER DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM OF KEY IMPORTED PRODUCTS FROM VIETNAM AND PENETRATING ABILITY OF VIETNAM COMPANIES 55 3.1 Texttile and garments 55 3.1.1 The characteristics, exported and imported products and distribution system of Japan’s textile and garment industry 55 3.1.2 The current state of import and distribution of Vietnam’s textile and garment products in Japan’s market 58 3.1.3 General assessment of the penetration of Vietnam’s textile and garment companies into Japan’s market 62 3.2 Wood and wood products 65 3.2.1 Characteristics and distribution system of wood and wood product in Japan’s market 65 3.2.2 The current state of export and distribution of Vietnam’s wood products in Japan’s market 67 3.2.3 General assessment about penetration to Japan’s market distribution system of Vietnam’s wood and wood product exporting companies 72 3.4 General assessment of the state of penetration into Japan’s goods distribution system of Vietnamese enterprises 75 3.4.1 Achievement 75 3.4.2 Existing limitations and their reasons: 77 CHAPTER RECOMMENDATION FOR ENHANCING PENETRAING ABILITY OF VIETNAMESE EXPORTED PRODUCTS TO JAPAN 79 4.1 Development prospect and orientation of Vietnam’s some key export products to Japan’s market 79 4.1.1 Development prospect and export orientation of Vietnam’s products to Japan’s markets 79 4.1.2 Development prospect and orientation of Vietnam’s some key export products to Japan’s markets 79 4.2 Some solutions aimed to improving penetration ability to distribution system in Japan’s market of Vietnam’s export products 81 4.2.1 General solutions 81 4.2.2 Separate solutions for each export sector 84 CONCLUSION 94 REFERENCE 95 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS No Abbreviations Meaning ASEAN Association of Southeast Asian Nations CIT Corporate income tax CITES The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora FDI Foreign Direct Investment FOB Free on Board GPD Gross Domestic Product JAS Japanese Agricultural Standards JETRO Japan Export Trade Research Organization JIS Japanese Industrial Standards 10 METI Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry 11 MOFA Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan 12 SME For small and medium enterprises 13 USA United State of America 14 VCCI Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry 15 VJEPA Vietnam- Japan Economic Partnership Agreement i LIST OF TABLES Table 1.1: Japan Economics Current Indextes 21 Table 1.2: Vietnam- Japan Trade Turnover (Measured in Billion US Dollar) 24 Table 1.3: Japan’s official development assistance to Vietnam .25 Table 2.1: Tastes and habits of consumers in regions of Japan 40 Table 3.1 main categories of imported textile products in Japan 56 Table 3.2 Vietnam's total garment and textile export value during 2011-2015 .58 Table 3.3 Preliminary statistics on export performance to Japan in the first months of 2015 by the General Department of Customs 59 Figure 3.3 Main distribution channels of wood industries in Japan 66 Table 3.4 Composition of wood products exported to Japan in July 2014 in compare to July 2015 (thousand USD) .68 ii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1.1 The distribution system of popular personal consumption goods 11 Figure 1.2 The distribution system for popular industrial goods .13 Figure 1.3 GDP Partern of Vietnam 2015 20 Figure 1.4: Vietnam- Japan export, inport and trade turnover from 2007 to 2014 24 Figure 1.5: Vietnam- Japan Import, Export and Balance of Trade from 2009 to 2013 25 Figure 1.6: Total FDI in 2014 26 Figure 1.7: Total FDI in 2013 27 Figure 2.1: Japan Import-Export 1005 - 2013 28 Figure 2.2 The structure of household spending in Japan .29 Figure 2.3 Distribution system of imported goods in Japan .30 Figure 3.1: Distribution channels of textile and garment products in Japan’s market 57 Figure 3.2: The composition of Vietnam’s textile and garment product export to Japan 59 Figure 3.3 Main distribution channels of wood industries in Japan 66 Figure 3.4 Mechanism of distribution of wood products from Vietnam in Japan’s market 70 iii 4.2 Some solutions aimed to improving penetration ability to distribution system in Japan’s market of Vietnam’s export products 4.2.1 General solutions 4.2.1.1 Solutions proposed to levels of state management departments a Building Vietnam’s commercial shopping centers in Japan At present, Vietnam has not had any commercial centers in Japan In this development stage of two countries’ foreign trade, it is very essential for Vietnam to build a commercial center in Japan The objective of this center is to promote Vietnam’s export activities to Japan, to help Vietnamese companies to grasp information and catch changes in Japan’s market, and help them to penetrate further in to this market, and to move to a direct distribution of Vietnamese product in Japan’s market Additionally, the commercial center also provide information about Vietnam’s key export product to Japanese companies, as well as their location and addresses in Vietnam, therefore serves as a connection between Vietnam and Japan The most challenging problem of building a commercial center in Japan is related to estate It is because rental price in big cities such as Tokyo, Osaka,… are all very high and it is very hard to find a place that is huge enough to build a commercial center Therefore, the assistance from both governments is required We can negotiate with Japan to carry out some exchanges with big Japanese investment firms to find a suitable place in big cities like Tokyo or Osaka We will build a commercial center in their current place In return, Vietnam will provide them a similarly well-located place in Hanoi or in Ho Chi Minh City This exchange will depend on time conditions, land usage right… based on two sides’ legal law b Other solutions to enhance business promotion and market development Government offices (business promoting assistance offices, representative offices, commerce department…) need to carry out effectively market research, exploration, and activities to help enterprises to grasp market information quickly Based on this, they will be about to inform enterprises of product types, price, quality, purchasing conditions, consumption trend… This information will help companies to be equipped with sufficient information to set development aims This 81 relevant information should be fully uploaded and updated in popular websites such as Ministry of Industry and Trade website, Vietnam Industry Office website, commercial information websites, or separate website of each business association in each industry sector Trade Promotion Department needs to collaborate with Japan Export Trade Research Organization (JETRO) in assisting enterprises to find more information about Japan’s market as well as to research about business partners and to establish business partnership, and key potential export products There is also a need for government offices:  To take full advantage of Japan’s embassy, JETRO, Human Resource Development Centers and Japanese companies’ representative offices to penetrate Japan’s market  To announce a full list of annual commercial fairs in Japan for them to prepare well in time, together with assisting them to sign up and providing financial assistance for them to join these commercial fairs in Japan if necessary  Actively assist domestic businesses to collaborate with and connect with business partners in other countries who have similarly favorable conditions for production of these goods, especially China and ASEAN countries in order to avoid rivalry and direct competition, which is unbeneficial for all parties 4.2.1.2 Solutions proposed to companies exporting their products to Japan In the future, Japan is believed to become Vietnam’s potential export market However, penetrating this market is not easy at all Therefore, apart from carrying out suitable measures to improve product quality, design and lowering product prices to increase their product competitiveness, companies need to come up with a suitable market promotion and penetration plans At present, the majority of companies in Vietnam are not aware of the importance of these plans They usually work based on short-term contracts, are passive and highly dependent on their business partners Because Japan’s market distribution system is more complex and tightly connected than other markets, only with appropriate business strategies, Vietnam’s companies will be able to expect for a position in Japan’s market 82 Drafting a development strategy for each enterprise is very different, depending on scale and products However, there are two main big stages as follows: *Stage 1: In this stage, businesses have a small scale, lack capital and not have enough conditions to approach directly the markets Therefore, their products exported to Japan in these following ways:  Sign a direct export contract with Japanese representative offices  Export handicraft products  Export goods even through Vietnam’s local markets: produce and sell products to tourists; or export to other businesses in manufacturing areas  Export through companies that are experienced in exporting products to Japan’s market, especially general commercial trading corporations such as Sumitomo, Itochu, Marubeni, Mitsui, Toyota Tsuho,… In order to perform export activities well at this stage, companies need to pay close attention to these measures:  Focusing on product quality  On time product delivery  Maintaining a good relationship with their partners, and with representative offices of Japan’s businesses *Stage 2: After some time, operated in stage 1, companies expand to at a big enough scale, so they have abilities to create a separate fund for business promotion activities Firms also should to start to open representative offices in Japan to access the marketpersonally, sign direct export contracts with Japanese commercial firms and move to establish their own distribution channel in the market In order to perform well at stage 2, companies need to pay close attention to these following measures:  Building a development strategy in terms of products, brands and product differentiation  Building a strong researcher team for market promotion activities 83  Creating an online website to boost trade promotion activities If this stage is done well, it is certain that business efficiency will be increased by many times However, in order to succeed in stage 2, enterprises need to have a detailed strategy in terms of transforming Japan’s market into their key market At the same time, there is a need for prepare well in terms of economic conditions and human resources for opening representative offices in Japan 4.2.2 Separate solutions for each export sector 4.2.2.1 Solutions for textile and garment industry a Proposed solutions for macro-level management  Organizing regular: These fairs display Vietnam’s products, help fashion firms to find and to sign trade contracts, but at the same time, promote Vietnamese cultures in order to enhance tourism development… Creating websites specialized in textile and garment products in Japan in English, Vietnamese and Japanese: Cost for create this website can be covered by textile and garment firms who want to export their products to Japan, together with financial assistance from Vietnam Garment and Textile association, or from Trade Promotion Department,… This website will be connected to website of Japan Export Trade Research Organization (JETRO), website of Japan Textile Federation and websites of other organizations and huge textile and garment business firms in Japan One prestigious technology company will take charge of creating this website to prevent technical problems and to update regularly Information for the content of the website will be provided from Japanese market experts and textile and garment companies The website can focus on some following content areas:  Analysis of current state of Japan’s textile and garment import (monthly update)  Analysis of market demand and supply and rivalries in each sector of textile and garment industry  Introduction about management mechanism and procedures for importing textile and garment products to Japan’s market  Introduction about key trading and transaction centers and distribution system for textile and garment products in Japan 84  Introduction about fashion types, which are currently in Japanese consumers’ favor and predictions about changes in textile and garment market  Introduction of the government’s trade promotion programs, which assist private enterprise to penetrate Japan’s market  Introduction about fairs, and exhibitions of textile and garment products in Japan and procedures, conditions and cost for participant firms  Introduction of experiences of textile and garment companies from both Vietnam and other countries, who have succeeded or even failed in Japan’s market  Based on help from JETRO, Trade Promotion Department, Vietnam Garment Association, the website can introduce partners to Vietnamese companies or vice versa Alternately, this website can have a separate section for finding business partners for only Japan and Vietnam companies to introduce themselves and find a suitable business partner b Proposed solutions for textile and garment companies exporting their products to Japan’s market At present, compared to other competitors, the majority of Vietnamese companies are operated in a small and medium scale, have not established a brand, and have not impressed Japanese consumers Therefore, it is relatively hard for them to export their products directly to Japan in a short period Thus, each enterprise needs to build up a development strategy regarding Japanese market penetration, based on assessments on their potential, strengths, weaknesses,… in the short run and in the long run The long run goal is to export to Japan’s market directly without any intermediaries To build up a foundation for this goad as long as achieve it, in the short term, Vietnam companies need to perform well contracts for handicrafts with Japanese businesses They need to ensure product quality and delivery time They also need to be more active in finding business partners, especially big general commercial and trading corporations, and should not wait for their customers to bring the contracts to them Additionally, in this period, enterprises need to establish and standardize management procedures, learn more about technology, and about management skills from Japan In particular, they also 85 need to seek domestic input material sources, which are of good quality, to replace imported input material with a view to not only increasing their product competitiveness but also impressing Japanese partners as well as consumers, and to accumulate more resources for long-term market penetration strategies Apart from measures regarding improvements in production process, enterprises need to pay more attention to trade promotion and market development, especially for a market, which is particularly hard to penetrate its distribution system, like Japan In a limited scope of this graduate thesis, I would like to propose some possible solutions regarding market development in Japan, which textile and garment companies can consider applying in order to penetrate Japanese goods distribution system step by step *Market development solutions regarding production activities: In Asia, demand for textile and garment products of Japan’s market is always considered to be in the top Japanese consumers are becoming stricter in the way they choose what to wear, and continuously requiring producers to create more goods, which need to be of good quality, with nicer designs, with more details, and to fit popular fashion and market trend Therefore, the first condition for an easy market penetration is that enterprises need to perform well in stages regarding product manufacturing In addition to investing in improving machineries, in purchasing modern equipment, in enhancing technology to boost product quality, they need to pay more attention to researching new fashion trends in Japan’s market For big companies, they can also establish a new department, specialized in fashion design and fashion shows It also includes a Japanese fashion market researcher teams The main responsibilities of this department are:  To establish a relationship with Japanese fashion designers  To design new model to provide and sell them to member companies  To research on prediction about new fashion trend  To follow legal procedures to establish intelligence property rights for new fashion designs and business trademark 86 * Market development solutions regarding commercial activities: Appropriate investment in marketing activities: establish market research department, in which there is some experts, taking charge of researching Japan’s market (if the export quantity is large enough, the company can consider building up a Japan’s market researcher team) Their responsibilities are:  To research general market demand and supply, and price conditions of companies’ export products in Japan’s market in order to suggest suitable measures to management team  To sign partnership contract with international travelling service companies (with a focus on Japan tourists) with an aim of not only marketing products but also introducing the Vietnamese fashion culture to foreign tourists  To promote trade and assist companies to improve efficiency of their participation in market fairs and their advertising for new products and fashion designs  To collaborate with sale department (export department) to maintain, enhance and strengthen their relationship with Japanese customers  To contact with fashion design teams (or fashion show companies of their own corporations) to collaborate in advertising activities  To update and provide information to other functioning departments of the companies in order for them to take part in building an effective strategy regarding direct distribution of Vietnam’s textile and garment products in Japan  To create a website for the companies in Vietnamese, English, and Japanese and carry out online trade promotion activities with Japan’s market *Improvement in effectiveness level of enterprises’ trade promotion activities: at present, although many textile and garment export enterprises spend a lot on marketing their products, their effectiveness level is not very high To improve this situation, companies should:  Actively and regularly research on trade promotion programs organized by governmental organizations, associations or local authorities From this, they can grasp opportunities to promote trade with Japan’s market in particular 87 and with other countries’ market in general and then to design a suitable plan for their own companies This activity helps enterprises to reduce cost for trade promotion activities  When participating in market fairs, companies should prepare carefully their own documents, catalog, product introduction and other factors that their partner may be interested in they should have their own plans to find new partners Before meeting with business partners, they should know their strengths and potential in order to have suitable strategies when negotiating and establishing a business partnership  Establish a representative office in Japan when companies are strong enough *Establishment of a direct distribution channel for textile and garment products in Japan:  Sell their products through stores owned by Vietnamese citizens in Japan At present, many Vietnamese citizens in Japan have opened department stores are minisupermarkets to sell Vietnam’s textile and garment products as well as handicraft This is a good route to introduce Vietnam’s products to Japanese consumers  Move to sign a contract to act as a direct supplier of the retailer system and supermarket in Japan In order to the above-mentioned measures, the first condition is that companies need to be able to create impressive products and to show off their brand in Japan’s market Other important condition is that a large amount of capital is required to sell goods on credit for retailers and supermarkets Additionally, companies need to have a detailed plans and feasible measures in terms of managing their product distribution Furthermore, there is a need for an excellent and trustworthy expert team to run the distribution system Companies also can consider hiring Japanese experts in this field 4.2.2.2 Solutions for wood and wood product industry a Proposed solutions for macro-level management *Combination of many sectors to promote trade to Japan’s market 88 Ministry of Trade and Industry, Wood Product Association and Trade Promotion Department,… collaborate with big companies to Vietnam’s festival in Japan, market fairs and product display in Japan’s market on a regular basis These events will not only introduce and promote Vietnam’s products but also will attract more tourists to Vietnam, through which we can boost tourism export At the same time, enterprises of two countries will find their business partners in order to collaborate in their production investment or to perform wood product trade right in Japan’s market *Establish representative offices of Wood Product Association and showrooms introducing Vietnamese wood products in Japan’s market Annually, Wood Product Association, Trade Promotion Department and JETRO are in partnership to organize competitions to choose the best wood products favored by Japanese tourists (voting is done by Japanese tourists, have been to Vietnam, or in the internet) *Each traditional craft village need to have a general development plan with detailed strategies for product, prices and export promotion In each craft village, there should be a connection between business households to avoid unnecessary competition There should be a shared website for the whole village to introduce special features of their products with a logo, to impress Japanese commercial firms and consumers There should be a commercial and product promotion offices for the whole village, together with a market research team This office will create different designs, which meet market’s demand and then provide them to production household in each village * Associations in wood product industry and Vietnam’s General Department of Tourism should collaborate traditional craft villages with tourism firms, to create new form of travelling, which is ancient craft village tourism Tourists will visit traditional craft villages, take part in artist’s performances right there, are guided to create their own product There are some areas for tourists to build their own products and buy them back home This form of tourism will improve attractiveness of travelling in tour and contribute to attracting more tourists 89 to Vietnam At the same time, it creates favorable conditions for traditional craft villages to get used to mechanism and get closer to international business frame to advertise their product with lower cost but higher level of effectiveness *Construction of three big commercial centers for handicraft products in general and for wood products in particular in three big cities Ha Noi, Hue and Ho Chi Minh City: In these places, there will be showrooms to introduce products and functioning room showing videos about the potential and tradition of Vietnam’s wood product industry It can serve as a trustworthy contact point for Japanese companies finding business partners in Vietnam In addition, the centers will receive goods packages sent from traditional craft villages They can also create websites to promote the potential of wood products in each region, perform online transaction with traditional craft villages and with foreign commercial companies to promote wood product export b Proposed solutions for wood product production and export companies For Vietnam’s wood products can penetrate the Japanese complex and strict market, apart from investment for product quality and designs to promote competitiveness, companies should carry out some of following trade promotion measures: *Understand tastes and preferences of Japanese consumers: Producers need to establish a harmonious and trustworthy relationship with Vietnamese exporters and Japanese importers so that they will update them information about market in time, enabling them to meet consumers’ demand quickly It prevents producers and exporters from merely focusing on their jobs, which otherwise will later cause severe results regarding outdated designs or not enough goods produced for export This is the weakness of wood and wood product industry in particular and of Vietnam’s commercial sector in general Companies need to research and analyze websites and product designs displayed by top enterprises in Vietnam and other countries in the wood and wood product sector exporting to Japan or by other online stores from developed countries Then, producers can generate more ideas for their own products 90 Companies should display their products in international market fairs and exhibitions for handicraft in general and for wood products in particular in Thailand, India, the Philippines, Indonesia,… These are competitors of Vietnam’s wood product industry in Japan’s market Their products penetrated the Japanese market long time ago, therefore they should have a certain amount of knowledge and understanding about Japanese consumers’ preferences This activity enables Vietnam’s producers to learn from their competitors’ experiences in catching consumer’s preferences in order to create their own original products *Product design: Although product design is not directly related to trade promotion activities, it is one of the major factors, which have significant effects on helping products penetrate a market, especially a strict one with regular changes in taste and preferences like Japan Vietnam’s wood products are believed to have unimpressive designs and when compared with products from countries in the region (such as China and Thailand), Vietnam’s products are still not as good To improve this weakness, Vietnamese enterprises should: Introduce their product on websites or send samples, which are carefully designed, to Japanese importers, Vietnamese exporters, potential customers, trade promotion offices, and related department to gather feedback directly from them Link production units with fashion designers who have a good command of fashion and market demand, international experts, especially Japanese ones, Vietnamese citizens and students in Japan, art schools, to have model and design which will meet market demand Train fashion designers: combining training activities in Vietnam and in toher countries by appointing some employees to travel to these countries and to learn more from them, especially in Asian countries that export wood products to Japan Then, they can create a foundation for training activities in the future *Establish a trademark for wood products: Before penetrating Japan’s market, producers need to establish a prestigious trademark, which is issued copyrights from legal offices Together with establishing 91 a trademark, producers and traditional craft villages need to register property rights for their brands, designs, production address not only in Vietnam but also in Japan to prevent their competitors from copying them With a registered label, the position of products will be improved in Japan’s market Early label registration will present companies to face costly disputes with competitors once their producers are favored by the market *Pay more attention to product delivery stage: Wood products are cumbersome; therefore, producers need to invest in on route product maintenance stage in a serious way It is because products with even a small scratch will be considered defected in Japan’s market Companies should invest in stages regarding packaging, instruction how to assemble products from separate parts, and product maintenance to create favorable conditions for safe product transportation Another requirement for Vietnam’s exporters to Japan is on-time delivery, sufficient product quantity and quality Therefore, to prevent the breach of contracts and to maintain long-term customers, companies need to calculate possible unfavorable events in advance and expect the length of time delay to estimate appropriate delivery time In unexpected and inevitable events, which delay delivery time, companies need to inform their customers immediately When signing the contract, companies need to be well aware of their abilities to select ones with a suitable scope They should not sign a too big contract and then later ask for a reduction in product quantity, which reduces the amount trust placed in them by business partners The effectiveness of appropriate investment in product transportation and delivery stages will ensure the sustainment of product quality before reaching customers’ hands, reduce product fault due to transportation, ensure on time delivery, and improve prestige for not only these companies’ products but also Vietnam’s in Japan’s market *Improve price competitiveness of export wood products Vietnam’s export wood products are often relatively more expensive than their competitors, which cause many difficulties in penetrating Japan’s market 92 Therefore, there is a need to find a way to reduce price to attract Japanese importers Apart from performing specialization in production stages and improvement in technology, Companies should: • Establish a solution to input material problems • Link with other export companies in the same or different sectors to export a large quantity of goods, reduce transportation cost and receive commission for shipping companies • Move closer to traditional craft villages linked with big Vietnamese commercial firms to distribute their products directly in Japan’s market, to reduce intermediate costs, and potentially decrease product price in Japan *Improve effectiveness of trade promotion activities via the Internet: Next step, every production firm, wood product exporter, and traditional craft village will create an advertising website and introduce their own products Organization with high export level with Japan can have a website introducing their products in Japanese Establish online transaction teams with Japanese customers to sell products online Participate in online market fairs and wood product exhibition (every year, JETRO in partnership with Vietnam’s Trade Promotion Department organize this event) 93 CONCLUSION In recent years, the friendly partner relationship between Vietnam and Japan has achieved new heights in many areas, especially business partnership Japan has become Vietnam’s largest export market, particularly for wood and wood products, fisheries, textile and garment and vegetables and fruits,… Vietnamese products have been gradually impressing Japanese consumers; Vietnamese companies’ prestige has been improved in their partners’ eyes However, at present, export scale and market share of some Vietnam’s key products such as textile and garment, wood products, … in Japan’s market is still small and limited One of their limitations is that the ability of the majority of Vietnamese companies to penetrate Japanese goods distribution system is still very weak They have not established their direct distribution channel; most of them export through intermediaries The reasons for this situation is partly due to the complexity, tightness and xenophobia of Japan’s goods distribution systems, and partly due to the fact that Vietnamese companies are not active in building a Japanese market penetration strategy as well as have not carried out trade promotion activities effectively In addition, governmental organizations have not provided sufficient assistance for businesses in this aspect Approaching and penetrating Japan’s good distribution system is one of the criteria, which must be fulfilled if they want to increase their export turnover Therefore, in order to maintain the current export growth rate and increase it in the next few years, and to achieve set goals, businesses need to focus on improving their product competitiveness, boost trade promotion activities in Japan’s market, and establish a suitable market penetration strategies based on their production scales and common features of their industry In addition, the government and industries’ offices, association and traditional craft villages need tom improve their legal environment, follow bilateral and multilateral regulations and commitments with Japan, and especially increase business assistance regarding trade promotion activities, market research and finding business partners,… 94 REFERENCE Documents in Vietnamese Dr Đinh Văn Thành, Dr Trương Đình Chiến, Master Vũ Bá Sơn, 2004 – “Solution for Improving Distribution System of Vietnam Export in term of Economics Integration”, published by Ministry of Industry and Trade Le Thanh Thuy, 2005 – “Solution for Promoting Vietnam Product to Export to Japan Market”, Graduate Thesis Nguyễn Đức Thắng, 2012 –“Import Policy of Japan and Vietnam Ability to Export to Japan Market”, Graduate Thesis VCCI, 2015 – “Market profile: Japan” Nguyen Thi Van, 2007 - “Business Culture of Japan market and Access Ability of Vietnam enterprises”, Hanoi, Vietnam Documents in English FPT, 2014 – “Textile Apparel Industry Report 2014”, published by FPT Security Hanoi Vietnam Forest Trend, 2013– “Baseline Study 3, Vietnam: Overview of Forest Gorvernance and Trade”, published by Forest Trend Tô Xuân Phúc & Tran Le Huy 2013 – “Vietnam’s Wood Chip Industry: Status of the Sector in 2012 and Challenges for Future Development”, published by Forest Trend Le Thuy Ngoc Van, 2013 - “Vietnam-Japan Trade Relationsin the st Decade of the 21 st Century”, published by Victoria University off Wellinton, London, Bristish England 10 Motoshige Itoh, 2010 – “The Japanese Distribution System and Access to the Japanese Market”, published by the National Bureau of Economics Research, University of Chicago Press 11 Ralf Bebenroth & Nir Kshetri, 2009 - “Is the Japanese distribution system becoming more accessible to foreign firms?” published by Kobe University, Japan 95 ... understand and experience the market, and therefore, the penetration in the Japanese market remains a challenge for Vietnamese enterprises To be able to penetrate the Japanese market more easily, Vietnamese. .. assessment of the penetration of Vietnam’s textile and garment companies into Japan’s market 62 3.2 Wood and wood products 65 3.2.1 Characteristics and distribution system of wood and. .. characteristic of distribution system of Japan market – one of the largest export markets for Vietnam? - What is the current situation of export as well as penetrating ability of Vietnam enterprise