Retail brand Miniso has announced its entry into Vietnam under a franchising deal with the local Le Bao Minh Group.

“In August, we will open the first three Miniso Vietnam stores in Hanoi and the number will double after a month. At the end of this year we will have 13 stores in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, Vinh, Can Tho and Hai Phong,” Le Thi Ngoc Hai, chair of Le Bao Minh said.

As the exclusive distributor of the Canon brand in Vietnam, the expansion of Le Bao Minh into the retail sector surprised many people.

“We set up a team of experts to find opportunities for cooperation from world-renowned brands. When learning about Miniso, we find its appropriate to Vietnamese people. This Japanese brand has been very successful in Korea, Malaysia, China, the Philippines, and Thailand,” Hai said.

The group is confident with its business towards the current retail market in Vietnam, and said to focus on young Vietnamese customers.

“Miniso will not directly compete with other retail brands in Vietnam.”

In the past three years, Miniso has increased its revenue five times, and reportedly has a revenue of US$1 billion last year. The group aims to have 200 stores all over Vietnam within five years.

Since announcing its plan to enter Vietnam, the lifestyle and households retailer has been facing the question whether it will sell China-sourced products. On its homepage, Miniso says its products are made in China with Japanese technologies, and that they have conquered difficult markets such as Europe and Japan. However, Vietnamese customers were quick to find out a majority of their stores (over 1000) are in China, and there are only four stores in Japan.