Breath of fresh air in Dong Giao carpentry village

Selling goods online is a "revolution" of Dong Giao carpentry village in market access

Selling goods on social networking sites is a “revolution” of Dong Giao carpentry village though it was strange and difficult at first.

Many young people in the village has learnt, had a lot of creative ideas, and found new ways to sell products.

The persistence of facility owners and the inherent reputation of Dong Giao woodwork have resulted in increasing confidence among clients and a surge in online sales.

According to Dao Thi Thu Huong, a YouTuber of An Hai Carpentry Co., Ltd., the owner of Khoa-Le brand started introducing and selling products on YouTube and some other social networking sites two years ago. A number of products are sold online better since they can be carefully introduced to customers everywhere and even auctioned online.

Establishments have also approached international markets and recruited employees who can speak Chinese and use WeChat (a famous social networking site in China) to promote sales through this platform. Though insignificant, each export order is often of great value.

At present, most stores are deserted because many foreign and domestic clients have not returned.

“A lot of business households and enterprises in the village have held live streams on Facebook to solicit orders. Establishments have also actively participated in fairs in China, the ASEAN, etc., targeting the needs of overseas Vietnamese and Chinese in the EU and the US,” said Pham Van Chuong, Secretary of the Party Cell cum Head of Ben Dong Giao hamlet.

Dong Giao carpentry village is located in two hamlets of Dong Giao and Ben Dong Giao, Luong Dien commune. According to the district Division of Agriculture and Rural Development, more than one third of 582 business households in Dong Giao once had to suspend operations due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Diversifying products and keeping up-to-date with market demand are new thinking of Dong Giao carpenters

“Despite many difficulties, many Dong Giao carpenters still determinedly and persistently identify themselves with the traditional craft by making innovations from the mode of production to the way of management and switching markets,” added Pham Van Chuong.

There have also been many new features in labor division in the village. One third of more than 3,000 laborers in the village are main workers with high workmanship, and the rest are mostly auxiliary workers, packers, product transporters, marketers, etc.

To date, about 40% of production facilities have been equipped with machinery to free up labor, especially in hard and polluting stages like wood processing, polishing, and finishing. The application of new technology to production helps save labor and reduce product costs, thus attracting more buyers.

According to Vu Van Diep, owner of Oanh-Diep fine art woodwork production facility, products of the village are always creative and diversified to meet the market demand.

Apart from products made in Vietnam’s traditional style, there are carved wooden portraits, statues, animals, vases, flowers, leaves, or products made according to China’s traditional culture or designs provided by clients in Taiwan, Thailand, Malaysia, Europe, America, etc.

Specifically, this year, An Hai vases of Dong Giao carpentry village have been recognized as 3-star OCOP products. This is also part of the result of the village preservation and development plan, especially in a roadmap to develop a common brand for Dong Giao woodwork.

In the long term, Dong Giao carpentry village will be turned into a destination in tourism systems of the district and the province.

Dong Giao carpentry village is located next to national highway 38, which is connected to national highway 5. Fine art woodworking there started around 1970 and has developed strongly since around 1990. On September 1, 2004, Dong Giao was recognized as a craft village by the provincial People's Committee.

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