With steep discounts of up to 70% for hundreds of thousands of products, the Hanoi Promotion Month 2020 is expected to boost domestic consumption in the post-Covid-19 period.

Customers buying products at Big C Super market. Photo: Le Nam.

Hanoi’s Department of Industry and Trade initially expected 2,000 enterprises would join the event in November, however, around 3,000 have so far registered to take part in the Promotion Month, stated the department’s Vice Director Tran Thi Phuong Lan.

Pham Hoang Hanh, manager of Pham Van Dong Media Mart, noted that in response to the Hanoi Promotion Month, Media Mart is offering discounts from 30% to 50% for electronic products.

Nguyen Quang Duc, marketing manager of Pico Mart, informed that Pico Mart is cooperating with suppliers to provide promotions for a variety of home appliances. Notably, as part of the initiative to promote non-cash payment, in addition to existing discounts from 25 – 50%, Pico Mart is offering an additional 5% discount for customers making their payment via the e-wallet VNPAY, or 10% via bank BIDV’s online banking method.

As retailers offer multiple discount programs, revenues from retail sales are estimated to increase by 15 – 30% year-on-year. Regional Director of Central Group Le Manh Phong said the number of customers shopping at Big C supermarkets during the promotional month went up from 20 – 30% compared to normal days.

In the first ten months of 2020, revenues from retail sales expanded by 9.7% year-on-year. The municipal Department of Industry and Trade targets the figure to grow 10.5% this year.

Prevent sale of low quality and fake products in Promotion Month

Despite positive response from local customers towards promotional activities, there are concerns about counterfeit or low-quality products. Meanwhile, there is possibility that enterprises could take advantage of the Hanoi Promotion Month to sell nearly expired products.

Regarding this issue, Ms. Lan said the Department of Industry and Trade requested all enterprises participating in the event to register types of products subject to discounts. Specifically, all products are required to have clear origin and detailed price information before and after the discount.

The department would instruct market surveillance authorities to tighten supervision during the Hanoi Promotion Month to ensure the quality, origin and food safety standard, noted Ms. Lan.

Head of Hanoi’s Department of Market Surveillance Chu Xuan Kien said all 33 market surveillance teams are responsible for monitoring the circulation of goods and products in the city. The authorities would issue strict penalties for those selling fake or smuggled goods to protect customers’ rights, he stated.