Still drawing on the familiar produce of orchards, farms, and traditional craft villages, many young people are proving that returning home is not a step backwards but an open path to building prosperity in their hometowns, driven by ambition and new knowledge.

Leaving city to return home

After graduating from university, the young couple Nguyen Thi Thuy Dung and Thai Van Hoc (from Phuc Trach Commune, Ha Tinh Province) secured stable jobs in Ha Noi. However, they later decided to return to their hometown to start a business.

Nguyen Thi Thuy Dung, owner of the Tam Thanh Phuc agarwood production facility, said that for a product to gain a firm foothold in the market, quality and design alone are not enough. Entrepreneurs must also build a distinctive brand and tell a compelling brand story, promoting it widely on online platforms such as Facebook, TikTok, and Google. Products should also be distributed through multiple channels, from e-commerce platforms to agents and supermarkets.

According to Dung, by proactively developing a unique brand for agarwood incense products and incense cones while leveraging digital platforms in business operations, the products have attracted growing consumer interest.

Driven by a similar concern for the “treasure” of his hometown, in 2021, at the age of 28, Nguyen Khac Huan, from Tu My Commune, who had been working in the information technology sector, moved his entire family from Ha Noi back to Ha Tinh to start a business with the ambition of bringing deer velvet products to both domestic and international markets.

Although the idea initially faced opposition from friends, encouragement and support from his wife and family motivated Huan to persevere with his start-up centred on the local speciality of deer velvet.

Explaining his confidence in this direction, he said the growing demand for healthcare products, the long-standing tradition of deer farming in Huong Son District, and his experience in the technology sector would form a solid foundation for his start-up.

Huan invested his entire savings of 5 billion VND to build production facilities, install deep-processing lines, and diversify product designs. At the same time, he intensified promotional efforts, applying information technology and digital transformation to create a distinctive brand identity for deer velvet products.

Huan said he had received strong support from local authorities through Ha Tinh’s One Commune One Product (OCOP) programme. From just a few initial products, the Viet Nam Deer Velvet Production and Trading Joint Stock Company now has two products recognised as meeting three-star and four-star OCOP standards. In 2025 alone, the company’s revenue from deer velvet production and processing exceeded 5 billion VND.

Concerns of local authorities

Ha Tinh Province has abundant raw materials and many well-known specialties such as Phuc Trach pomelo, Huong Son deer velvet, and Bu oranges, along with traditional craft villages including Thai Yen carpentry, Trung Luong blacksmithing, and Nam Son sedge mat weaving.

However, nearly 70% of young people of working age in the province are currently employed away from home, while many migrant workers face difficulties related to housing, family responsibilities, and low incomes.

As a result, helping young people access vocational training and start-up support policies has become a key concern for local Party committees, authorities, and youth organisations.

In recent years, the Ha Tinh Provincial Youth Union has advised the provincial People’s Council to issue a resolution allocating 50 billion VND from the local budget for entrusted loans supporting youth start-ups during 2024–2025. It has also launched the “Green credit” programme to support youth start-ups in Ha Tinh for the 2022–2025 period, with total funding of 20 billion VND.

Alongside the strong digital transformation in e-commerce, youth organisations at various levels have taken the lead in supporting youth-led start-up models.

Relevant agencies have collaborated to build brand identities, produce promotional content, conduct livestream marketing, and operate online storefronts for start-up products. Many e-commerce experts, TikTok creators, and key opinion leaders (KOLs) have participated in these activities, helping entrepreneurs access modern marketing methods and enhance their digital business capabilities.

Nguyen Tien Thuc, Deputy Director of the Ha Tinh branch of the Viet Nam Bank for Social Policies, said that based on the positive results of the province’s start-up support policies, the bank will continue to coordinate with the Provincial Youth Union to advise the provincial People’s Council on implementing further programmes that use locally entrusted funds through the bank to provide loans supporting youth start-ups in the next phase.

In the coming period the province will continue improving policies that encourage innovative start-ups in the spirit of “daring to think, daring to act, and daring to innovate”. It will also gradually introduce regulatory sandbox mechanisms in science, technology, and digital transformation, while implementing a one-stop support mechanism to help entrepreneurs access scientific and technological resources.

Bui Phong An,
Deputy Director of the Ha Tinh Department of Science and Technology

He added that the province will work towards incorporating start-up and innovation education into school curricula, organising programmes such as “AI for Everyone” to popularise digital and AI skills among the public, and fostering a culture of learning, knowledge sharing, and innovation.

Nguyen Khac Huan, Director of the Viet Nam Deer Velvet Production and Trading Joint Stock Company, noted that as deer velvet products become more widely promoted and consumption continues to grow, the scale of deer farming in Ha Tinh has expanded significantly.

Therefore, the application of science and technology and digital transformation — together with expanding production, processing, and distribution — will be a key factor in maintaining and enhancing the effectiveness of start-up models.