Amid mounting competitive pressure from imported goods and cross-border e-commerce, the 2026 “Vietnamese People Prioritize Vietnamese Goods” campaign is expected to shift its focus from awareness-raising efforts to providing substantive support for businesses.

Over the years, the campaign has contributed significantly to changing domestic consumer perceptions. However, as Vietnam enters 2026, with the retail market expanding rapidly and competition no longer centered solely on price but increasingly on quality, branding, green standards, and digital presence, Vietnamese products are facing far greater challenges than in previous years.

Enhancing product quality, building strong brands, and expanding distribution networks are considered key factors in helping Vietnamese goods maintain their domestic market share.

From “Prioritizing Vietnamese Goods” to Enhancing Competitiveness

In its 2026 implementation plan, the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) emphasized the urgent need to create “broad influence within the business community, entrepreneurs, and the public,” while establishing communication and networking channels to increase the value of Vietnamese-origin products.

Notably, rather than focusing solely on promotional activities, this year's plan places greater emphasis on helping businesses participate more deeply in supply chains, expand market access, and strengthen Vietnamese brands.

According to VCCI, communication activities promoting domestic goods and products should be conducted regularly and continuously throughout the business community. Member enterprises are encouraged to increase product promotion efforts, strengthen connections with partners and customers, and raise the proportion of domestically produced materials and goods used in production.

As low-cost imported products continue to enter the market through e-commerce platforms, competitive pressure on domestic enterprises is intensifying. Many businesses believe that current challenges stem not only from weakened consumer demand but also from the lack of a sufficiently strong support ecosystem to help Vietnamese products expand their market reach.

This is also why VCCI has prioritized the development of databases, standards systems, and evaluation frameworks for Vietnamese enterprises and products to support both domestic consumption and export activities.

One of the most notable changes in the 2026 plan is its new approach to the campaign. While previous efforts primarily focused on encouraging consumers to prioritize Vietnamese goods, the emphasis is now gradually shifting toward strengthening the competitiveness of Vietnamese enterprises themselves.

VCCI stated that it will intensify business networking activities among manufacturers, distributors, and consumers while promoting Vietnamese brand development, production cost optimization, intellectual property protection, and anti-counterfeiting measures.

In practice, many domestic enterprises are no longer at a disadvantage in terms of product quality but remain weaker in branding and distribution. Numerous Vietnamese products offer excellent quality yet struggle to access major retail systems or lack the capacity to effectively promote themselves in digital environments.

Meanwhile, consumer preferences are evolving rapidly. Buyers are increasingly concerned not only with price but also with sustainability, transparency of origin, and compliance with sustainable development standards. This trend requires domestic enterprises to invest more heavily in management capabilities and production innovation if they wish to maintain their market share.

The 2026 plan also includes research into developing dedicated online platforms and websites introducing enterprises that have received prestigious awards, recognitions, and quality certifications from Vietnam and international organizations.

This initiative is expected to enhance the visibility of Vietnamese products at a time when consumer confidence is increasingly linked to transparency and reliable information.

More Substantive Support Mechanisms Needed

Nevertheless, many observers argue that communication efforts alone will not be sufficient to generate meaningful results.

Vietnamese enterprises currently face pressure from multiple directions, including high logistics costs, intense price competition, incomplete recovery of consumer demand, and the rapid migration of consumer behavior to digital platforms.

In this year’s plan, VCCI emphasized its policy advocacy role in improving the business environment and creating a supportive legal framework that enables enterprises to participate more effectively in campaign-related activities.

In addition, the development of enterprise and product evaluation and ranking systems is viewed as an important tool for helping Vietnamese goods improve their competitive standards, particularly as green and sustainable consumption increasingly becomes a mandatory requirement in many markets.

Another highlighted priority is strengthening consumer protection and dispute resolution mechanisms. According to VCCI, closer coordination with regulatory authorities and consumer protection organizations is needed to monitor legal compliance, receive complaints, and facilitate timely mediation and resolution of disputes.

Experts believe this is a critical factor because market confidence today depends not only on the slogan of “prioritizing Vietnamese goods” but also on genuine product quality, authentic corporate responsibility, and effective protection of consumer rights.

In the long term, the challenge for Vietnamese products extends beyond maintaining domestic market share. It is about building a sufficiently strong national brand capable of competing in international markets.

Achieving this goal requires the “Vietnamese People Prioritize Vietnamese Goods” campaign to evolve from a movement-based initiative into a comprehensive business support mechanism that addresses product standards, digital transformation, logistics, and brand development.

As consumers are presented with an ever-expanding range of choices, “prioritization” will no longer stem solely from patriotic support but will increasingly be determined by the quality, value, and credibility of Vietnamese products themselves.