In its 2025 overview of Vietnam’s domestic market, the ministry said total nationwide retail sales of goods and services hiked 10% year-on-year. This was the fastest growth rate in the past five years, excluding 2021-2022, when activity was distorted by Covid-19-related lockdowns and reopening effects.

The figures for 2024 and 2023 were VND6,447 trillion ($245.4 billion) and VND5,914 trillion ($225.1 billion), respectively.

Retail goods continued to account for the largest share of total sales, representing 76.2%, or about VND5,405 trillion ($205.7 billion), up 9.7% from a year earlier.

Over the past decade, excluding the period heavily affected by the pandemic, service-related sectors have consistently outpaced retail goods in growth, expanding by 10-14% annually, the report said.

This trend reflects consumption patterns typical of developing economies, where rising incomes and improving living standards drive faster growth in spending on services than on physical goods.

Within the retail goods segment, food and foodstuffs remained the largest product category, accounting for 34.1% of total retail goods sales in 2025, with an estimated value of VND1,878 trillion ($71.49 billion), up 10%.

By region, the Red River Delta recorded the highest retail sales, contributing 31.3% of the national total. Hanoi alone accounted for more than half of the region’s retail sales. By contrast, the northern midlands and mountainous areas recorded the lowest share, at 6.7%.

Composition of product groups within retail goods sales in 2025

Overall, Vietnamese companies have further strengthened their dominance across key segments of the domestic retail market.

WinCommerce, the grocery arm of Masan Group (HoSE: MSN), remained Vietnam’s largest food retailer, operating about 4,600 outlets nationwide under the WinMart, WinMart+ and Win brands. The company added around 800 stores in 2025, with roughly 70% of new openings in rural areas. Masan acquired and restructured VinMart from Vingroup (HoSE: VIC) in 2019.

Bach Hoa Xanh, operated by Mobile World Group (HoSE: MWG), continued expanding nationwide after refining its business model. Founded in late 2015, the chain had about 2,000 stores by the end of 2025. Nearly 400 new outlets were opened during the year, around 70% of them in central Vietnam and the Central Highlands.

Foreign retailers also maintained a strong presence. Thailand’s Central Retail, which entered Vietnam in 2012, operates about 330 supermarkets and retail outlets under brands including Go!, Big C, and Tops Market. The group has total retail floor space of around 1.3 million square metres, employs about 15,000 workers, and serves roughly 500,000 customers daily.

Number of markets, supermarkets, and shopping centers, 2020-2024

Japan’s Aeon Group has continued to expand since entering Vietnam in 2011. By the end of 2025, Aeon Vietnam operated eight shopping malls, 15 general merchandise stores and hypermarkets, 45 medium-sized supermarkets, 180 convenience stores, 29 specialty stores and one health and beauty outlet.

In pharmaceuticals, Long Chau Pharmacy, operated by FPT Retail, remained Vietnam’s largest drugstore chain. Established in 2017, Long Chau had expanded to 2,343 pharmacies and 226 vaccination centres nationwide by the end of 2025, generating revenue of about $1.28 billion.

Meanwhile, the convenience store segment continued to be dominated by foreign brands. Circle K, the first foreign convenience store chain to enter Vietnam, remained the market leader with more than 460 outlets. South Korea’s GS25 ranked second with over 200 stores, while Japan’s 7-Eleven operated around 150 outlets nationwide, the report said.