Doing business with Vietnam

Forty years ago, the United States was locked in a war in Vietnam. Now it is doing business there.

In fact, the country was the fastest-growing market for Minnesota businesses last year, according to the Minnesota Trade Office.

On Tuesday, March 23, the Minnesota Trade Office is holding a daylong “Vietnam Practicum” to help Minnesota businesses generate even more commerce with the nation’s former enemies in Hanoi.

Jennifer Kocs, an international trade representative, Minnesota Trade Office, and the educational event’s organizer, says the program will be a primer on doing business with Vietnam.

It will include a brief market overview by videoconference from the U.S. Commercial Service Office in Hanoi, she says, and an address from a representative of the Vietnamese Embassy in Washington, D.C.

The program will also feature some representatives of Minnesota businesses already doing business in Vietnam. “They’ll talk about what they have learned and hopefully help businesses that are looking at the market get a better sense of what the opportunities are, and also what the challenges are.”

Vietnam was only Minnesota’s 45th-largest trading partner last year, Kocs says. However, it was the fastest-rising market, growing at an 11 percent clip when almost all other markets shrank.

Vietnam is primed for business with companies in the infrastructure, industrial equipment, medical equipment, information technology and agricultural sectors, she says.

The Vietnam program runs from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., with registration beginning at 8 a.m. It’s happening at the offices of Leonard Street & Deinard, 150 S. Fifth St., Minneapolis. Cost is $75 if pre-registered and $95 for walk-ins. Advanced registrations are highly recommended.

To register, e-mail mto.edu@state.mn.us or fax registration to 651-297-4265. For more information, contact Kocs at 651-259-7488 or e-mail her at jennifer.kocs@state.mn.us.