Student name: Nguyen Tuan Trung Student ID: CQ511024 Student email: ngtuantrung@gmail.com Lecturer: Dr.

Noel Jones, PhD Course title: Operations Management Date: August 22th, 2011

Topic 1: Service Partnership

Nh Bn (Your house) is an interior designing consulting firm which runs business on the field of consulting about designing, producing and distributing interior goods. Business owner, Mr. Nguyen Van Thien started his business in order to keep up studying in Ho Chi Minh City. From almost nothing, he has built up a successful interior firm in Da Nang. From 1994, Mr. Nguyen Van Thien started the job of designing hoarding and billboard for the coffee shop he had worked before. Many people praised him and willing to pay him to design and make the billboard for them. Since there were too many people hired him that made him realized that this is a good opportunity for him to start his own business. He rented a small house with only 50m2 in 1995 and made his first step in his successful business in both manufacturing and service. The first 3 employees are his friend studied with him when he was in college. Fortunately, advertising was a new concept for many people in Vietnam at that time. Therefore, there were only a few competitors and they did not focus on small orders. As a result, the average annual turnover in this period is 600 million VND with the net profit of about 250 million VND (ADB bank 2006, p. 39). In the period of 1997 to 1999, Mr. Thien hired a bigger place to expand his business. At first, he focused on designing interiors and furniture for the clients. However, he found out that the clients want an all-in service package of designing, executing and decorating the house which can create a unique architecture style and interior decoration. Therefore, Mr. Thien decided to provide an in-house construction service and employed more workers. The average net profit of his business in this period is estimated 500 million VND. In 2000, Mr. Thien moved his business in Ho Chi Minh City to Da Nang and he opened an interior manufactory and 2 interior stores since the clients claimed that they want to have the decoration inside the house to be unique with unique furniture which is made only for them. He said he want to provide a total package service, therefore a manufactory is necessary in order to provide a product which suits the idea of the designer. Nha Ban is an interior design consulting firm that can be listed as Service Partnership Company because the services provided is highly customized as the clients ordered and the process of designing and consulting need to have a high customer involvements to evaluate the final product they will get.

Topic 2: Location
Highlands Coffee
Founded by Mr. David Thai, Highlands Coffee, a brand of Viet Thai corporation, has become one of the most popular and successful chain - coffee shop in Vietnam in recent years. Mr. Thai is born in 1972 and he moved to Seattle in 1978. He witnessed the success of Star Buck Coffee which made him decide to come back to Vietnam and start his business. In 1996, he opened a coffee shop named Au Lac and started studying Vietnamese (he is an overseas Vietnamese) and Vietnamese culture in order to open a coffee shop with the hope of bringing Western culture to Vietnamese people. In 2000, Highlands coffee became the first private Company registered as joint stock Company in Vietnam. At this time, the company launched the roasted and ground coffee package to the market through the high standard hotels and supermarkets. In 2002, the first coffee shop is opened in Ho Chi Minh City which marked the continuous grow of the company. In 9 years, from only 2 coffee shops in HCM city and Ha Noi, Highlands coffee has now grown to nearly 100 coffee shops all over Vietnam. There are nearly 30 Highlands coffee shops in many big building in and crowded streets in Ha Noi such as Ha Noi Tower on Hai Ba Trung Street, Vincom Tower on Ba Trieu Street, 34 Thanh Nien Street or Highlands coffee shop near Ha Noi opera house. The key of Highlands success is a good location strategy applied for all the coffee shops. In 2002, at the time Highlands coffee first introduced in the market, there was a chain coffee shops named Paloma which have targeted customers are business men with the need of a formal and quite place to discuss and talk business. However, after moving to Vincom tower, Palomas reputation was fading away. On this occasion, Highlands moved a big step and tried to earn reputation by targeting not only business men but also office workers and staffs who also need a quite place to relax after working time (Thuy Lan 2009). Therefore, Highlands Coffee shop in Vincom and Ha Noi Tower was opened and this decision was a brilliant move of Viet Thai corp. Vincom Tower is the most popular shopping mall in Ha Noi while Ha Noi Tower has a huge number of offices from many big company and organizations in Vietnam with high purchasing power. Both of the two building are located in the centre of Ha Noi which is an ideal location for customers to come and enjoy a cup of coffee with variety of food and other drinks. After the success of two coffee shops in Vincom and Ha Noi Tower, Highlands decided to expand the business by targeting the customers who are neither business men nor office staffs but they still need a place to refresh themselves. Therefore, Highlands Coffee needs to find a place which is also quite and have a good view. Consequently, Highlands on Thanh Nien Street was opened and it is an ideal place for customers who seek for romantic and peaceful place. Highlands coffee shops is also very attractive for customers due to the convenient of the location even though the cost of renting is very high which can also make the price of service higher.

Intimex
Intimex is one of the most successful supermarket chains in Vietnam. Intimex brand name has taken its position in the field of import-export and supermarket after 32 years operating. However, success cannot be easily attained.

It can be said that supermarket business is the most successful operation area of Intimex Corporation in which most of the corporations reputation is gained with the total of 5 supermarkets in Ha Noi and other 9 supermarkets located in different cities in Vietnam. Intimex Dinh Cong supermarket is one of the 5 supermarkets of Intimex supermarkets chain in Hanoi but it cannot be as successful as expected. Located in Dinh Cong Street with the high level of population density, Intimex Dinh Cong supermarket lies near many new resident areas such as Dinh Cong, Linh Dam, Dai kim, and expected to be as successful as other Intimex supermarkets. However, the location decisions and strategies are not effective. At the time Intimex Dinh Cong was opened, the second floor of 96 Dinh Cong building is rented with the total area of 1500m 2. However, after only 2 years operating, the supermarket had to move to the ground floor of the building and reduced the using area to only a half because the number of customers comes to the supermarket did not meet the sales target. Therefore, the supermarkets scale is reduced. Intimex Dinh Congs location strategy is not well designed that they did not know the true purchasing power of people living in that area. Customers are used to go to the private shops and stores which are more informal and cheaper in price of goods. Moreover, the power of the competitors is not well defined. The price for the same goods in other supermarkets is cheaper and they offer more promotions. Intimex Dinh Cong can be considered as the typical example of poor location strategies have been made.

Topic 3: Layout strategies Kichi kichi hot pot vs Gia Khanh mushroom hot pot
Kichi kichi hot pot and Gia Khanh mushroom hot pot are the two famous brand of hot pot restaurant in Vietnam. However, there are many differences in the way they do business and the value the two restaurants want to bring to their customers. The biggest and obvious difference is the layout strategy used to make these two competitors have competitive advantages over each other.

Kichi kichi is the first chain hot pot conveyor restaurant in Vietnam which earned its reputation by differentiating with other hot pot restaurant in the market. The first Kichi kichi restaurant was opened in February 2009 and the number of Kichi kichi restaurant available in Vietnam is 11 at the moment. It brings to customers new experience about being served traditional Vietnamese and Japanese food. The customers can enjoy 6 different kinds of hot pot bouillon and over 100 kinds of food which are preliminary processed before being served. The layout of Kichi kichi is conveyor. Customers can choose the hot pot bouillon they want and then choose which food they want to eat when it is brought by the conveyor belt to them. The advantage of this kind of layout is the bigger number of customers can be served. Moreover, customers have more options in choosing the variety of food they want to eat which is not depend on the menu from the traditional kind of layout. However, this type of layout also has disadvantages. When customers knowing each other come together, it is hard for them to have a talk with other people. Another disadvantage is that the nearer the customers sit to the cook, the better of food they will get. Customers who sit far from the cook may not possible to eat the food they like.

Nh hng lu nm Gia Khnh l mt trong nhng nh hng lu ni ting nht Vit Nam ti thi im hin ti. Lu nm Gia Khnh b tr v sp t gh ngi theo kiu truyn thng, tc l lng khch n vi nh hng s ngi ti mt bn vi s lng ngi nht nh (thng thng s l 6 ngi/bn) v s chn loi lu m tt c mi ngi u ng . Khch hng thng thc lu ti nh hng c th d dng ni chuyn, trao i vi nhau v tt c mi ngi u ngi trong mt khng gian hp hn. Tuy nhin hnh thc b tr ny li mang ti s g b nht nh i vi khch hng ng thi khng th hin mt s tin dng v a ging trong chng loi thc n v phong cch phc v ging nh kiu ngi bng chuyn ca nh hng Kichi kichi. Kh c th ni c rng kiu b tr no tt hn bi c hai nh hng Kichi kichi v lu nm Gia Khnh u t c s thnh cng nht nh. Gia Khanh mushroom hot pot is now one of the most famous hot pot restaurants in Viet Nam. It has table arrangement following the tradition way, it means that the customers come the the restaurant will sit in the table with a constant number of people ( normally 6 people per table) and will choose the type of hot pot that everyone agree. Customers can easily talk to each other because everybody sits in a narrower space. However, this arrangement may cause uncomfortable feeling to the customer and it can not offer variety of food like the Kichi kichi hot pot. It is hard to say which one is better because both of the restaurants have been achieving a certain success.

Reference:
ADB bank, 2006. Con duong doanh nhan (business man path). Hanoi: ADB bank

Thuy Lan 2009, David Thi v Highlands Coffee (David Thai and Highlands Coffee), VnEconomy, retrieved August 26th 2011 via <http://vneconomy.vn/2009061502309198P0C5/david-thai-va-highlands-coffee.htm>