Interview assignment

Name of person that got interviewed: Thang Le Minh - CEO of LeTrading

Email of the interviewee: stevenlee8869@gmail.com

Name of the business: LeTrading

The physical address of the business: Floor 8, 18 Ly Thuong Kiet Street, Hanoi, Vietnam

Company website: https://letrading.vn/

Interview Questions:

1. How long have you been in business?

The company was founded in 2017. Hence, LeTrading's CEO has been in business for five years.

2. How would you describe your customers? Who is your typical customer?

LeTrading is a multi-industry company. The company now participates in Fashion, Design and
printing, and import/export of agricultural products. However, the company's customers are
primarily other businesses. The business that Letrading are working with include retailers,
manufacturers, and extensive organization

3. What have you enjoyed most about being in this business?

The CEO said he enjoys being in the business because he can work with many different people.
He said he like to communicate and eventually earns more project from them

4. To what extent was your business affected by recent supply chain issues?

The CEO said that: The nearest supply chain issue is caused by the COVID-19 Pandemic. The
Pandemic had slow not only LeTrading but also other businesses. He noted that the Pandemic
was a common problem for companies in Vietnam and the world. However, he said, his
company is witnessing a gradual increase in sales.

5. How is your business affected by e-commerce?

After the Pandemic, most of the businesses in Vietnam shifted to e-commerce. LeTrading is
affected by E-commerce since most of its customers want their products delivered sooner than
before. This might happen because LeTrading is the supplier for the company, and if they
succeed in their business, then LeTrading have to provide the product sooner so they have
products to sell

6. To what extent do you use social media to promote your business?

Currently, LeTrading only uses its website and Facebook business page to communicate with
other customers. But, most of the company customers come from networking with CEOs of
different companies.

7. What has surprised you the most about consumers and the Pandemic?

The CEO said that what he did not expect about the Pandemic is the length of it. He said that at
first, he thought the Pandemic would only impact the world within a year. But in real life, the
Pandemic took two years to control entirely. He also expressed that his company, within two
years, could not rely on export and import because of the obligation. Regarding the consumers,
the CEO said he was not surprised by the shift in their behavior because his company had done
deep research about the consumers and could predict consumer behavior when the Pandemic
happened. However, because their study still provides them a significant advantage in the
industry, the CEO declined to provide more information about what they found.

8. What is the most memorable thing with one of your customers or suppliers?

The CEO of LeTrading said that the most memorable thing with his suppliers was when he went
to South Africa (He did not tell the exact location) to sign a contract to import cashew to
Vietnam. He found out that the South African people are amicable and treat him not as a
business partner but as a friend. The CEO has gone to many countries, but South African people
are the friendliest. He also said that the contract for importing cashew from South Africa is
helping his business a lot.

9. How has the Covid-19 Pandemic changed how you and your customers connect?

"It changed a lot," - he said. The CEO expressed that before the Covid-19 Pandemic, his
company and the customers mostly connected face-to-face. However, after the Covid-19
Pandemic, the connection method changed from face-to-face meetings to online meetings.
Moreover, the CEO said that because the meeting method changed, their productivity increased
since there were no barriers regarding the physical destination.

10. In general, how have consumers/customers changed since you started in this
business? For example, customers' expectations, attitudes, and loyalty.

The customers of LeTrading have changed a lot, especially regarding loyalty and expectations.
The CEO said that his customers now have high expectations of the final product and the service
LeTrading provides. For 3-4 years ago, when social media does not negatively impact business,
many businesses ultimately need to pay attention to product quality. However, nowadays, social
media reviewers have become a norm in any industry, and any customer can leave a review
about a product or the company on the internet. Hence, many LeTrading's customers want the
company to bring the finesse material so that they can improve their product. Not only that, since
the expectation of the customers is higher, the customer's royalty also decreases because the
customer will leave any supplier who could not reach the customer's expectation.

11. What special marketing techniques do you use in interacting with your customers?
LeTrading has worked with many customers in many industries and realized that the most
efficient way to gain new customers is to get introduced to many other businesses. But, to
achieve that strategy, then LeTrading has to provide an excellent service for the customers. Until
now, the unique marketing technique LeTrading has used in interacting with customers is Word-
of-mouth marketing.

12. Any other comments you (the business owner or manager) would like to share?

The CEO of LeTrading said that the export/import business is unlike any other company. Within
this business, the leader needs to pay attention not only to the market inside the country but also
to the market in foreign countries. Many factors can impact export/import business, such as the
Pandemic, Economy Regression, Supplier issues, etc. Hence, anyone who wants to participate in
this business must pay attention to everything around them.

Personal observations:

What did you, as the Interviewer, learn from the interview, and what other
observations did you make?

From the interview and observation, the Interviewer learns that this type of business
(Export/import business) is cumbersome in paperwork. Not only that, but the Interviewer also
sees that they highly focus on legal areas since they have to deal with legal problems regardings
exporting and importing products. The Interviewer has the chance to talk more with the CEO
besides the interview. It can be seen that the CEO is brilliant and hardworking.