| Binu Jacob, CEO of Nestlé Vietnam, receives the Vietnam Outstanding Business Leader – Thanh Giong Award from VCCI on Vietnam Entrepreneurs' Day. Photo: Nestlé Vietnam |
What does the Thanh Giong Cup mean to you and to Vietnam's international business community?
I was deeply inspired by the story of Thanh Giong because, at its core, it is a story about growth. A young boy grows into a giant to take on the challenges facing his country. But what makes the story particularly meaningful is that he does not grow on his own. The villagers feed and support him, and after victory, he simply rides away without waiting for a reward.
I believe there are three important lessons for business leaders. The first is ambition. Just as Vietnam has set ambitious growth targets, businesses need bold aspirations, supported by agility and the courage to act.
The second is building the right foundations. Agility without capability is just noise. Leaders must invest in people, technology, and innovation, including AI, to build the capabilities needed for long-term competitiveness.
The third is growth that benefits others. Just as the villagers helped Thanh Giong grow, large companies have a responsibility to strengthen the surrounding ecosystems, including suppliers, farmers, and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
This is particularly relevant to foreign-invested enterprises. Vietnam’s Resolution No.10-NQ/TW reinforces the importance of improving the quality and effectiveness of foreign direct investment (FDI), including its contribution to domestic businesses and the wider economy. The role of FDI is not simply to bring capital into the country, but also to transfer knowledge, develop talent, and build capabilities that remain in Vietnam and serve Vietnam’s long-term development.
For Nestlé, this philosophy is reflected in our nearly three decades of investment in the country. Since establishing our presence in Vietnam in 1995, we have invested nearly $904 million, developed four factories and two distribution centres, and created more than 2,300 direct jobs. Our contribution also extends through our network of suppliers, distributors, and farming communities. Ultimately, the measure of success is how much a business grows along with how much value it creates for the country in which it operates.
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| Through the NESCAFÉ Plan, Nestlé Vietnam has supported more than 23,000 farming households in the Central Highlands in adopting regenerative agriculture, improving incomes while ensuring a stable and traceable coffee supply. Photo: Nestlé Vietnam |
How have you applied the Thanh Giong spirit of rapid, strong, and resilient growth in leading Nestlé Vietnam?
For me, it starts with the concept of Creating Shared Value. The idea is simple: when a business succeeds, the surrounding stakeholders should benefit as well. Over the past 30 years, Nestlé Vietnam has worked with farmers, suppliers, and SMEs to ensure that our growth creates wider economic and social value.
Our coffee value chain is a good example. Through the NESCAFÉ Plan, launched in Vietnam in 2011, we have supported more than 23,000 farming households and distributed over 100 million high-yielding, disease-resistant, and climate-resilient coffee plantlets to farmers. Our programmes provide technical assistance in sustainable farming and coffee replanting, helping farmers improve productivity, coffee quality, and livelihoods while contributing to a more resilient supply chain. Across the Central Highlands, our agricultural support activities have reached more than 492,000 farmer participations over time.
My leadership philosophy is to be purpose-led, people-focused, and performance-driven. Purpose gives us direction, people make transformation possible, and performance ensures that our efforts deliver measurable results. These principles are complementary, not competing priorities.
Between 2021 and 2025, Nestlé Vietnam’s revenue nearly doubled over five years. During the same period, our total investment rose from approximately $729 million to $904 million. These results reflect our commitment to building a business that can grow competitively while investing in people, strengthening local supply chains, and creating value for the communities in which we operate.
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| Nestlé offers hundreds of career opportunities to students annually through its management trainee and Nesternship programmes. Photo: Nestlé Vietnam |
What drove Nestlé Vietnam’s near-doubling of revenue during the period from 2021 to 2025?
There were three key drivers. First, we chose to invest when many businesses were cutting back during the COVID-19 pandemic. Over the past five years, we have invested around $500 million in capital expenditure, including expanding our coffee manufacturing capacity. This decision strengthened our production capabilities and enabled us to respond to growing demand. Our coffee exports have more than tripled over the past four years.
Second, we focused on regenerative agriculture to secure a reliable supply of high-quality coffee over the long term. By working directly with farmers to improve cultivation practices and use resources more efficiently, we are helping to strengthen both the quality of our raw materials and the resilience of the agricultural communities that supply them. For us, sustainability begins well before production starts in the factory.
Third, we expanded our export markets to 44 countries, including demanding markets such as the EU, the United States, Japan, South Korea, and Australia. Vietnam is increasingly becoming an important regional manufacturing and supply hub for Nestlé, particularly in coffee and food products. Our strategy is to increase the value generated here in Vietnam, rather than simply exporting raw materials.
The results demonstrate the impact of this approach. Revenue grew by nearly 95 per cent between 2021 and 2025, while our investment commitments continued to increase. In 2025 alone, revenue rose by more than 40 per cent on-year. This growth was achieved despite challenges such as supply chain disruptions and rising input costs, particularly for coffee.
The lesson is that resilience comes from investing ahead of demand, continuously upgrading capabilities, and connecting local production to global markets. Growth becomes more sustainable when it is supported by strong domestic supply chains and long-term partnerships.
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| Photo: Nestlé Vietnam |
How can foreign investment support Vietnam’s double-digit growth ambitions while advancing sustainability?
It is a myth that sustainability and growth do not go together. In my view, they complement each other. Sustainability can improve efficiency, reduce costs, and strengthen long-term competitiveness. Sustainable development often begins with operational excellence. By optimising the use of water, energy, and raw materials while minimising waste, companies can improve resource efficiency and build more resilient operations. Far from being merely a compliance requirement, sustainability serves as a strategic lever to reduce costs, enhance productivity, and mitigate long-term business risks.
The second contribution FDI can make is to develop talent and strengthen the business ecosystem. Foreign-invested enterprises can work with one another as well as with Vietnamese SMEs to help them improve their technology, management practices, productivity, and ability to meet international standards. This is how investment can generate benefits beyond the operations of an individual company.
At Nestlé Vietnam, our sustainability strategy extends across the value chain. We work with farmers to promote regenerative agriculture and invest in manufacturing capabilities. As a co-founder of the Packaging Recycling Organization Vietnam, Nestlé Vietnam also supports collective efforts to develop a more circular packaging economy. These initiatives are part of a broader ambition to contribute to a regenerative food system and the Nestlé Group’s net-zero emissions target by 2050.
Finally, FDI brings capital, expertise, technology, and access to international markets. When these strengths are combined with local knowledge and Vietnamese enterprises, they can help domestic suppliers move up the value chain, improve productivity, and participate more deeply in global supply chains.
Vietnam’s growth ambitions and sustainability goals should therefore be pursued together. For foreign-invested enterprises, the opportunity is not merely to expand their own businesses, but to help build a stronger, more innovative, and more sustainable economy. That is the kind of growth that creates lasting value for Vietnam.