Traditional crafts blend with modern trade
The 1st Autumn Fair - 2025 is not only an annual trade meeting, but also a place where beautiful stories about the efforts to preserve, innovate and develop Vietnamese enterprises, cooperatives and craft villages converge.
From the skilled hands of Van Tu tailors, the green entrepreneurial spirit of Musa Golden Lao Cai, to the sophistication in each bronze product, or the incense of Quang Phu Cau spreading throughout the fair space, .. all create a vivid picture of the vitality of the Vietnamese industry and trade sector.
In the fair space, the booth of Van Tu Craft Village Sewing Cooperative (Phu Xuyen, Hanoi) attracted many visitors because of the sophistication of its meticulously hand-sewn products.
Nguyen Van Trung, representative of the Cooperative, shared: “Van Tu craft village has been established and developed for more than 85 years. Each product is created by craftsmen with over 20 years of experience, especially the vest and women’s dress models. This is both a consumer product and a cultural pride of the craft village”.
In the first three days of the fair, the Cooperative’s booth achieved an average revenue of about 10 million VND per day, a modest figure but showing the interest of consumers in high-quality handicrafts. Trung added: “Promotional effectiveness needs more time, but the important thing is that we have had the opportunity to approach new customers, creating a good impression so that they remember Vietnamese products”.
According to him, what cooperatives expect is not only revenue, but also participation in large-scale and highly connected trade promotion programs: “We hope that the Ministry and the Department of Industry and Trade will continue to organise events like this so that cooperatives have the opportunity to promote their products and develop more sustainably.”
In the middle of the exhibition area, the booth of Musa Golden Lao Cai Joint Stock Company stands out with unique products made from natural banana fibers. The seemingly familiar bags, hats, and rattan baskets are recycled from agricultural by-products.
Do Thuy Tien, Assistant Director of the company shared: “We aim for a green-clean-beautiful goal, creating a new source of raw materials for the textile industry. Musa Golden’s banana fabric is one of the first fabrics in the world made entirely from banana fibers, environmentally friendly and naturally biodegradable.”
Not only stopping at production, Musa Golden also carries out a social mission. The company cooperates with many cooperatives and craft villages in the Northwest, especially ethnic minority women's groups to provide vocational training and create sustainable jobs. New apprentices earn 3-4 million VND/month, skilled workers earn 7-8 million VND.
The company is currently exporting 65% of its output to Europe, the US and Canada - strict markets but very concerned about environmental factors. “The most valuable thing when participating in the fair is to spread the spirit of green living and arouse awareness of sustainable consumption in the community,” Tien shared.
Spiritual products: The quintessence of technology and traditional crafts
Another corner of the fair, the bronze worshiping goods booth of agent Le Duc Tinh, distributing products of Hung Y Company - a Taiwanese (China) technology application enterprise, attracted attention with its sophisticated worshiping items, luxurious bronze light under the fair lights.
Le Duc Tinh said: “We participate in the fair with the desire to promote our products and connect with more partners. Bronze worship products are unique, high-value items, so customers need time to consider. However, the effectiveness of promotion and brand recognition is very good."
The small product set costs over 20 million VND, while the large set can cost up to 450 million VND. Although not a fast-moving consumer product, this is a product that demonstrates the quintessence of forging and casting combined with modern technology. Tinh highly appreciated the organisation of the fair: “The beautiful space, scale, and strong communication help customers know more. I hope that promotional programs like this will be held regularly so that small businesses have more opportunities to spread their brands.”
From another corner of the fair, the gentle fragrance from Thao Nguyen Huong booth (Quang Phu Cau, Hanoi) seemed to draw customers closer. Ly Dinh Nhu, the owner of the establishment, excitedly boasted: “Selling incense and earning 15-20 million VND per day is very good. Last night I had to go back to get more goods!”.
Quang Phu Cau craft village has a long history, famous for its secret of making natural incense. Nhu shared: “Our incense is made from resin of the canarium tree and clean charcoal, absolutely no chemicals are mixed in. The fragrance is completely from natural ingredients, if mixed, the fragrance will be lost immediately. Preserving the traditional secret is preserving the soul of the profession”.
He also highly appreciated the support of the state and the industry and trade sector: “Thanks to the industrial promotion program and fairs like this, small establishments like us have the opportunity to promote and connect across the country”.
From traditional handicrafts to green manufacturing ideas, the Autumn Fair 2025 presents a vivid picture of Viet Nam’s economy in the integration period: tradition and modernity go hand in hand, technology and craftsmen create new values.
