Vietnam Packaging Industry: From Market Opportunity to Growth Capacity – 3 Key Questions Answered by Protus Group Chairman Gao Minghui

According to Mr. Gao, Vietnam is currently one of the most closely watched economies in the world, increasingly recognized as a new economic center in both the regional and global supply chain landscape.

From a supply chain management perspective, he emphasized that opportunities are not the problem in Vietnam. Orders continue to arrive, and growth potential remains abundant across multiple sectors.

So what is truly holding businesses back?

Mr. Gao pointed out that many domestic packaging enterprises are facing a significant shortage of two critical internal capabilities:

• Cash flow management
• Operational management

This is now a stage that requires urgent upgrading.

A business with weak internal operations and blocked cash flow cannot capture market opportunities effectively, even when demand is strong.

He also expressed confidence that with the right transformation roadmap, Vietnamese enterprises can gradually strengthen these foundations.

In summary, the real challenge is not finding opportunities, but building internal capability to seize larger opportunities when they come.

Question 2: What Core Capabilities Should Packaging Businesses Prioritize to Scale Up?

Regarding this issue, Mr. Gao shared:

“I fully agree that product quality improvement and green production standards are important. However, from a supply chain perspective, cash flow remains the most fundamental foundation. Without financial resources, no management upgrade or talent development plan can be implemented.”

He noted that many factories today are falling into the trap of blind expansion.

They may have orders, but lack the execution capability to deliver efficiently—causing collapse right when opportunity appears.

To scale sustainably, businesses must strengthen two essential capabilities:

1. Cash Flow Management Capability

This is the foundation that enables a company to confidently accept large orders.

When a major order arrives, manufacturers must immediately finance:

• Raw material procurement
• Production organization
• Worker salaries

However, customer payment cycles often take 2–3 months, freezing working capital.

Without strong cash flow planning, expansion quickly turns into a financial burden that threatens business survival.

2. Operational Management Capability

This determines whether growth can actually be delivered.

Manual management may work for USD 1 million orders, but it often fails when dealing with USD 10–20 million projects.

Businesses must shift from simply managing final outcomes to controlling the entire process, including:

• Transparent procurement
• End-to-end data traceability
• Stable delivery schedules

Mr. Gao summarized the management mindset businesses need today:

• Use cash flow capability as the foundation for accepting orders
• Use operational capability as the core for delivering results

Only by mastering both can companies transform market opportunity into real growth.

Question 3: What Practical Solutions Can Businesses Apply Immediately?

To explain how risk-sharing works in practice, Mr. Gao presented two real examples from the packaging industry, showing how Protus operates as a comprehensive business solution.

Example 1: Solving Cash Flow Imbalance for Paper Packaging Manufacturers

A paper packaging factory had strong customer demand but faced a constant problem:

Raw material suppliers required 100% upfront payment upon delivery, while downstream customers paid after 2–3 months.

This gap froze cash flow after every order.

In this case, Protus purchased all raw materials on behalf of the manufacturer.

The factory did not need to use its own capital and could focus entirely on:

• Production
• Quality assurance
• Delivery execution

Only after the manufacturer collected payment from its customer would settlement with Protus take place.

This allowed Protus to absorb the capital pressure throughout the payment cycle.

Example 2: Protecting Businesses from Geopolitical Risk and Supply Disruption

In the plastic chemical sector, raw material prices often fluctuate heavily due to global geopolitical events.

Many small and medium-sized businesses importing internationally face difficulties because they lack trade credit and must pay:

• 100% upon shipment
• Or even advance deposits before shipping

Protus uses its global supply chain network to directly procure materials—for example, from China—and deliver them to factories in Vietnam.

By leveraging the financial strength and credibility of an international group, Protus helps businesses:

• Secure stable supply
• Reduce raw material risk
• Stabilize cost structures

Again, payment settlement only happens after the manufacturer receives payment from its own customer.

Through these models, Protus helps businesses remove two major barriers:

• Working capital pressure
• Limited access to international supply sources

All solutions operate transparently and comply strictly with both Singaporean and Vietnamese legal frameworks.

As Mr. Gao stated: “As long as a company has order execution capability, Protus is ready to support turning that order into real business results today.”

Conclusion

Mr. Gao Minghui’s sharing at the seminar once again reinforced the mission of Protus Supply Chain Vietnam:

Protus is not only a financial solution provider, but also a trusted strategic partner helping Vietnam’s packaging enterprises:

• Strengthen internal capabilities
• Reduce operational risk
• Improve global competitiveness

As Vietnam’s packaging industry continues to grow, businesses that master internal management and flexible supply chain financing will be best positioned for long-term sustainable expansion