Online brand promotion and lifestyle platform Punpromotion Co (Punpro) and Bangkok-based startup advisory Really Corporation Co, better known as Sea Bridge, plan to set up a joint venture holding firm as a media and communication agency to help Thai brands expand globally, beginning with Vietnam.
"We are a pioneer in providing content by using data and consumer insights to develop and brand strategic communication planning online. We'll expand to Vietnam initially," said Kritsada Tanking, co-chief executive of Punpro, which has more than 10 content brands of its own that have 15 million followers.
He said Punpro has partnered with Sea Bridge, also known as Really Corporation Co, to help local brands expand in Vietnam. The company uses the Vietnamese language to communicate with target customers and tell brand stories.
Within the past six months, the company established the Vietnamese "Nghien Thai" platform to promote Thai brands and tourism. When translated into Thai "Nghien Thai" means "to fall in love with Thainess". The platform has 100,000 followers at present and the company is targeting 1 million followers within this year.
"We bring culture, products and services, including ones related to Thai tourism, to create more awareness among the Vietnamese people," said Mr Kritsada.
Casper Sermsuksan, the founder of Sea Bridge, said after its success in helping local startups' platforms expand in Southeast Asia, the company has gained expertise through its international network, local partners and government relationships to help products and services from Thailand expand in the global market.
Local food and consumer products, health and wellness, and toursim are among the sectors with brands that could tap the Vietnamese market, Mr Casper said.
Vietnam has a population of 100 million and roughly 50 million are aged between 18 and 35 years old. A lot of Vietnamese international students tend to return home to work following their studies. Vietnam has also invested heavily which helped increase the monthly income of workers last year by 6.9% from 7.1 million dong (10,351 baht) per month previously.
By September, the two companies will establish a joint-venture firm as a holding firm but its name has yet to be finalised. It could be "SeaBridge Punpro Media". It would serve as a media and communication agency and as a one-stop gateway to the international market.
"The next goal is expanding our online platform to Indonesia, China, South Korea and Saudi Arabia," said Mr Casper.
He said the Vietnamese governemnt supports local platforms. It also has platforms overseas in a similar way that Thailand does that open opportunities in terms of cross border e-commerce.
"We treat the Vietnamese as an equal partner and train their young people to be content creators and influencers while promoting Thai brands and personalising Thai brands to fit with their preferences," said Mr Casper.
He gave an example of a Thai coffee brand that is sold in Vietnam but uses Vietnamese coffee beans.
"This case shows brands can increase their revenue in a new market with returns to the community that helps growth in a sustainable way."
Orawan Kittithananiran, Punpro's chief marketing officer, said Punpro's success is creating content by using insights in a humane and authentic way.
"We will develop our content in Vietnam through TikTok soon. We also partner with Vietnamese search engine 'Coc Coc' which has over 30 million users," Ms Orawan added.