Trung Nguyen Group and the Global Coffee Dream: Advantage at Home but Also Abroad?

Abstract

The case begins before the launch of Trung Nguyen in America in 2013. The brand was created with the desire to enhance the value of domestic coffee beans and to improve the lives of coffee planters in Vietnam. The founder—Vu Dang—was nicknamed the “paranoid guy” after he ditched his bright future as a socially respected doctor and instead took the rocky road to selling coffee. He was desperate to prove himself and hence the paranoia. After 17 years’ successful operation with the coffee franchise chain in Vietnam and Asia, Trung Nguyen became a national coffee leader. Then he wanted to conquer the US coffee market by challenging Starbucks, with the ambition to change the coffee drinking culture of Americans of every social class.