Ensuring the supply of good during Tet Holiday

– In order to ensure a balance between supply and demand of goods to serve the people’s consumption needs and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, distribution businesses as well as supermarkets and retail stores of consumer goods have proactively planned to stockpiling supplies and stabilizing prices of essential items, preventing sudden price increases in the area.

On the occasion of the Lunar New Year, people’s demand for goods increases. According to a forecast of the province’s industry and trade sector, this year, despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, people’s shopping demand will still increase by 15% to 20% compared to normal months of the year. Therefore, from the beginning of October 2021, goods suppliers have actively imported goods early.

A variety of goods are sold at Binh Cam supermarket, Lang Son city. Photo: YEN SON

As a large consumer goods distribution business in the province, Thien Phu Construction Trading Co., Ltd, Lang Son city has built a plan, actively stocked a large amount of goods in the warehouse, ready to meet the consumption demand by the people. Mr. Tran The Kien, Chairman of the Board of Members of the company said: “In order to ensure the supply of essential consumer goods to the Tet market during the complicated development of the COVID-19 pandemic, the company has proactively prepared a financial plan to store goods at the warehouse with a total value of from 25 to 30 billion VND (up 10 to 15% compared to normal months of the year). The main reserve items for Tet holiday are: confectionery, cooking oil, soft drinks, rice. With a distribution network of nearly 2,000 stores and agents in 11/11 districts and city in the province, we are ready to supply goods to people.”

At WinMart supermarket, Lang Son city, the quantity of goods for Tet holiday is diversified in terms of models, brands and prices. Mr. Bui Ngoc Son, Supermarket Director said: “To ensure a full and diversified supply of Tet goods with the criterion of “premium freshness”, we have been working with major commodity suppliers since September 2021, closing output for key commodities. The amount of goods prepared by WinMart Lang Son increased from 40 to 50% compared to normal days in the year with a value about 13 billion VND, in which, mainly focusing on food and essential goods group, fresh food goods. At this time, people have been shopping more bustling, with the number of customers shopping at the supermarket more than 600 times per day. Although the number of visitors has increased significantly, it is still lower than usual in previous years. We will distribute goods, ensuring that the quantity of goods given is always full on shelves with stable prices for consumers to shop comfortably.”

According to information from the Department of Industry and Trade, the province currently has 10 large goods supply enterprises and more than 20,000 retail stores are operating. In order to ensure the supply of goods on the occasion of the Lunar New Year, year of Tiger in 2022, the Department of Industry and Trade has surveyed the supply capacity of large distribution units in the area. At this time, distribution businesses as well as retail stores have completed their plans to stock up on supplies, ready to serve the people’s consumption needs during the Tet holiday. Accordingly, the amount of stock of businesses and retail stores increased by 15 to 20% compared to weekdays. In which, most of essential consumer goods produced domestically (accounting for over 90%).

People shopping at WinMart supermarket, Lang Son city

Mr. Lieu Anh Minh, Deputy Director of the Department of Industry and Trade said: “The province’s industry and trade sector has stepped up the implementation of activities to implement the campaign “Vietnamese people prioritise using Vietnamese goods” to stimulate domestic production,  promote circulation of goods in combination with the supply of goods to stabilize the market during Tet holiday .Along with that, Issuing documents requesting large distribution businesses to promote sales trips to the countryside, well prepare the source of goods and essential consumer goods to serve the people’s  Tet shopping needs. The Department also regularly monitors the market price situation, establishes working groups to inspect and survey the market, and inspects the work of ensuring food safety at markets in the province. From there, avoiding speculation, hoarding, scarcity of goods or sudden price increases.

According to the Department of Industry and Trade, in mid-January 2022, goods for people on Tet holiday were plentiful, diversified, and people’s purchasing power began to increase slightly. Currently, the prices of some essential consumer goods have increased over the same period in 2021 such as the price of cooking oil increase by 30%, soft drinks by 5% to 10%, confectionery by 5%…

In the coming time, in order to ensure people’s safe and convenient shopping as well as to ensure the interests of consumers, functional sectors in the province will continue to check and grasp the situation of market prices. At the same time, the sectors ensure the balance between supply and demand of essential commodities in all pandemic situations, implementing a program to stockpile goods to stabilize the market during and after Tet holiday.