In this episode of You Don’t Know Vietnam, Ian Paynton travels (virtually) to Hai Phong — Vietnam’s third-largest city and rising industrial powerhouse — to speak with Koen Soenens, the Sales & Marketing Director of DEEP C, the European-managed industrial zone developer that’s been helping the shape economic growth in the region for nearly 30 years. Koen shares why Hai Phong is being compared to Shanghai, how Vietnam became a “safe bet” for global business, and what it really takes to succeed here: long-term commitment, local understanding, and community engagement. From bamboo diplomacy to air quality challenges, this episode is packed with grounded insights on navigating Vietnam’s business culture and future potential. Whether you're exploring Vietnam as a China +1 strategy, expanding your manufacturing footprint, or just curious about life beyond Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, this one’s for you.

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If you enjoy this conversation or think someone in your network could find value in it, please share it and hit follow to get notified when the next episode drops.

This podcast is brought to you by We Create Content, the content marketing agency that builds audiences for global brands in Vietnam. You can follow our host, Ian Paynton, on LinkedIn, and follow the podcast on Instagram, TikTok and X.

A special thanks to DJ Jase at The Beats Saigon for the soundtrack, and to YOU for listening.

In Vietnam’s fast-paced F&B landscape, where trends explode and vanish overnight, kombucha entrepreneur Faya Nguyen chose a different path — and it’s working. In this episode, Faya shares how she grew her brand Cultra Brewery from her parents’ garage into a premium kombucha supplier trusted by top hotels, restaurants, and wellness-minded consumers across Vietnam. We explore how slowing down helped her build long-term partnerships, why trust and transparency matter in Vietnam’s evolving business culture, and what other founders can learn from resisting the urge to scale fast. If you’ve ever wondered whether patience, craft, and care still have a place in fast-moving Vietnam — this one’s for you.

Send us a text

If you enjoy this conversation or think someone in your network could find value in it, please share it and hit follow to get notified when the next episode drops.

This podcast is brought to you by We Create Content, the content marketing agency that builds audiences for global brands in Vietnam. You can follow our host, Ian Paynton, on LinkedIn, and follow the podcast on Instagram, TikTok and X.

A special thanks to DJ Jase at The Beats Saigon for the soundtrack, and to YOU for listening.

Meet Ankita Ghosh, a creative director and stand up comedian who is based in Ho Chi Minh City and runs Saigon International Comedy. In this episode of You Don't Know Vietnam, she talks about the state of stand up comedy in Vietnam right now, what you can joke about and what you can't, and how the comedy scene changes from north to south. She explains what it was like moving from Bangladesh to Vietnam as a creative director in advertising, and talks through her role on the Durex Vietnam account, which became famous nationwide for its hilarious always-on social media content that tapped into real time global trends to generate buzzy local conversation.

Send us a text

If you enjoy this conversation or think someone in your network could find value in it, please share it and hit follow to get notified when the next episode drops.

This podcast is brought to you by We Create Content, the content marketing agency that builds audiences for global brands in Vietnam. You can follow our host, Ian Paynton, on LinkedIn, and follow the podcast on Instagram, TikTok and X.

A special thanks to DJ Jase at The Beats Saigon for the soundtrack, and to YOU for listening.