HCMC – Vietnam’s five wood industry associations have announced their strategic cooperation to boost trade promotion and woodwork exports and develop the local wood market.

They are the Association of Vietnam Timber and Forest Product (VIFOREST), the Handicraft and Wood Industry Association of HCMC, the Binh Duong Furniture Association, the Dong Nai Wood and Handicraft Industry Association and the Forest Products Association of Binh Dinh Province.

The partnership is aimed at helping enterprises active in the wood and woodwork industry expand their operations and beef up furniture exports, said Do Xuan Lap, chairman of VIFOREST.

The HCMC Export Furniture Fair 2023, or HawaExpo 2023, which is slated for February 22, will mark the cooperation.

The four-day fair will be held at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center in HCMC, making a start for the subsequent large-scale furniture fairs in Asia.

The event is expected to bring together multiple major Vietnamese woodwork producers and exporters, including AA Corporation, Interwood, Sanyang, Lam Viet, Dai Thanh, Tien Dat, Truong Thanh, An Cuong, Woodlands and Scansia Pacific.

Allan Kjaer, business development manager of Fine Scandinavia, said that despite the slow growth of the local wood industry in 2022, Vietnam is still an ideal destination for international furniture buyers.

The fair will act as a link between Vietnamese furniture suppliers and foreign partners, he added.