Thien Long's ball-pen business expands overseas

After seven years of working on penetrating the local stationery market, Thien Long achieved a solid standing in seven states and seven administrative divisions of Myanmar, attaining an estimated turnover of $2.8 million in 2017, a 57 per cent increase against 2016 revenue.

Two leading product lines that Thien Long planned to export to Southeast Asian countries are Flexoffice and Colokit. The stationery market in Myanmar amounts to roughly 50 per cent of the group’s total export revenue.

The key for Thien Long to conquer targeted markets is concentrating on local distribution channels and the implementation of research and development (R&D) in the targeted country.

With 30 years of experience in the stationery field, variables Thien Long included in their equation of success have three main components: selecting appropriate products, seeking compatible business partners, and supporting distributors and business partners.

Thien Long’s R&D strategy was specifically designated for each country. Take Laos and Cambodia for example. By living side-by-side with them instead of as expatriates, Thien Long’s R&D team managed to grasp an understanding of local consumption dynamics, gaining a decisive edge over competition.

Tran Huynh, business development manager at Thien Long, shared, “We cooperated with distributors to set up and develop our business through trading and marketing. Had we partnered up with more distributors at the beginning, the group would have achieved over 50 per cent of market share.”

The group’s next target is to attack the Asia-Pacific and Africa which appear to be the two most prospective markets in the next decade. Thien Long’s long-term objective is to continuously improve product quality to accomplish more and set a foothold in new markets.