Mekong Capital’s investee companies expand presence in Vietnam

A number of companies in the investment portfolio of Mekong Capital, a leading fund manager in Vietnam, have expanded their operations in the Southeast Asian country, according to a Q1 report by the fund.

Marou

Marou recorded 82% year-on-year growth in Q1/2024 net revenue with its retail network of 15 shops in big cities and popular tourist hotspots in Vietnam and nine kiosks in Tan Son Nhat International Airport.

In March 2024, the company unveiled its first international pop-up store at Takashimaya Orchard shopping mall in Singapore, marking the first stepping stone to opening the Maison Marou concept overseas.

LiveSpo

In Q1, LiveSpo, a consumer health company manufacturing and selling liquid spore-based probiotic supplements, recorded a 36% year-on-year increase in net revenue. This was mainly attributed to the company’s expanding network of modern trade stores that carry its products and increasing the number of LiveSpo’s product types available at each store.

During the quarter, research by the National Children’s Hospital and Spore Probiotics Research Center validated the effectiveness of LiveSpo CLAUSY in supporting the treatment of prolonged diarrhea in children.

LiveSpo is well-known for nasal-spray spore probiotic, LiveSpo NAVAX.

Gene Solutions

In January 2024, Gene Solutions, a leading genetic testing company that specializes in Non-Invasive Prenatal Testing for pregnant women, launched two new products, triSure thalass and Carrier thalass, bringing its reproductive health genetic testing portfolio to 10 products.

With these two new products, Gene Solutions can now screen for Thalassemia, a genetic blood disorder that affects the production of the protein in red blood cells that carry oxygen. It is the most common genetic disorder found in pregnancies in Vietnam with 8,000 cases per year, compared to 1,800 cases of babies born with Down syndrome.

Gene Solutions currently has a presence in Vietnam, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines.

Vua Nem

Vua Nem, a leading mattress retail company in Vietnam in terms of number of stores, opened two new outlets in April, bringing the total number of stores nationwide to 131. The store-level earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation in Q1 achieved 115% year-on-year growth as a result of Vua Nem proactively introducing more quality products at affordable price ranges to cater for the needs of mass Vietnamese consumers.

Vua Nem offers an omnichannel shopping experience with a wide range of mattresses, bedding accessories, and sleep solutions such as multi-brand mattresses, bedding accessories, and adjustable beds.

HSV Group

In Q1, HSV Group opened two new Beauty Box stores, expanding its network of stores to 19 in-mall locations nationwide. Beauty Box is a multi-brand skincare and cosmetics retail chain.

During the quarter, HSV also signed partnership agreements for three new Korean brands – VDL, Freshian, and Isa Knox – to be exclusively available in Beauty Box stores.

Mutosi

In Q1, Mutosi, a manufacturer and distributor specializing in producing water purifiers and electrical appliances following Japanese standards, launched two new products of iOn Alkaline Hydrogen water purifiers.

F88

With technical assistance from Australian Development Investments, since March, pawn shop chain F88 has introduced a new secured-lending package featuring exclusive deals designed specifically for women-led micro and small enterprises in Vietnam to expand their businesses.

Founded in 2013 by three entrepreneurs, F88 is one of Vietnam’s largest financial service chains providing vehicle title lending and insurance to underbanked people through its 813 branches nationwide as of March 31, 2024.

Other companies invested by Mekong Capital include biotechnology firm Entobel, proptech firm Rever, retail chain Pharmacity, education firm Yola, Nhat Tin Logistics, restaurant chain Red Wok, and ABA Cooltrans.