The Coffee Queen of Vietnam has been listed in Forbes magazine, the largest coffee brand in Vietnam.

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This year coincides with the 100th anniversary of the founding of Forbes International. The October edition of Forbes Asia introduced an accomplished Vietnamese woman entrepreneur, Ms. Li Huangyecao. The female entrepreneur may be both familiar and unfamiliar. In 2012, her ex-husband, Mr. Deng Liyuan Wu, appeared in Forbes magazine and was known as the "King of Coffee." Now, Ms. Li Huang Yechao has become the new "King of Coffee" with the recently launched high-end brand "Tim Ai Zun Shang" Coffee.

The Story of the Coffee Queen

In an article titled "Coffee Queen" (Coffee King's Queen) in Forbes magazine, Ms. Lai Huang Ye Cao was described as "the CEO of the recently rising and high-profile TNI KING COFFEE coffee brand in Vietnam".

Ms Lai Wong Ye Cao, TNI Corporation CEO

The "Tim Ai Zun Shang" coffee series has spread to more than 60 countries around the world, with a turnover of US $60 million in the first year. The Tian Ai Zun Shang Coffee factory, located in an industrial zone 64 kilometers from Ho Chi Minh City, was a sensation in Vietnamese business when it was completed in April 2017.

In an interview with Forbes magazine, Ms. Li Huangyecao revealed many intriguing stories behind the founding of the Central Plains Group.

Ms. Li Huang Ye Cao and Mr. Deng Li Yuan Wu met in 1994, when Mr. Deng Li Yuan Wu was just a college student at Bang Mei Shu University, the coffee capital of Vietnam, and with the financial support of her family, Ms. Li Huang Ye Cao had already opened the first coffee shop called Central Plains. They married in 1998 and quickly developed Central Plains Coffee into the largest coffee brand in Vietnam, in which Ms. Li Huang Ye Cao played the role of management and operation of the company, discussing the company's development strategy with her husband.

As an international market manager, Ms. Li Huangyecao founded Zhongyuan International and opened a chain of coffee shops in Singapore, which is the predecessor of TNI CORPORATION, the company to which Tian Ai Zun Shang belongs.

Before Tian Aizun Shang Coffee went on sale in Vietnam, Ms. Li Huang Ye Cao first launched Tian Aizun Shang Coffee in the American market, eager to build a strong and stable Vietnamese brand through Tian Aizun Shang Coffee. Ms. Li Huang Ye Cao's wish is to establish a globally recognized Vietnamese brand to keep pace with the world's major coffee groups.

Lead Vietnamese enterprises to go global

At present, Ms. Li Huangyecao is operating two coffee factories, one in Beijiang, where G7 coffee is produced, and the other in Pingyang, where Tianzun Shang coffee is produced.

The success of the Central Plains allowed Ms. Li Huangyecao to lay the foundation for her successful career. However, she did not regard the competition between "Tien Ai Zun Shang" Coffee and the Central Plains Group as a top priority. "Tim Ai Zun Shang Coffee will not compete with the Central Plains Group, I will let them succeed together," she said. "

Ms Lai Wong Ye Cao, TNI Corporation CEO

"for many years, Vietnam has been the second largest coffee exporter in the world after Brazil, and now Vietnam accounts for 1/5 of the global coffee supply," Forbes magazine said in evaluating the potential of Vietnam's coffee industry. In 2012, Forbes Asia magazine interviewed Mr. Deng Rihara, who was already the leader in the Vietnamese coffee market with a coffee export value of US $3.5 billion. Although it is difficult for the Vietnamese market to reach this export peak again because of the failure of coffee harvest, the decline in coffee bean prices and other reasons. "

Vietnam's food production process is facing many difficulties, and Mr. Deng Le Yuan Wu and Ms. Li Huang Ye Cao, as Vietnam's leading coffee producers, are also worried about how to enhance the value of Vietnamese coffee. According to statistics over the past five years, 95% of Vietnam's exported coffee is coffee beans, and only 5% are processed coffee, which makes Vietnamese processed coffee unable to compete with enterprises in other countries. The most typical case is Starbucks. When Starbucks entered the Vietnamese market in 2013, it launched Dalat Blend, a processed Vietnamese coffee. A bag of 250g costs US $12.50, 20 times higher than the price of coffee beans in Vietnam.

Among the thousands of domestic enterprises, several coffee companies are among the best in the coffee retail industry, such as Central Plains (which owns Legend coffee chains), Vinacafe (currently owned by Masan Group) and Nestl é Coffee. The Central Plains Group has had five factories and more than 40 chain coffee shops since 2012, and Mr. Deng Liyuan Wu, who rarely appears in front of the media, said in an interview: to combine philosophy with business to create a new way of tasting coffee.

In the face of the continuous changes and challenges of the market, Ms. Li Huangyecao is determined to launch a high-end brand-"Tian Ai Zun Shang" coffee (TNI KING COFFEE). "I know the coffee market very well and I want to lead the international development of the Vietnamese coffee industry," she said. I would like to participate in the development of the coffee growing industry across Vietnam, assist farmers in growing coffee beans, and ensure the quality of coffee beans, which is the long-term orientation of our business operations. "

In the near future, she will serve as Vice President of the Vietnam Coffee Association (VICOFA). In addition, she has accompanied the Prime Minister and President of Vietnam on visits to Japan and Russia.

Ms Lai Wong Ye Cao, TNI Corporation CEO

Ms. Li Huangyecao said: "challenges can bring energy to me. It is said that there must be a woman behind a successful man, so can a woman succeed on her own?" I'll try. "