Thanks to the creativeness and new methods of the locals, Binh Phu bamboo craft village in Thach That district, Hanoi has made positive changes with bamboo blinds. Products made by Binh Phu villagers have been used as décor items in luxurious restaurants and hotels as well as in the living spaces of customers around the world.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, when people are working from home more, they pay attention to their living spaces. That is the reason why Binh Phu bamboo blinds and decorative products from bamboo have a bigger export volume than before the pandemic. In addition, consumers in developed countries have returned to using handmade and environmentally friendly products.

Taking this favorable opportunity, the younger generation of the craft village has integrated creativity, aesthetics and new methods to bring local products to conquer the global market.

Visiting the packing workshop of Dai Viet Handicraft Co., Ltd, there are many product labels printed in two languages and even product codes in three or four languages. Director of the company Nguyen Khac Dong said that the exports from his company has reached over 10 billion dong (450,000 US dollars) a year during the pandemic. 

Wooden looms are equipped with additional support devices to increase productivity. Photo: Tran Thanh Giang/VNP     Working at Dai Viet’s workshop. Photo: Tran Thanh Giang/VNP   Products are ready to be shipped. Photo: Tran Thanh Giang/VNP

 

Before the 1990s, there were 50 percent of the households in Thach That engaged in making blinds. However, like other craft villages in Vietnam, they had to go through a period of economic transition. The village did not change in time to catch up with the buying trends of domestic and foreign markets. At the same time, the products were faced with competition from other industrial products. They were gradually disappearing due to lack of output.

Unwilling to lose the traditional craft and continuing his father's work and aspiration with the craft village, Dong researched and improved the product designs. Dong has created fine models of bamboo blinds to offer to foreign partners and choosy markets.

Seeing the weakness in designs of traditional craft villages, Dong focused on product research, improvement and development. This is not a new mindset in business, but it is extremely rare in a traditional craft village. It has helped Dai Viet with exclusive products that foreign partners need.

Dai Viet has made almost all the products used in households in the village according to the company's orders. The company also has a number of manufacturers in the craft village and neighboring provinces to meet export orders.

As one of the first enterprises in the craft village that has created and improved product designs, Dai Viet is proof of the dynamism of the next generation of the village, making local products to reach out to the global market.

Binh Phu’s products are exported to several countries: