High standard coffee shop - reasons for rapid growth

Why there is room for high standard coffeehouses to grow in Vietnam?

Not very long time ago, so simple was a café shop in Vietnam that almost every single house could be one. All a to-become shop owner need were just a considerable space for some set of tables and chairs, an obsolete music player and certain contemporary compact discs, and of course a counter to store coffee and some other non-alcohol drinks. People at that time did accept such shops because they just needed somewhere to rest or have a drink. However, together with the dramatic development of the country in every aspects of life, coffee shops have themselves changed a lot. Higher development of the national economic has led to higher standards of life. People are now having a great demand for high-standard services such as education, health care, entertainment, etc. High standard coffee shops are, as a consequence, gradually developing at a tremendous number. These shops are, though very expensive, warmly accepted by a great number of people. Customers of this kind of coffee shop enjoy it not only because it is a suitable place for them to work or relax but also because it is where they can show off their affluence.

As mentioned above, modern coffee shops are completely different from their “predecessors”. They are now not only a place for drinking coffee. Owners design their shop to serve specific purposes; there are coffee shops for teenagers, businessmen, or certain kind of music lovers, etc. Businessmen more and more prefer holding their business appointment at coffee shop to the office rooms. Reasons for this choice, according to Mr. Tam a businessmen in Saigon, are “space, privacy, convenience and services”. Space, according to Tam, is the decoration of the shop. It can be a modern western style, or a stimulation of antique shop, or a corner of countryside. Privacy is the private atmosphere he can have in a private room in the shop. Convenience, next, is the shop’s location. Whether or not the shop is in the city centre or near his office is very important. Services, finally, is not only the quality of the foods or drinks, but also the extra services like strong wi-fi system, pleasant waiters, etc. He adds that nowadays going to coffee shop is not to enjoy the drink but to have a space for your own. “If you want to have coffee, why not have it at home or at your office? I can pay much for a coffee shop to “buy” its unique style, its decoration and music”

Coffee shop can also be a place for relaxing. Some coffee shops are for teenagers only; they have special rooms with hundreds volumes of comic books and some toys for teenagers to play with their friends. Goody Plus, district 1, HCMC, is a good example of this type. Teenagers can read manga books, playing domino, chess in the rhythm of hip hop. The other shops offer their customers with a space of all gernes of music. Rock fans can come to Trúc Mai, Dạ Nguyệt, Tùng, HardRock while Trịnh lovers can get together at Vô Thường, Về Cội, Thềm Xưa, Du Miên… Teenagers also have a tendency to celebrate their birthday parties at coffee shop rather than at home. “You don’t need to do anything”, says M a teenager girl, “spacious and ventilating room, delicious foods and drinks, essential accessories are all available. Moreover, you don’t need to prepare or clean up before and after the party”.All of the people above have taken advantage of high standard coffee shops for positive purposes. There, on the other hand, are also some exceptions – those who abuse coffee shops for their boastfulness. You sometimes can see groups of young people with colorful hair, strange clothes in coffee shops. They come there neither for drinking nor for relaxing. They just sit in group, usually smoking, displaying their laptop and other hi-tech devices. They also usually make noise to attract others’ attention to their affluence. While others use their laptop to surf the internet to collect information for working or studying, they just use it to play online game. It’s a great pity that there are lots of coffee shops designed particularly for these kind of customers.

It is discernible that high standard coffee shop have become an indispensable part of our lives today. Their facilities have met people’s demands. Coffee shops have also become a culture of Ho Chi Minh city.