An example of how South Korean influence has permeated the nation is the Superstars concert.
The city of Ho Chi Minh Blackpink will pass through Hyundai stores, CJ Group cinemas, and a variety of other South Korean companies that are widely advertised around Vietnam when they arrive in Hanoi this weekend.
The K-wave has yet to cover the world completely, but in Vietnam, South Korea's impact can be felt in various fields, including football, business, fashion, and entertainment.
The two nations have close economic relations. South Korea has been the largest or second-largest investor in Vietnam for more than a decade. Its inhabitants reside in Korea Town in the affluent southern region of Ho Chi Minh City and other areas throughout the nation.
Officials frequently point to South Korea as a "tiger economy" to imitate as Vietnam attempts to move its factories up the value chain. And the ranks of South Korea Inc., from Samsung to clothing provider Hae Sung, have helped the communist nation.
Tax and trade agreements have aided in developing commercial links between the two nations, according to Choi Bundo, chair of the Korean Chamber of Commerce and Industry for South and Central Vietnam, who spoke to Nikkei Asia.
According to Choi, "High satisfaction with Vietnam's high-quality labor force and expectations that it can replace China, [due to] unstable [relationships] between the U.S. and China, are also important reasons why Korean companies choose Vietnam."
The two sides also share a good deal of ground, he continued. "Korea and Vietnam share a Confucian culture. He continued that Vietnam has a strong affinity for Korean culture, including K-pop and Korean dramas.
The cultural wave, or "hallyu" in Korean, is now viewed as a business potential, even if manufacturing has long been a link between Vietnam and South Korea.
The Hanoi municipal government released an article claiming that drawing and organizing a massive act like Blackpink is "not easy," adding that the two-night performance would demonstrate that Vietnam is open for tourism. This sector is still having difficulty after COVID.
To the joy of the rapidly expanding local K-pop fanbase, the concert would deliver Vietnam's most significant dosage of K-pop to date.
More of those fans can now afford to spend money on Blackpink. According to the Knight Frank Wealth Report, the number of wealthy Vietnamese increased by 110% between 2016 and 2021, the fourth-highest growth in Asia, while a VIP ticket would cost a minimum-wage worker more than a month's wages.
But although fans and factories have forged a tighter bond between the two nations, differences still exist.
Vietnam's industrial sector claims that not all aspects of South Korean culture should be imitated, such as the relentless work schedules, which are also widespread in the entertainment sector. A Blackpink member once admitted to Rolling Stone that she "worked nonstop without resting" and became ill following a world tour.
South Korean enterprises are also facing challenges. The chamber cited Hanoi's proposal to eliminate some tax breaks businesses get when importing ingredients for export-oriented goods.
"There are fears that it will become an investment impediment," Choi said.
Nonetheless, Seoul's industrial policy resonates with those who think Vietnam will avoid the middle-income trap when a developing country's economy plateaus.
According to Anam Electronics, a South Korean business that distributes LG and Harman audio systems, the Southeast Asian country is well on its way.
"[Vietnam] resembles Korea and China at the stage of national development," Anam Vietnam director Park Hyeon-su told Nikkei last year.
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Many Vietnamese consumers regard South Korean trends, from K-pop haircuts to cosmetics, as aspirational. Simply adding "Han Quoc" ("Korean" in Vietnamese) to a product label is marketing and is linked with quality. Walking down a city street is like being bombarded with K-chains: Tous les Jours bakeries, GS25 minimarts, and CJ Group, which owns the majority of cinemas in Vietnam. Vietnam's men's football team, which a beloved South Korean coach led until last year, was also related to the K-craze.
Blackpink is ready to jump into the excitement on Saturday with a show that almost didn't happen.
In early July, the female group faced a possible ban from performing in Vietnam when the culture ministry investigated reports that the concert organizer showed in a map, of the South China Sea illustrating Beijing's disputed rights to the waters, which Vietnam also claims. The problem has been rectified, but something is certain once the K-pop princesses enter the stage.
Another squabble erupted Thursday when music rights holders demanded that the performance be canceled until they were paid royalties. A day later, the organizer told the state-run Tuoi Tre newspaper that a royalty agreement had been reached.