Cogniplus Interiors selects Vietnam for regional expansion

A caring, harmonious workplace ensures quality and work efficiency. This belief and practice have helped Cogniplus Interiors, an interior design and fit out firm, achieve impressive growth in just 10 years of its establishment, company leader says.

Cogniplus Interiors, founded in 2005, is a 100-percent foreign-owned company managed by the board of directors with over 30 years of experience. It provides a broad spectrum of interior design and fitting-out services to business entities primarily in Vietnam but has also serviced clients in Singapore, Malaysia and Cambodia.

Its extensive project portfolio includes corporate and industrial offices, banking and financial institutions, international hotels and resorts, golf club houses, high-end retail shops, cosmetic kiosks, shopping malls, exhibition centers, eastern and western restaurants, food courts and cafes.

Cogniplus has also been active in the residential market focusing on penthouses and villas.

The company received ISO 9001 accreditation in June 2008, and is proud to have steadily gained customers’ trust and professional credibility.

Joseph Tham said the company owes its strong position to continuous striving without becoming complacent. “Looking back, we have faced a lot of difficulties but we have always tried our best to improve ourselves during these challenging times. As a professional interiors supplier we understand the customer’s need for inner spaces that are in harmony with their intended functions, selected materials and technical requirements. We strive to achieve customer satisfaction in terms of budget, quality and completion schedule,” he added.

The decisive factor in the success achieved by Cogniplus is its manpower, Joseph Tham said.

“It would not have been possible without all our staffs who ceaselessly work hard together. Our human resources are our most valuable asset. At Cogniplus, we focus on increasing our team’s effectiveness through regular training programs. In 2014, we implemented the performance management system APEI that improves our ability to deliver on time and offer the best possible quality,”   he stressed.

The company’s dynamism is based on the management concept of ‘Starting from Love,’ Joseph Tham explained. Thus, we strive to build a warm and harmonious working environment that is like a family, based on caring and understanding.

Regional vision

Language is an important part of Cogniplus’ expansion plans. For several years now, 50 percent of its business has originated from Chinese speaking clients from Taiwan, China and Hong Kong with most of the rest from English speaking markets. However, he has also noticed recently a significant increase in the number of Vietnamese clients who understand the need for high quality finishing.

“We are also working to enhance and develop a relationship within the Japanese and Korean speaking markets this year.  We have established a 5-year plan that targets the strengthening of our relationship with each language market,” Joseph Tham said.

“We must become stronger to get bigger. We will continue to focus on improvement throughout our organization so that all aspects of our projects meet the criteria to deliver the best quality, to work productively, to control project costs, to keep site safe & clean at all times, and to complete projects on time”.

Joseph Tham said he foresees Vietnam as being a significant part of his company’s growth in the next 10-year phase. “Our industry is having a booming year. So we are totally positive about Cogniplus’ future in Vietnam”.

He also added that Vietnam has become a more attractive destination for foreign investors because of FTAs signed with other countries. The country is developing with a stable political climate that makes businesses feel safe. The policy support from the government has created a lot of room for foreign investors. Vietnam’s 90 million people give it a human resource base that will create more growth opportunities in the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), he said.

“AEC offers good chances as well as challenges for local companies. The increase in the number of competitors will push us to upgrade our management, quality and services. Who is better will survive”.

Joseph Tham said his company had anticipated the AEC agreement. “So we have already been studying the Myanmar market for the last two years, seeking business opportunities. We also started doing business in Cambodia. Our goal is to expand business in the ASEAN community, keeping Vietnam as our business base.”

Joseph Tham said that under the auspices of the AEC, Malaysian firms doing business in Vietnam can bring advanced technology and cooperate with local companies to make a win-win situation instead of competing.

“Good products, good relations between two countries, job opportunities and better working skills for Vietnamese, technology transfer and so on. These are the profits we will get.”

My My / ven.vn