Trạm Bánh Mì Street food

Created an entrepreneur in a communist country

For the 1st semester of my Junior year, I decided to study Abroad in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Now I know that may sound crazy, but experiencing a 180° culture shift like that is pretty remarkable. It seriously made me question what was really possible out of business; how does someone make money as a street food vendor when the most expensive meal they serve only comes out to 30¢ USD? From the beginning, that was such an intriguing question for me. Being paired up with a business student at a local university for my semester-long stay gave me the ability to answer that question. Anh Sơn taught me the ins-and-outs of the informal economy of Vietnam. We went from place to place eating, drinking, laughing, and most importantly... learning.

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Project:

Position:

Executive Advisor

Discipline:

Food & Beverage

Duration:

September 2018 - December 2018

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Results:

After hearing Sơn’s dreams of owning his own vendor cart, I got to work helping plan the future of what would become: Trạm Bánh Mì. Sơn was extremely hesitant at first to take the leap to owning his own business, but in the end we began further research & development toward his dream. We worked tirelessly with the goal of being able to open the stand before I left the country. As the semester came to a close, I continued to help Sơn as we sourced materials & food supplies for the business. Unfortunately I was not in Vietnam for the grand opening of Trạm Bánh Mì, but I continued to help Sơn after I left & still continue to this day. I learned so much about how significant both perspective & relativity can play in business. The stand still lives on today @ Cs1: 57 đường B5, KDC Phú Thịnh, kp3, phường Long Bình Tân, Biên Hòa, Đồng Nai, Vietnam. Since being back I continue to assist Sơn with Trạm Bánh Mì. We have expanded his business into a retail restaurant with additional mobile carts!