By Sitaram Mewati
As India and Vietnam mark a decade of their Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, the Consulate General of Vietnam in Mumbai on Thursday convened a high-level business roundtable at the Trident Hotel, BKC, aimed at deepening bilateral cooperation in the coffee sector and facilitating the entry of Vietnam’s leading coffee brand, Trung Nguyen Legend, into the Indian market.
The event, titled “Vietnam-India Strategic Cooperation in the Coffee Sector,” was organised in collaboration with the Indo-Vietnamese Chamber of Commerce and Industries (IVCCI), World Trade Center (WTC) Mumbai and Trung Nguyen Legend Group. It was held against the backdrop of record bilateral trade of nearly USD 16.46 billion in calendar year 2025, underscoring the growing economic engagement between the two countries.
His Excellency Le Quang Bien, Vietnam’s Consul General in Mumbai, addressing the coffee sector roundtable
Addressing Indian business leaders and industry stakeholders, Vietnam’s Consul General in Mumbai, Le Quang Bien, said the two nations should move beyond a conventional trading relationship and work towards building a long-term partnership across the coffee value chain. “India and Vietnam are both global coffee giants. However, we should not view each other as competitors, but as complementary partners. By combining Vietnam’s position as the world’s second-largest coffee exporter with India’s manufacturing scale and logistics strength, we can capture the global value chain together,” he said.
The roundtable marked the formal engagement of Trung Nguyen Legend, Vietnam’s most prominent coffee group, with Indian industry. The Vietnamese delegation was led by Cam Tu, Vice President of Global Business, who outlined a strategy focused on localisation rather than a purely export-driven approach. According to officials, the company’s India plan includes setting up local processing and production facilities, developing products suited to Indian consumer preferences, and integrating Indian supply chains and logistics networks for wider regional and global distribution.
Cam Tu, Vice President of Global Business at Vietnam’s Trung Nguyen Legend, said, “Our vision is not just to sell coffee in India, but to grow with India and create value within the Indian economy.” Cam Tu added that India’s large market and strong manufacturing ecosystem made it a key destination for the company’s international expansion. The statement came as the Consulate General of Vietnam in Mumbai on Thursday convened a high-level business roundtable at the Trident Hotel, BKC, to mark ten years of the India-Vietnam Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and explore deeper cooperation in the coffee sector.
Following the roundtable, the Consulate General of Vietnam and the Trung Nguyen Legend delegation held a working session with the World Trade Center Mumbai to explore establishing a physical presence for the brand within the WTC complex, which officials said would serve as the company’s initial business and showcase hub in India and could act as a gateway for expansion into other major cities, marking a concrete step in translating the broader Vietnam-India strategic partnership into on-ground business collaboration.
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