Consumer value orientation in Vietnam’ urban middle class

Abstract

Asia’s modern middle class is strongly value oriented, balancing quality (product characteristics) against price. The economic crisis may have forced consumers to watch their budgets more closely, but they have not shifted from their basic value orientation to strong price orientation. Vietnam provides a good example of this. It was not hit as hard as many Asian countries, but it started with much lower incomes, and the economy has slowed down substantially. Yet even in Vietnam, surveys show that strong value orientation continues. Price is not the most important attribute which most consumers consider, but neither do they disregard it completely. They consider product attributes first, while price is usually near the middle of the list of attributes, not at the bottom. These patterns, though measured on several different types of scales in these surveys, are all consistent with strong value orientation.