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Moon cake sales go slow
The sale of moon cakes have been so slow that sellers in HCM City have had to offer discounts of up to 20 per cent and free gifts.
With the mid autumn festical just one week away, and with moon cakes an indispendable part of the festivities, sellers might have expected sales to pick up.
However they’ve had to rely on discounting and promotions to shift the traditional confectionary made primarily with lotus seed paste and a thin pastry crust.
Moon cake brands Ben Thanh Dong Khanh, Son Long Dong Khanh, Song Long Dong Khanh and Hong Hoa Dong Khanh have all announced big price reductions for their products.
These “Dong Khanh” brands are all imitators of the original Dong Khanh mooncake producer.
At some shops they’re offering buy-one-get-one-free deals with further free gifts including pia cakes - a speciality of Soc Trang province.
Trung, the owner of a retail chain selling Ben Thanh Dong Khanh brand name moon cakes, said that by this time last year they had sold 50 per cent of the eventual total. This year, however, he has sold only 10 per cent of the volume he had hoped for.
“My saleswomen are not busy selling cakes like they were in previous years. They are sitting idle,” Trung said.
He added that on September 23, he decided to lower the sale price by 20 percent and suggested further reductions could be on their way.
Thu, the owner of a stall selling Song Long Dong Khanh brand name moon cakes in district five said she couldn’t have imagined sales would go so slowly.
Thu says she is trying to lure more customers by offering one box of pia cake valued at 35,000 dong free to the buyers of four Song Long Dong Khanh moon cakes.
The ‘Dong Khanh’ brand names are continuing to lead the way with their 20 per cent discounts - much higher than those offered by Kinh Do or Bibica.
However part of the problem has been blamed on the initial pre-discounted moon cake prices. This year prices at the outset were 10 per cent higher than previous years.
vietnamnet, vneconomy
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