Henrik Pontoppidan, Director of S2U Design, talks about another hidden gem in Vietnam, this time shining the spotlight on ALC Corporation.
ALC Corporation, famous in Vietnam as the CASTA Kitchen Brand, is a beacon of innovation and craftsmanship. With a proud history spanning over two decades, ALC has cemented its reputation as a leading provider of high-quality mass-produced kitchens, throughout Vietnam. Now, with a capacity of app. 200 containers per month, the Company is well underway to become a force to be reckoned with in the Global Furniture Market.
Just because I’m on the ground in Vietnam, I’ve had the fortune and privilege of working with the team at ALC and witnessing their remarkable journey firsthand, discovering scale. technology and capabilities, hard to come by in Vietnam – and where such capabilities do exist, global buyers are usually queuing up. But for most global buyers, ALC Corporation is still a hidden gem. And I can only recommend exploring it.
The year 2017 marked a significant milestone for ALC. Lead by Chairman and CEO Mr. Luu Quang Loc, ALC Corporation embarked on a bold endeavour to construct their current cutting-edge, more than 400,000 square foot factory. The key strategic driver for this significant investment was a desire to target the global Furniture market, diversifying their kitchen production. It was deemed necessary to demonstrate noticeable advantages in both technology and scale to attract discerning buyers worldwide, and therefore to build a super modern state-of-the art factory.
This new factory is now a testament to ALC Corporation’s unwavering commitment to innovation and growth. Despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, ALC’s new factory has been operating since 2020, with all capabilities fully realized. Now, the focus shifts towards strategic development in the global markets, fuelled by an unwavering appetite to cater to the most discerning customers on the international scene.
Thus, ALC’s story is one of resilience and ambition, rooted in its foundational role as a major supplier of kitchens to large-scale domestic construction projects throughout Vietnam. For decades, In Vietnam, ALC’s CASTA brand has been synonymous with reliability and excellence, earning the trust of developers and homeowners alike with its top-notch kitchen solutions. While kitchens still remain the backbone of ALC’s production, the company’s endeavour to venture into crafting general indoor furniture draws on its expertise in cabinets, honed through years of experience in the kitchen industry. General indoor furniture for the global market is now a rapidly growing portion of the output and this pattern will undoubtedly remain the key source of growth for the years to come. The company is so confident in this trajectory that plans to double the factory space to almost a million square feet are about to be realised.
An eye-opening visit to the new CASTA factory equipped with cutting-edge modern technology, is nothing short of jaw-dropping. I would have liked to share pictures in this article of their ‘machine streets’ – perhaps 50 meters long processing lines, which automatically take a panel through precise cutting, 3D drilling, molding, sanding and edge-banding, to come out in the other end, ready to assemble or pack. – In literally a minute or two! Or their impressive UV lines. But at this level of technology, taking pictures for broadcasting is not ‘the done thing’ and of course this should be respected.
“The fact that we have never heard of this factory suggests that we should definitely come out of our office more,”
remarked a visiting representative for a large Family Run US retailer, who is now a customer of ALC.
A representative of one of the leading Kitchen Manufacturers in Canada, whom I took out there, commented: “We can definitely learn a lot from these guys!”
If you are interested in exploring this opportunity, you are welcome to reach out.
henrik@s2udesign.com / www.s2udesign.com / www.alcvietnam.com
