The cooperation between tourism and commerce is successful or not thanks to the investment and careful preparation of the two industries, in which each industry must have a good, effective and important way of doing it, and synchronously supporting in order to create attractive programmes and products to serve tourists.

Shopping activities are indispensable to most tourists during their travel itineraries. Visitors to the Son Tra Night Market

Many coordination and promotion activities

Over the past time, the Da Nang Department of Tourism and the municipal Department of Industry and Trade have actively coordinated to effectively organise many important activities and events in the city, aiming at introducing products, promoting tourism activities and expanding consumption markets.

Included are the annual International East-West Economic Corridor (EWEC) Trade and Tourism Fair, Viet Nam International Travel Mart (VITM) Da Nang 2022, the week of promotion to stimulate shopping demand in 2022, a national promotion month-the Viet Nam Grand Sale 2022 programme, and Viet Nam Online Shopping Day 2022.

Also, the two industries advised the municipal People's Committee to issue Decision No. 1708/QD-UBND dated June 24, 2022 approving the project on conducting research and proposing the formation of a number of tourist markets in the city.

Notably, the Department of Industry and Trade completed the upgrade of a number of items in the Han Market in March 2023, thereby contributing to creating a highlight as a tourist destination market in the city.

Also, non-cash payment at the markets has been promoted in the city, creating a quick and convenient payment method for tourists when coming to Da Nang.

Besides, the Department of Industry and Trade continues to support local tourism souvenir product making facilities to produce Da Nang-branded products in a bid to meet increasing demand of domestic and international tourists.

In order to improve service quality, the tourism and industry and trade industries have jointly organised training courses on commercial civilisation, food safety, market management, environmental protection, behaviour towards customers, and raising the awareness of each small merchant that each seller is a cultural ambassador.

Mr. Vo Van Anh, Chairman of the Da Nang Tourist Guides’ Association, underlined a need for the city to call for investment to build large-scale shopping malls, and add more featured souvenir products.

He added, after COVID-19 pandemic, the needs and tastes of tourists have changed a lot, so it is necessary to produce items that are suitable for the tastes of tourists. The focus should be on producing high quality tourism products, creating a value-added chain of commercial products, and developing more unique souvenirs, plus entertainment and dining areas.

Deputy Director of the municipal Department of Tourism Nguyen Xuan Binh underlined a necessity to restructure tourism products based on two factors of promoting the city's cultural factors through tourism products and developing products meeting the needs about high quality and good service.

Moreover, it is necessary to promote high-quality gift products, associated with the iconic symbols of the city, attract major international brands of fashion and handbags, appeal for investors to build trade centers with high-end products to serve diverse customer markets.

Building synchronously commercial infrastructure

Aside from Han and Con markets in the city centre, Da Nang is also famous for other traditional markets along both side of the Han River such as Bac My An, An Hai Dong, An Hai Bac, and Ha Than.

At these markets, visitors can have the opportunity to experience the lifestyle of locals, purchase typical products of the locality and Central Viet Nam as a whole, and enjoy specialities.

On the western side of the city, the Tuy Loan Market boasts its convenient position of being on the route that can be combined with some tourist attractions along the Tuy Loan River, the Tuy Loan village communal house, and Tuy Loan rice paper making craft village.

Therefore, in the coming time, the Department of Tourism will continue to coordinate with the Department of Industry and Trade to effectively implement shopping stimulation programmes, enhance product quality, and ensure commercial civilization and food safety in order to better serve domestic and international tourists.

Director of the city’s Department of Industry and Trade Le Thi Kim Phuong informed that the city has set a goal by 2030 of making the city become one of the country’s major commercial centers; developing the city's commercial industry in the direction of modern, rapid and sustainable growth; and turning the network of supermarkets and trade centers into a main wholesale and retail channel of goods in urban areas.

The city's industry and trade sector targets to form a system of modern tourist markets, contributing to turning Da Nang into one of the country’s commercial and tourist centers as well as developing trade, and tourism, as spearhead industries, making a high contribution to the city's GRDP structure.

Specifically, by 2030, 11 tourist markets will be set up along the iconic Han River and the coastal area in Son Tra and Ngu Hanh Son districts.

Efforts will be made to make Han, Con, Bac My An and An Hai Bac markets meet criteria of tourist markets.

Apart from traditional markets, the commercial infrastructure system is synchronously and modernly invested with 8 trade centers, 71 general and specializsed supermarkets, more than 400 convenience stores, 9,300 retail stores and stalls, and independent business households, 10 specialised streets and one exhibition centre with regional, national and international stature.

She believed that the synchronous coordination of the two sectors of tourism and industry and trade will create certain advantages for the local economic development goals in the coming time.

Reporting by THU HA, QUYNH TRANG - Translating by M.DUNG