As a class, we decided to delve into the markets of Ho Chi Minh City and observe the day to day economics within the markets and different facets that the participants experience. At the markets I decided to observe the produce vendors and the products that they were selling. By focusing on the type of food that they were keeping in stock I could extrapolate the type of audience they were trying to appeal to. I hoped to find a pattern of how Vietnamese consumers purchased their produce and find a correlation to how vendors stocked their stands. If there is a strong correlation between the purchasing patterns and the vendors inventory we could better explain the role that the markets play in the Vietnamese economy.
I focused on what the vendors were selling and what, if any, specialization that the vendors had. I looked at the diversity of the products that the vendors were selling, but also the diversity of the products that the consumers were purchasing. What I found surprised me. I discovered a surprising amount of specialization within each of the stands. No two vendors seemed to be selling the same set of products in the market. In fact, I found vendors selecting very specific products to sell, such as Bananas, or one larger set of products, such as grain or spices.
This find showed me that rather trying to act as a one-stop shopping experience for the consumer, each vendor wanted to act as an expert on their one product that the consumer could trust to have the best possible level of those products. This sets the vendors apart from the supermarkets that they are competing with for business. It allows them to gain an advantage because they will be able to help the consumer with possible questions they have with the products. Having this comparative advantage against the supermarket and trying to function on a different level leaves a niche expert spot in the market for the vendors to exist.
After observing this I then predicted that the consumers would only use the markets as a supplemental source of food. I was immediately proven wrong when I began to observe the consumers though. I found the consumers buying large quantities of food, enough to prepare dinner or multiple meals, as if this was a supermarket. This showed the advantage of the market having multiple vendors next to each other. Each vendor by herself could not provide everything for her clientele, but when she is with the rest of the vendors they then become able to provide a superior selection to the supermarkets. This shows an intricate level of planning in an economy to remain relevant in the modernizing economy. With this, the markets are likely to stay relevant and even be the key provider of food within the Vietnamese economy.