Vietnam’s Convenience Stores Push Beyond Big Cities as 2026 Forecast Reaches 9,671

Market researcher Q&Me expects 9,671 convenience stores and mini supermarkets in Vietnam in 2026, The Investor reported.

New outlets are increasingly being planned beyond Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. Q&Me forecasts 4,933 convenience stores and mini supermarkets in rural and other provincial markets in 2026, more than half its projected national total, according to The Investor. VnExpress also reports that chains are moving toward city outskirts and rural communities, where premises can cost less.

For retailers, that shift changes the work of getting goods to shelves. A wider network of smaller shops requires replenishment across more locations. Q&Me expects much of this year’s growth to come from two Vietnamese grocery chains, WinCommerce and Bach Hoa Xanh, The Investor reported. Its forecast calls for 1,865 additional outlets nationwide in 2026, although it also notes that rising operating costs could prompt retailers to close underperforming stores.

“The market used to add about five minimarts a day, but that number has risen to 10 this year”Chinh Pham, head of the market expert team at the Business Studies and Assistance Center

Chinh Pham, head of the market expert team at the Business Studies and Assistance Center, told VnExpress that the pace of minimart openings had risen from about five a day to 10 this year. He linked demand to customers making short shopping trips near home after work. In an earlier online survey in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, Q&Me found that 81% of respondents chose convenience stores for their proximity to home or work, VnExpress reported.

Store-count growth does not mean neighbourhood grocers are standing still. Dinh Cong Tri, senior director of business strategy at market analysis firm TT Group, told VnExpress that a younger generation of shop owners is using inventory software and taking orders through Zalo and Facebook groups. Because those shops can serve nearby customers both in person and online, chains seeking the same purchases face competition from retailers already established in the neighbourhood.

The longer-range forecasts also differ in scope. The Business Studies and Assistance Center expects modern trade’s share to rise from 16% to 20% by 2030, according to VnExpress. Separately, Vietnam’s domestic-market authority projects that modern channels, a broader category including supermarkets and shopping centres, could account for about 40% of retail revenue by 2030, VnExpress reported in its coverage of retailers’ expansion plans.