Leaders of The Gioi Di Động – MWG receive modest salary despite huge retail empire

The income of the board members at The Gioi Di Động (MWG), the leading retail empire, has always attracted great attention. The consolidated financial report for the fourth quarter of 2023 revealed the income of MWG board members in 2023.

Specifically, Chairman of the Board of Directors Nguyen Duc Tai, CEO Tran Huy Thanh Tung, and CEO of The Gioi Di Động and Dien May Xanh retail chains, Mr. Doan Van Hieu Em, receive less than 4 million VND for the last three months of 2023.

Furthermore, in the third quarter of 2023, all three executives did not receive any salary.

However, it should be noted that the salaries of MWG’s top officials are only a part of the picture. This retail company always has good welfare policies such as bonuses or issuing discounted ESOP shares to its employees, which are priced significantly lower than the market price of shares.

In addition, another leader at MWG is Mr. Pham Van Trong, the CEO of Bach Hoa Xanh chain, who has not received any salary even after a year in office. Previously, at the shareholders’ meeting in April 2022, Mr. Trong stated that he would work without a salary until achieving results, setting ambitious goals of “making Bach Hoa Xanh e-commerce platform the number one in Vietnam” and “achieving break-even this year.”

By December 2023, MWG attracted attention when announcing an average revenue per store of VND 1.8 billion. Bach Hoa Xanh had achieved break-even after all costs corresponding to the current operation and based on core business operations. This means that one of Mr. Trong’s major promises has been temporarily fulfilled. Therefore, it would be appropriate for Mr. Trong to receive a well-deserved “reward” such as a salary bonus for his year-long efforts.

Sharing about this, Mr. Nguyen Duc Tai said in a meeting with investors on February 29, 2024, that in fact, Mr. Trong could have received a salary, but he refused to accept it.

According to Mr. Tai, for high-level executives, salary is not their top priority but it is the battle for success. Of course, with a company as reputable as The Gioi Di Động, when success is achieved, the company will always have policies to share with those who contribute to it. It means “reap what you sow.” The MWG leadership understands and believes in this policy, so they don’t talk much about salary issues.

“No one has ever come to me saying they want a salary raise. For years, I have never heard that request because the belief of ‘success will be shared’ has always been there,” Mr. Tai said.

Mr. Tai confirmed that it would be reasonable if Mr. Trong requested to receive a salary since this Director has worked without pay for quite a long time. However, if asked whether Mr. Trong is truly concerned about this matter, the answer is probably no.

It is known that Mr. Pham Van Trong, born in 1979, holds a Master’s degree in Mathematics and Computer Science from the University of Science, Ho Chi Minh City. He joined MWG in 2004 as the Head of Information Technology Department and held the position of Director of the IT Division before being transferred to the Operations Division of Bach Hoa Xanh in 2019.

Mr. Trong is known as the person behind the important Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system of The Gioi Di Động. This system helps manage and grasp basic factors such as revenue, inventory, profit, and invoice issuance, allowing business leaders to obtain information without having to visit the business premises.

In 2022, the former CEO, Mr. Tran Kinh Doanh, announced his resignation, leaving the “captain” position of Bach Hoa Xanh vacant. Afterward, Chairman Nguyen Duc Tai personally managed and led this supermarket chain while discreetly observing internal candidates for the CEO position. Finally, among many “pillars,” Mr. Pham Van Trong was entrusted with the responsibility.