After a journey from “below ground”
(meaning: no capital, no experience, very few customers), businessman Nguyễn Duy Hà draws his philosophy:
“The flowers along the long road always appear more beautiful than the laurel wreath at the end.”
Starting from scratch
As a son of Bac Ninh’s Quan họ region, with the desire to make his way in the South, after graduating in Import-Export from the College of Foreign Economic Relations in Ho Chi Minh City, Nguyễn Duy Hà had the opportunity to work at a transport company, moving goods from Saigon to the North.
“At that time, northern localities, especially my hometown Bac Ninh, were attracting huge amounts of foreign investment. The cargo transport sector was growing strongly, urging me to contribute something to my homeland,” he recalled.
With both objective and subjective factors aligned, in 2010 SBI Joint Stock Company was founded. The following five years were extremely difficult. Starting with empty hands and only faith, Hà had to borrow “hot loans” without collateral, as banks refused to support small firms like SBI. Between 2010–2015, the company was constantly on the brink of bankruptcy.
Interview with Nguyễn Duy Hà
Q: You often mention reading. How has it helped your success?
A: Thanks to reading, I gained knowledge, vision, and strategies to help the company succeed and overcome difficulties.
Q: How much time do you spend reading daily? What kind of books?
A: I’m addicted to books. Once, I almost missed my graduation exam because of reading. I usually read books on life philosophy, entrepreneurship, and business success. I spend 1–2 hours a day reading or writing. I don’t just read — I also write books.
Q: What is your favorite quote?
A: Every person is born with a mission. Those who see it and pursue it will be reborn. Each of us has great potential; if you have enough aspiration and passion, you can turn it into success.
“Below ground” phase
In its early days, SBI only handled small domestic truck shipments. With little capital and no staff, the founder himself had to go door-to-door introducing services. Even when contracts were signed, the company had to hire outside labor.
“I used to describe the company’s position as ‘below ground’ — no capital, no experience, few customers. I was like a salesman, personally visiting firms to market our services. At first, we only transported goods locally from one unit to another by truck,” Hà recalled.
Growing on his own
In 2016, when Vietnam’s youth entrepreneurship movement boomed, Hà was named among the Top 10 Outstanding Young Entrepreneurs. Networking with other successful young entrepreneurs was a turning point that helped SBI move upward. “Business is the best way for me to perfect myself,” he said.
After many failures, he came to believe:
“The flowers along the long road are always more beautiful than the laurel wreath at the end.”
For him, the journey matters more than the destination. One must embrace failures and hardships, because they make the eventual success meaningful.
He also realized logistics is an unlimited industry with international potential if developed properly. From the beginning, he knew he was “below ground” and had to keep climbing.
For the past 30 years, most of Vietnam’s logistics profits have gone to foreign firms. Yet Hà believes domestic companies like SBI are now rising.
“With SBI, starting in my hometown gave me trust and determination. Combined with experiences, failures, and knowledge from books, I gained vision and made better strategies,” he said.
Instead of competing head-to-head with giants, Hà chose to “grow on his own” and build SBI’s ecosystem. “We use modern enterprise management software for operations, administration, and accounting. In today’s logistics market, there’s no room for semi-professional, small-scale, non-tech firms,” he explained.
Vietnamese companies are becoming stronger and more integrated in the global supply chain. Instead of manual, heavy tasks, they can now directly export goods and adopt advanced technologies.
Becoming a billion-VND enterprise by 2028
Since 2016, SBI has grown steadily. From borrowing to survive, it now has capital in the hundreds of billions of VND, with branches nationwide.
Currently, SBI operates 200 vehicles and 200 staff, providing comprehensive domestic and international logistics: import-export transport, warehousing, leasing, etc.
“Our goal is to reach multi-trillion VND revenue by 2028,” Hà emphasized.
To achieve this, alongside modern management technology, human resource training is crucial. “Since founding SBI, I’ve seen manpower as the hardest problem. Quality and skills remain weak. That’s why we partner with businesses and schools to train professionals from the start — a long-term investment for growth.”
SBI strictly follows its slogan: “Caring Beyond Expectations” — not just serving clients per contract, but becoming friends and growing together.
The company is also starting partnerships with major global shipping lines to handle goods for both Vietnam and world markets. With trained staff and systematic investment, SBI offers competitive service rates in Vietnam’s high-cost logistics industry. “Instead of competing, SBI provides two-way solutions and collaborates with other companies in the same market,” Hà said.
Article & photo: Gia Hân
