Sunday afternoon June 1 in District 1, the heart of Ho Chi Minh City, felt oddly hollow. Inside Saigon Square, once usually buzzing with bargain hunters and the clamor of cash transactions, dozens of shutters were drawn. The lights were dimmed. The once loud sounds became silenced.
26 July, 2025 (Saturday) – By Yoo Jung
After a major inspection by market surveillance officials on May 29, Saigon Square—an iconic indoor market in central HCMC—is under potential shut down. Dozens of stalls remain closed days after the sweep, which uncovered thousands of suspected counterfeit goods, from fake Rolexes to knockoff Louis Vuitton bags. According to records, authorities confiscated 1,291 items. The total had an estimated value of over 10,000 USD and the total fines that were imposed upon the vendors amounted to around 14,000 USD. This latest crackdown follows a national directive issued on May 24 to eliminate counterfeit trade and enforce stricter tax regulations on small businesses. While authorities say the move targets intellectual property theft and tax evasion, the effects are shaking the foundation of Vietnam’s street-level economy.
Saigon Square is more than a shopping center; it symbolizes Saigon’s commercial pulse. It first opened its doors in the 1990s. But over the years, it expanded and now attracts many diverse vendors and customers. Tucked between shimmering office towers and tourist landmarks, its narrow walkways and bustling vendors have offered locals and travelers everything from fashion knockoffs to local handicrafts for decades. It’s where teenagers often score their first ‘brand name’ sneakers, tourists haggle for souvenirs, and city workers grab cheap sunglasses on their lunch break.
But beneath that familiarity is a gray market that long walked the edge of legality. Despite multiple enforcement campaigns—including one at the end of 2024—Saigon Square has remained a hotspot for counterfeit trade. Officials estimate that thousands of items imitating luxury brands like Chanel, Dior, and Hermès were sold in 2024 alone.
Shop owners often knowingly purchase and get a large stock of fake goods due to high profit margins and low wholesale prices. This could have been a luring business idea, as authenticity mattered less than style and price for many customers.
So why now? The answer lies in a wave of policy changes from the Vietnamese government. Following a May 24 directive from the prime minister, authorities began an aggressive push to clean up illegal trade and implement Decree 70, which mandates electronic tax reporting for small businesses. Combined with spontaneous raids and stricter enforcement of IP laws, many vendors—already strained by “unofficial fees” and bribes—chose to shut down rather than risk further loss.
The answer may lie not just in Vietnamese domestic policy, but also in foreign diplomacy and trade pressure, particularly from the U.S. government. During his presidency, President Donald Trump repeatedly slammed countries like China and Vietnam for allowing counterfeit goods to flourish.
Many say that these crackdowns were inevitable. Counterfeit trade undermines genuine businesses, dilutes brand value, and harms Vietnam’s international image. Overall, these crackdowns could help with the government’s effort to modernize the tax collection and curb corruption to create a more transparent and fairer economy.
Yet, there are significant consequences. The many Family-run stalls in Saigon Square form the backbone of Vietnam’s informal economy. According to data from Vietnam’s General Statistics Office, sidewalk businesses generate 11–13% of the GDP in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Therefore, the sudden enforcement left many vendors scrambling, some sobbing in viral videos, and others disappearing without a word.
However, although Saigon Square is under inspection, other markets like nearby Ben Thanh remain crowded. Still selling similar knockoff goods.
Yoo Jung
Grade 11
International School of Ho Chi Minh City
Written on 26 July, 2025 (Saturday)
