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Matthieu Francois

PartnerVietnam

Helps Retailers and Consumer Goods companies shape and seize growth opportunities in South-East Asia

Matthieu is a partner based in Vietnam, with experience serving consumer-goods and retail companies in Southeast Asia.

Matthieu is one of the key consumer-packaged-goods (CPG) experts in Southeast Asia specialized in promotional analysis (trade promotion and consumer promotions) including in data-poor environment; price and assortment optimization (product launches, regional tailoring, tailoring of assortment by store types, and more).

Beyond consumer goods, Matthieu has experience working for retailers across most continents, especially in Vietnam supporting both excellence in traditional business models (store concept, network strategy and category strategy) and innovation (online and online-to-offline formats and integration with digital ecosystems).

Examples of Matthieu’s recent client work include the following:

  • projects in liquor in Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Taiwan, and China, with a focus on trade spend return-on-investment optimization, as well as wholesaler identification and segmentation, trade-terms design, and sales-force effectiveness optimization
  • soft drinks projects in Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore, China, Korea, and the Philippines, defining category strategy on stills, and driving revenue growth management—including work on trade terms in both traditional trade and modern trade
  • dairy projects for multiple clients across revenue levers (price, trade spend, assortment, and promotions), multiple geographies including Vietnam, Malaysia, and the Philippines
  • modern grocery retailer strategy in Vietnam, including expansion, category management
  • design and build disruptive ecosystems for retailers, connecting suppliers, retailers, and consumers through digital platforms to enable storeless and online-to-offline sales

Matthieu is passionate about the emergence of the Asia middle class and works with clients to capture this opportunity in Southeast Asia, where younger, more urban, and more connected consumers are shaping a unique retail and CPG landscape. He has published research on this topic, and engages with both local and international clients to constantly adjust their business model and innovate accordingly.

In addition to his CPG and retail work, Matthieu has served clients in many industries in Vietnam on a range of issues, such as strategy, corporate governance, marketing and sales, and private equity.

Before moving to Vietnam in 2016, Matthieu spent 4 years at McKinsey’s Paris office, supporting projects in Europe and Africa in both consumer goods, retail, and public sector.

Publications

Boosting Vietnam’s manufacturing sector: From low cost to high productivity,” McKinsey & Company, September 2023

Vietnamese consumers are coming of age in 2023: How businesses can stay ahead,” McKinsey & Company, May 2023

How grocers could use sustainability to transform Asian food systems,” McKinsey & Company, December 2022

ASEAN grocery: Balancing growth with profitability,” McKinsey & Company, December 2022

The state of grocery in Southeast Asia,” McKinsey & Company, December 2022

Charting a path for Vietnam to achieve its net-zero goals,” McKinsey & Company, October 2022

Digital disruption: The rise of eB2B in fragmented retail,” McKinsey & Company, January 2022

The new faces of the Vietnamese consumer,” McKinsey & Company, December 2021

Emerging from the pandemic, Vietnam must position itself for recovery,” McKinsey & Company, July 2020

Defending Southeast Asian consumer company value in a digital age,” McKinsey & Company, December 2019

How companies can seize opportunity in Vietnams growing retail market,” McKinsey & Company, October 2019

How grocers can outperform in Vietnam Standing tall in a crowded market,” McKinsey & Company, March 2018

Education

HEC Paris
MSc, international management

CEMS
MSc, international management

University Pantheon-Sorbonne Paris
BSc, applied mathematics