“When I was looking for a location, I had a lot of plans, like a busy area, a place with street frontage… but in the end, I didn’t have enough money to rent those places,” Thuan recalled the difficulties in the early days, about six years ago.
Stretching along the central coast of Vietnam is a small province named Quang Tri, a land marked by unforgettable memories of war for those who have left and those who remain.
People often say that Quang Tri’s people are hardworking and resilient; they have all experienced hardships and struggles. Later generations understand the sacrifice, diligence, and strength of their ancestors and carry dreams that still flicker within them, bringing the beauty of their homeland to the world.
Ca Men is a familiar brand for the people of Quang Tri. Perhaps, for other neighboring friends, Ca Men has also left many memories—perhaps memories that are always beautiful and sincere.
Talking about the owner of Ca Men, Nguyen Duc Nhat Thuan, a young man born in 1991, he left behind many great opportunities to pursue his passion, seeing it as his life’s mission.
“In truth, there’s nothing much to tell about me. I only have the desire to bring the specialties of my hometown abroad. Ca Men and I are making great efforts to make that dream come true,” Thuan modestly shared. Even so, we had a conversation that lasted more than two hours, and before we knew it, we were drawn into his story of aspiration.
Ca Men: What Does This Unfamiliar Name Mean?
Those who hear about it for the first time might be curious, wondering if Ca Men is the name of an object, a street somewhere, or a nickname given by the brand’s founder?
Ca Men is actually a container used to store food, a “specialized item” for children to carry rice to the fields for their parents. This is also a familiar image for the people of Quang Tri—almost everyone has experienced this during their childhood.
Thuan chose the name “Ca Men” for the brand because he has always harbored a great ambition regarding the specialties of his homeland.
In the Past, People Used to Ask, “Is Quang Tri Part of Hue?”
When asked about the reason for creating such a successful and well-known brand, Thuan explained:
“In the past, when talking to a friend from another province, they asked if Quang Tri was part of Hue. At that moment, I felt really sad because many people were not familiar with Quang Tri. Walking around Saigon, you see so many specialties from other places, like Bun Bo Hue, Hanoi Pho, Nghe An eel porridge… but rarely see any signs for Quang Tri specialties. So, in 2015, I decided to leave my job and create the Ca Men brand, and I have been with Ca Men ever since.”
Aside from this motivation, Thuan’s creation of the Ca Men brand also relates to his previous job. Thuan graduated with a degree in import-export and had dedicated many years to a company in the same industry.
An income of over 20 million VND at that time in 2015 was quite commendable. However, he left that job to follow his passion. The reason was just a casual remark by his uncle, saying, “Thuan, you studied import-export, so see if there’s anything from our hometown (Quang Tri) that could be exported. If you can, then you are truly talented.”
Since then, Thuan has been nurturing the dream of building a brand of Quang Tri specialties to solve the “craving for a home-cooked meal” for those living far from home, promote Quang Tri’s specialties, and move closer to exporting Ca Men’s products internationally.
The Pioneer Bringing “Banh Uot” – A Specialty of Quang Tri – to Saigon
“When I told my friends that I was going to sell Banh Uot, they thought I was crazy. Every two meters, there’s a cart selling Banh Uot already; how could I sell it, especially bringing it all the way from Quang Tri with such high costs? Is there anything different?” Thuan, the owner of Ca Men, recalled.
Yet, after six years, this journey has helped Thuan and his friends become partners or loyal customers, even acting as Ca Men’s sales representatives. Explaining this, Thuan said it was the sincerity Ca Men has shown and the quality products the brand offers that have earned trust. Customers, in addition to enjoying delicious food, happily promote Ca Men.
Difficulties Along the Long Journey
“In the early days, it was very crowded. We were in an alley on Go Dau Street, Tan Phu District. When I was looking for a location, I had many plans, like a busy area or a place with street frontage… but in the end, Ca Men didn’t have enough money to rent those. In the end, we had to choose to do business in an alley to save some costs.
At that time, Ca Men had a grand opening month; there were so many customers that the neighbors thought we were throwing a party. However, the neighbors also gave us practical feedback, saying, ‘Why choose such an alley location? Who knows to come here to eat?’
So, after the grand opening month, the number of customers gradually decreased because the location was hard to find and didn’t create a good impression.”
In November 2017, a friend introduced me to a new location, and we decided to move to Phu Nhuan District, where there were more customers, which was a good thing. Riding on this success, I opened another branch in Thu Duc.
By 2018, Ca Men had a total of three branches, but problems arose when I didn’t have much experience in management and opened too many restaurants, leading to many management loopholes.
By the end of 2018, during the period of paying salaries to employees and rent, my wife and I only had 500,000 VND left. I still remember, that day, my wife and I hugged each other and cried because it was so hard. People working in companies get weekends off, but we worked day and night. Added to that were customer complaints about mistakes, which created a lot of pressure.”
Recalling this period, Thuan added, “While we were crying, someone texted asking for a debt repayment. At that moment, I had to pawn my wife’s laptop, getting 4 million VND. Usually, my wife is very gentle and never bargains when buying anything, but this time she begged the shop to give her 5 million VND to pay off the debt to that friend. At that moment, I felt so much pain; for others, the husband is the spiritual support, but now I had to pawn my wife’s laptop…”
“In our story, everything has changed now. The love between my wife and me has always been immense. We’ve been in love since before I started my business, and both of us have always sacrificed and thought of each other. My wife is a woman who bravely spent her youth by my side when I chose to embark on such a risky business path. I cherish and love her in every way.
My parents, my wife, my children, my siblings, and my relatives are a great source of motivation and have always been by my side on this journey. I am grateful for everything.”
