Furniture Sourcing Guide for Vietnam: Trade and Project Buyers

2026-09-19 · Country & Market Guides · Rosy Rose Trade Journal

Furniture Sourcing Guide for Vietnam: Trade and Project Buyers

Vietnamese distributors, importers, hotel procurement teams and FF&E specifiers regularly source contract furniture from Chinese factories in Guangdong. The most efficient route is direct sourcing from a Foshan manufacturer with integrated workshops, because raw materials, skilled labour and upholstery capacity are concentrated in one location, which shortens the production cycle for hotel, restaurant and mixed-use project orders.

Key facts

• Foshan, Guangdong is the main cluster for contract-grade wooden and upholstered furniture exported to Vietnam and ASEAN.
• Four in-house workshops (carpentry, upholstery, sanding, finishing) under one roof reduce subcontracting risk.
• 16 pre-shipment inspection checkpoints are standard before any export order leaves the factory.
• Export documentation is project-specific; duty rates and HS codes must be confirmed with a customs broker.
• Common entry ports in Vietnam are Hai Phong, Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City (Cat Lai).

Why Vietnamese buyers source from Foshan

Foshan has been a furniture manufacturing base for decades, and the supply chain around it is dense. Timber, plywood, foam suppliers, fabric mills, metal workshops and finishing lines are all within short trucking distance. For a Vietnamese project buyer, that density means shorter raw-material lead times, faster sampling rounds and more competitive pricing than sourcing from a smaller Chinese city where sub-components would have to travel in.

Rosy Rose operates a 200,000 sqm manufacturing campus in Foshan, with a 100,000 sqm showroom in Lecong. In our carpentry hall we cut, shape and assemble frames; in our upholstery hall we cut foam, sew covers and fit suspension; in our sanding and finishing rooms we prepare surfaces and apply the final coat. Because the four core processes sit under one roof, we keep tighter control of schedule and quality than a buying office that coordinates separate subcontractors.

Common product categories bought by Vietnam-based buyers

Vietnamese distributors typically import:

• Dining chairs, lounge chairs and bar stools for hospitality projects.
• Banquet and event seating for hotels and conference venues.
• Bedroom case goods and headboards for resort and serviced-apartment developments.
• Loose and built-in furniture for show flats, clubhouses and food-and-beverage outlets.
• Custom FF&E packages drawn by regional design firms.

The Dorata, Ginevra and Selene collections sit alongside a made-to-order programme. Project buyers can start from a drawing or a technical sheet and develop a piece with our team from the first sample to production output.

Step-by-step sourcing workflow

Below is the workflow most Vietnam-based buyers follow when working with a Chinese factory like ours.

Documentation and customs in Vietnam

Documentation is project-specific, so the list below is a starting point, not a fixed rule. Confirm the exact set with your customs broker or legal advisor for each shipment.

• Proforma invoice and final commercial invoice.
• Packing list with carton counts and dimensions.
• Bill of lading (sea), airway bill (air) or truck waybill (road).
• Certificate of origin (Form E for ASEAN-China FTA, where applicable).
• Fumigation or phytosanitary certificate if wooden packing is used.
• Material or test certificates if requested by the project specification.

Vietnamese duty rates and any applicable VAT are set by customs and vary by HS code. We do not quote duty or tax figures; please confirm current rates with your broker before calculating landed cost.

Project specifications Vietnamese buyers often request

Hotel and resort projects in Vietnam typically need to meet a combination of international and local requirements. Standards that are frequently named in technical sheets include:

• BS 5852 or equivalent for upholstery flammability.
• EN 13501-1 for reaction to fire of construction products.
• CARB P2 or TSCA Title VI for composite wood emissions.
• BIFMA X5.1 for office and desk-chair structural performance.
• FSC chain-of-custody where the project is marketed as responsibly sourced.

These standards may be specified, but whether a particular certificate applies to a given product line is a separate question. Confirm the actual certification status of any specific item with us before finalising the technical sheet.

Logistics routes from China to Vietnam

The route depends on where the project sits.

• Hai Phong in the north: the usual entry point for Hanoi and northern coastal provinces. Sea freight from Yantian or Shekou is common.
• Da Nang in the centre: serves central Vietnam resort and hospitality projects.
• Ho Chi Minh City (Cat Lai): the main southern gateway for Ho Chi Minh City and the Mekong Delta.
• Border road freight: cross-border trucking through Dong Dang or Lao Cai is used for smaller, time-sensitive orders or for showroom replenishment stock.

Full-container loads are normally more cost-efficient for made-to-order FF&E. LCL (less-than-container-load) is used for samples, small replenishment orders and mixed collections. Our export team can pack to buyer-marked cartons or to neutral marks on request.

Cost drivers Vietnamese buyers should watch

Because we do not publish numbers, it is more useful to list what moves the price on a Vietnam-bound order. Quotation is project-specific and depends on the variables below.

• Frame material: solid hardwood versus plywood versus metal sub-frame.
• Upholstery: fabric grade, leather grade, foam density and any CMHR foam requirement.
• Finish: open-pore, closed-pore, high-gloss, distressed or specialty lacquer.
• Hardware: standard catalogue hardware versus specified brand.
• Quantity: per-piece tooling, programming and packing cost is higher at low volume.
• Packing: knock-down versus assembled, export carton versus wooden crate.
• Testing: any third-party lab test requested by the buyer.

How we work with Vietnamese project teams

Our process starts with drawings. A project team sends a floor plan, an FF&E schedule, or a hand sketch with dimensions and finishes. We prepare a drawing-based quotation, then a sample. For hotel orders of significant size, we build a mock-up room so the designer and procurement team can confirm proportion, comfort, finish and detailing before bulk production starts.

In our carpentry workshop the frames are built; in our upholstery hall the seats and backs are assembled; in our sanding and finishing rooms the surfaces are sealed and sprayed; the goods then pass through the sixteen pre-shipment checkpoints. We provide a 10-year structural warranty and a 2-year finish warranty, with lifetime refinishing support, which is relevant for long-life hotel and serviced-apartment assets.

Common pitfalls to avoid

Vietnamese buyers who are new to China sourcing often run into the same issues. A short list helps new project teams.

• Quoting from pictures instead of from drawings: a picture hides dimension and structure, so the landed product may not fit the room.
• Skipping the mock-up room on a large hotel: finish and scale only become real in a full mock-up, not in a single sample.
• Not confirming HS code and certificate of origin in advance: this delays customs clearance.
• Treating factory and trading company as the same: a factory with its own workshops controls lead time better than a buyer-facing trading office.
• No pre-shipment inspection: 16 internal checkpoints plus an independent inspection are a stronger safeguard than internal checks alone.

Practical checklist for the first order

Where to start

If you are a Vietnam-based distributor, importer or hotel procurement team evaluating a Chinese supplier, begin with our products overview and custom development pages, then send us your drawings or FF&E schedule through the contact page. From there we can move to quotation and sampling.

For a wider view of our company history, factory footprint and trade references, see our company profile on the Rosy Rose main site and the about us page. Project teams that need a custom piece developed from a sketch can review our custom development service. For articles on materials, lead times and standards, the articles section is a useful reference.

Send your enquiry, drawings or FF&E schedule by WhatsApp to +86 188 2788 2512 and our export team will route you to the right desk for sampling, quotation and project scheduling.