According to the information we have gathered, the “Super Cheap Phone” system of Thế Giới Di Động has closed since the end of June.
“Super Cheap Phone” (ĐTSR) was launched by TGDĐ in August last year. In response to price competition from smaller retail stores, ĐTSR was created with the goal of distributing phones and accessories at the lowest prices directly to consumers.
Although TGDĐ and ĐTSR share the same owner, the prices at ĐTSR were always cheaper than TGDĐ by several hundred to nearly 1 million VND. However, to achieve these prices, ĐTSR had to cut back on many factors such as limited store space, fewer staff (even lacking security), and scattered operations in suburban districts. For customers, ĐTSR did not allow them to exchange products or accept warranty claims; if a device was faulty, they had to bring it to the manufacturer’s service center for resolution.
Previously, TGDĐ had announced plans to expand the number of ĐTSR branches to 30 by the end of 2019. However, by the end of June, ĐTSR officially closed just under a year after operations began.
When accessing the ĐTSR website, customers received a notification stating “the website ceased operations from June 29” and were redirected to TGDĐ’s website. According to our information, all ĐTSR stores in Ho Chi Minh City have also closed simultaneously.
We have contacted representatives of TGDĐ to get answers on why ĐTSR “failed” so quickly. According to preliminary responses from TGDĐ, the closure of ĐTSR is a first step in a “new experimental model transition”. We will continue to update more information from TGDĐ in future articles.