Carpentry village in Quynh Luu falls into unprecedented slump

Quynh Hung carpentry village, Quynh Luu district is known to many people. Most of the village's products are sold in Nghe An province and neighboring provinces.

However, these days, Quynh Hung carpentry village lacks the hustle and bustle of many years ago, instead there is an atmosphere of unprecedented gloom and desolation.

In recent years, many wooden products made by craft villages, although very beautiful and sophisticated, have been poorly sold, causing carpenters to fall into a difficult situation. Most households only produce at a moderate level, each workshop has only a few workers; workers have no jobs and have had to change careers.

Mr. Tran Van Tuan - a carpentry shop owner in Quynh Hung commune sadly said: "In previous years, at this time, many customers came. On average, we sold 3-4 sets of tables, chairs, cabinets, beds, etc. every day. However, this time, we waited from the beginning of the week to the end of the week and no one came to ask. There were many finished products left, there were no new orders, so the production facility was also at a standstill. From having 6 carpenters, now there are only 2 workers and the work is not steady.

Next door is the Thach Lai carpentry shop, one of the largest in Quynh Hung commune. The shop sells many high-end to affordable wooden furniture, such as "rosewood" tables and chairs priced from 200-350 million VND/set, rosewood from 40-60 million VND/set... However, in the past few months, it has been very difficult to sell.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Lai - owner of Thach Lai facility shared: This year, due to the general economic difficulties, people have had to "tighten their belts", leading to weak purchasing power. Goods are in stock so the family often has to compensate for losses; currently, we are having to find new markets in other provinces and cities.

According to many carpentry shop owners in Quynh Hung commune, in previous years, around September and October every year, the number of customers coming to order and buy goods was quite large. Because this is the wedding season, buying some wooden furniture for the family to prepare for the new year. However, from the beginning of 2023 until now, the people's wooden handicraft products have fallen into a difficult situation in consumption, the products are stagnant and unsalable.

In 2011, the Provincial People's Committee recognized Thuan Giang and Nam Thang carpentry villages as two provincial-level civil and fine art carpentry villages of Quynh Hung commune. Both villages have invested in modern technology machines. Typical products of the carpentry villages include: high-class European and Asian tables and chairs, beds, shelves, wardrobes, ancestral altars, god of wealth, god of land...

Mr. Tran Dinh Trong - Chairman of the People's Committee of Quynh Hung Commune said: Before 2021, carpentry brought a large source of income to the commune, reaching a revenue of over 150 billion VND/year, creating jobs for many local workers. However, for nearly a year now, the output of fine art wooden products has been "blocked", most establishments are having a lot of backlog of goods.

Due to difficulties, most establishments have had to cut down on labor. Currently, there are nearly 100 carpenters who have changed careers and gone to work abroad.

From the whole Quynh Hung commune having over 300 households and 800 workers in the carpentry profession, now it has decreased to only over 200 households and 500 workers in the carpentry profession. The workers have switched to other professions.

Many production facility owners said that the world and domestic economy is difficult, and the lack of orders has forced them to cut production, reduce product prices, lay off workers, and proactively and flexibly seek markets elsewhere...