VinFast reorganizes its operations in North America; 30 employees are laid off in Canada

• Approximatively 30 employees are affected

• VinFast Canada will now be a member of VinFast North America.

• The employees in VinFast’s stores in Canada are keeping there jobs.

The young Vietnamese-born VinFast, is still in its infancy on the North American continent already, it’s proceeding in a restructuring of its operations, Automotive News Canada has learned.

VinFast has laid off several Canadian employees as part of a restructuring that will lead to a merger of its operations on both sides of the border. On January 25, right in the middle of the Montreal International Auto Show (MIAS), the manufacturer, which only a few days earlier was boasting about its presence in Quebec and its love of electric vehicles, announced that the two entities would now be combined under the VinFast North America company. VinFast Canada will become a member company of this new entity for North America.

At this time, VinFast had not disclosed the number of employees who had been let go, but according to a source cited by AN, approximatively 30 employees out of the 100 or so serving the brand had been laid off.

“This move is expected to increase efficiency in the use and allocation of resources, while improving VinFast’s operational and financial performance. […] It “is consistent with VinFast’s long-term strategy to position the company for greater success in the highly competitive and dynamic automotive industry,” VinFast said in a statement.

For now, employees affected by the cuts were based at the company’s Canadian headquarters in Montreal and other cities, while some remote employees are also part of the layoffs. Employees at the eight stores, which are the showcases for VinFast, are not affected by the restructuring.

What does this mean for VinFast in the short to medium term? It is too early to say, but what is clear is that the manufacturer did not wait very long before reacting and reorganizing operations for the local market. However, it’s safe to assume that this restructuring will minimize the decision-making power of the Canadian market in the face of the much greater potential of the U.S., especially since the construction of an assembly plant in North Carolina and the brand’s headquarters in Los Angeles will have an impact on the direction the pure electric brand will take in the coming years.

We’ll see over the next few months if this decision will disrupt VinFast’s growth in Canada.