The reunification of Germany and collapse of the Soviet Union marked the early 1990s as time of major transformation. This was true not only for people with German passports but also for those who have so far been underrepresented in research about this period of social upheaval. This chapter describes developments in the Vietnamese German gastro scene since reunification to make three points: First, Vietnamese communities in Germany, in general, and Vietnamese entrepreneurs, in particular, are not homogenous. Nevertheless, we find that former participants in socialist mobility have dominated Vietnamese German entrepreneurship in the gastro sector because self-employment was a strategy to navigate legal and societal challenges around German reunification. Second, we contend that trade flows and personal networks are crucial for Vietnamese German entrepreneurship. This holds true across generations although the geographic characteristics of business and personal networks change over time. Third, building off the last point, we argue that the transition from generic Asian snack bars to explicitly Vietnamese restaurants in Berlin has been mainly enabled through changes in international markets, helping the 1.5 and 2nd generations reclaim pride in a Vietnamese identity over the last decade. We draw on a growing body of literature on the topic and enrich the existing research with eight qualitative interviews that we undertook separately between 2013 and 2023 in Berlin and Hanoi to build on growing interest in the subject matter.

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Vietnamese German Entrepreneurship: Developments After Reunification

  • Julia L. Behrens,
  • Phi Hong Su

摘要

The reunification of Germany and collapse of the Soviet Union marked the early 1990s as time of major transformation. This was true not only for people with German passports but also for those who have so far been underrepresented in research about this period of social upheaval. This chapter describes developments in the Vietnamese German gastro scene since reunification to make three points: First, Vietnamese communities in Germany, in general, and Vietnamese entrepreneurs, in particular, are not homogenous. Nevertheless, we find that former participants in socialist mobility have dominated Vietnamese German entrepreneurship in the gastro sector because self-employment was a strategy to navigate legal and societal challenges around German reunification. Second, we contend that trade flows and personal networks are crucial for Vietnamese German entrepreneurship. This holds true across generations although the geographic characteristics of business and personal networks change over time. Third, building off the last point, we argue that the transition from generic Asian snack bars to explicitly Vietnamese restaurants in Berlin has been mainly enabled through changes in international markets, helping the 1.5 and 2nd generations reclaim pride in a Vietnamese identity over the last decade. We draw on a growing body of literature on the topic and enrich the existing research with eight qualitative interviews that we undertook separately between 2013 and 2023 in Berlin and Hanoi to build on growing interest in the subject matter.