Many real estate investors create separate identities for each project without connecting them to the group name. Therefore, the accumulated prestige for each project disappears once the project is sold. The solution is an endorsed brand architecture: each project carries its own name but always features the investor's label. This way, brand value accumulates in the long term into the legal entity, rather than into a name that will fade after handover.
In this article · 5 sections
Most real estate investors in Vietnam are doing something reasonable for each project, but it is detrimental in the long run. They allocate branding budgets to the project name, causing the group name to become secondary or disappear entirely. When the project is sold out and handed over, that name is no longer mentioned. All impressions and feelings accumulated over the years of sales also fade away, along with the dismantled banners.
Customers remember the project name, forget the developer's name
This is not a guess. A survey by Batdongsan.com.vn with over 1,000 home buyers shows that 45% choose the investor based on reputation. However, in reality, most first-time apartment buyers remember the project name more clearly than the development company's name. They say 'I bought Masteri', 'I bought The Origami', rarely saying 'I bought from Masterise Homes'. This happens because the investor has focused efforts on making the project name famous, rather than their own name.
The consequence: when the next project launches, they have to rebuild their reputation almost from scratch. The marketing budget balloons at each launch not because the market is difficult, but because there is no brand asset from the previous time.
Brand architecture: a decisive choice for accumulation
In the brand design industry, the relationship structure between the parent brand and its sub-brands is called brand architecture. There are three main models. Branded house: a single name that covers everything, like how Vinhomes is associated with every segment. House of brands: each sub-brand is independent, with the parent company completely hidden. Endorsed brand: each product has its own name but always stands alongside an endorsement label, for example, 'Lumière by MIK Group' or 'Ecopark by Vihajico'.
Most Vietnamese developers are inadvertently operating under a house of brands model without a strategy. Naming and building identity for new projects often happens reactively, rather than being a proactive choice. Each project needs an attractive name, a unique color palette, and a distinct identity to launch in the market. The corporation behind it is merely a small note on the brochure.
Meanwhile, the endorsed brand model allows for achieving both goals. The project still has an identity suitable for its segment and location. But each time the project appears, it is also a time for the corporate name to be read, remembered, and added with another layer of meaning.
A brand is not a logo. A brand is the perception in the gut of others about you.
Marty Neumeier, The Brand Gap
When a strong brand still collapses: the lesson of Novaland
There is a common counterargument: 'Novaland builds a very strong corporate brand, yet still faces crises. So what good is a corporate brand?' This counterargument correctly understands the phenomenon but draws the wrong conclusion.
Novaland is proof that the corporate brand amplifies reality in both directions. When operational commitments are kept, a strong brand helps sell faster and attract capital more easily. When commitments are broken, that very brand makes the crisis larger because people lose faith in a name that has been heavily invested in. This principle holds true across all industries: a brand does not hide reality; it amplifies reality.
The correct conclusion from Novaland's lesson is not 'don't build a corporate brand', but rather 'building a corporate brand requires real operational commitment, not just investment in identity'.
Branded residence: when the group name values the apartment
In the high-end segment, the relationship between the developer's brand and the selling price is the clearest. According to the 2023 Branded Residences report by Savills, branded real estate can sell at a premium of 31 to 33 percent compared to equivalent projects in the same location.
The difference does not come from better building materials or larger areas. It comes from the name. From the perception of prestige, the ability to deliver on time, and the quality after handover. This is an intangible asset accumulated over many projects, over many years, with each time the group name is attached to a truly good product.
Any investor without a strategy to accumulate the group name will never be able to access this difference, even if their actual products are not inferior.
How to start accumulating
There is no need to dismantle the entire existing identity system of the project. The first step is to decide on the architecture, not the design. Specifically, answer these three questions before naming the next project.
- Where and in what position will the corporate name appear in every customer touchpoint, from project signs, brochures, to contracts and handovers?
- What elements of the corporate system will the project identity inherit so that viewers immediately recognize who the product belongs to?
- After the project is sold and handed over, what identity assets remain associated with the corporate name for the next sales round?
These three questions pertain to strategy, not design. Answering them before starting the design is the only way to ensure that the investment in brand identity creates value after the project concludes.
References
Savills, Branded Residences Report 2023. Batdongsan.com.vn, Homebuyer Confidence Survey 2024 (n>1,000). Vietnam Report, Top 10 Reputable Developers 2025. Marty Neumeier, The Brand Gap. David Aaker, Building Strong Brands. Byron Sharp, How Brands Grow.