Cao Thi Ngoc Dung – Vietnamese Businesswoman

As the Chairman and CEO of Phu Nhuan Jewelry (PNJ), Cao Thi Ngoc Dung built the company into the biggest jewelry brand in Vietnam, with 200 stores and more than 3,000 employees. This is quite the feat as she started the store back in 1998 when she was just a state employee.

In 2015, PNJ had a profit of around $23 million and a revenue of $350 million. Many refer to Cao’s store as the Tiffany of Vietnam, because the store is similar to the United States jeweler in that it makes, designs, and sells its very own products.

Right now, Cao holds 17% of PNJ, which was listed on the market back in 2004 and is no longer under state control. She is considered by many to be an ambitious business woman who can get the job done right the first time. Holding down the “hot seat” for PNJ for over 10 years now, her leadership and management skill from other businesses she was involved in have been an asset. In 2016, Cao was named one of Asia’s 50 most powerful and influential business women by Forbes magazine.

The masculine name Cao means “high” in Vietnamese. While the feminine name Thi is taken from the Sino-Vietnamese character 詩 that means “poem, verse, or poetry”. The given name Ngoc is a unisex name that is from the Sino-Vietnamese character 玉 that means “precious stone, jade, or gem”. Finally, the masculine name Dung is taken from the Sino-Vietnamese character 勇 that means “brave”.