Born in Hue, Tran moved to Ho Chi Minh to study mechanical engineering in their University of Technology. In 1983, fresh from university he was employed by Dong Nai Auto repair factory. Starting as a mechanic, over the next 14 years he gained promotion after promotion becoming manager, before founding Troung Hai, or THACO as it is universally known.

THACO originally just sold cars, but went on to assemble foreign makes including Peugeot, Mazda and Kia. In 2008 Singapore car distributor Jardine Cycle and Carriage bought a stake in the company, and helped it grow to become Vietnam’s largest car company, accounting for nearly 40% of the country’s automobile market (in 2018).