A light that never went out

Tiếng Việt

A light that never went out

The glow of a single light bulb once guided Luu Thai Quang Khai’s idea of leadership, and today, that same quiet spark fuels a mission reaching farmers and communities through macadamia.

Khai captured this belief in his personal statement for the 2016 RMIT President’s Scholar application, the University’s most prestigious full tuition scholarship. In it, he likened leadership to wiring, assembling, and finally lighting a bulb – a metaphor for placing people in the right positions so they can shine together.

A person dressed in a dark suit poses against a plain dark background, standing with one arm crossed and the other hand raised near their chin.

Luu Thai Quang Khai, RMIT Vietnam alumnus

“The point is that not all of us shine in this world, yet we all together make this world shine,” Khai wrote.

A decade later, the idea that leadership is about enabling others, giving them the conditions to illuminate, remains at the heart of how Khai leads his work, business and community partnerships.

Lighting the path forward

Receiving RMIT’s most prestigious scholarship to study Digital Marketing was a turning point for Khai. He once believed such an opportunity was far beyond his reach, and he sustained himself throughout his degree by freelancing for various departments across the University, drawing on his photography and design skills to make ends meet. He recalls those years as formative – challenging, grounding, and deeply instructive in responsibility.

A group of six people stand in a row at an indoor award ceremony, each holding a framed certificate. A presentation screen and podiums are visible in the background.

Luu Thai Quang Khai (third from the left) was named RMIT Vietnam President’s Scholar in 2016.

His leadership potential, however, had long been recognised. Ms Le Thi Bich Le, Vice Principal of Thang Long Gifted Highschool (Lam Dong Province) in 2016, described Khai as resourceful, persuasive, and remarkably calm under pressure, someone who could “always think of a quick solution to the problem with such certain attitude as if he had already planned for that”.

A collage of two images. The first shows a group of people standing on a stage holding a large presentation cheque and certificates at the HSBC/HKU Asia Pacific Business Case Competition 2018, with event branding displayed on a screen behind them. The second image shows several people in business attire presenting in a meeting room; one person is standing and gesturing toward a projected slide while others stand or sit nearby, with observers seated in the foreground.

Khai actively engaged in and achieved outstanding results across numerous prestigious national and regional competitions.

And what Khai absorbed during his studies at RMIT, structured thinking, clear frameworks and strategic discipline, eventually settled into the pulse of how he builds and leads, powering a business rooted in sustainable development.

Building a circular economy, one macadamia ecosystem at a time

In 2018, Khai and his cousin and cofounder Nguyen Thi Bao Chau decided to transform her family’s pioneering macadamia legacy into Maca Dai Viet, the company behind Ong Ba Macadamia – a brand built on sustainability, design integrity and agricultural uplift. Their mission is clear and ambitious: to be the leader and the pioneer in Vietnam’s macadamia industry, setting new benchmarks for quality and innovation; to never stop bettering macadamia, continually advancing the science and craft of cultivation, processing and consumption; to improve farmers’ lives through fair, unwavering demand and access to international scientific expertise; and to bring Vietnamese macadamia to the world, establishing a strong global presence for a proudly local product.

Three people stand together in front of a warmly lit storefront, with shelves, hanging lights, and café-style decor visible inside. Two individuals give a thumbs-up gesture, and a floral arrangement is displayed to the right side of the entrance.

(L-R) Tran Trung Hieu, Nguyen Thi Bao Chau and Luu Thai Quang Khai – the team driving Maca Dai Viet forward.

From the outset, they committed to “Green foundation, Digital advance” – a dual transition model that blends sustainable sourcing with technological optimisation. This approach is anchored in an experimental one-hectare farm in Don Duong, Lam Dong, that serves simultaneously as a testing ground, training site and seedling supplier for nearly 500 farming households; a cooperative based reforestation initiative in Chư Mo Rai, Quang Ngai (known as former Kon Tum province), which supports 50 hectares of macadamia while creating livelihoods for ethnic minority families; contracted output and ongoing technical support for more than 100 households across the Central Highlands; and a purchasing system linked to over 300 hectares in Dak Lak, helping stabilise supply and ensure consistent quality across the value chain.

A person wearing a hat and light jacket walks through a shaded orchard area with trees and greenery surrounding them.

From a small macadamia farm in Lam Dong province inherited from Ông Ba (Chau’s father, pictured), Khai and his cousin have built a sustainable ecosystem that brings a local product to the global stage.

This ecosystem helps stabilise supply chains while supporting rural communities. Macadamia’s environmental benefits, deep roots, strong soil retention and the ability to absorb up to three tonnes of CO₂ per hectare per year, further strengthen the model’s contribution to sustainable land use.

To support scale, Khai led the development of a customised ERP system overseeing production, warehousing, forecasting and sales. Within its first period of adoption from August to October 2025, the system contributed to a 25% increase in weekly production, a 5% reduction in electricity use, and double-digit reductions in paper, cardboard and non-branded packaging waste. It also saved more than 20 hours per month in warehouse labour and enabled purchasing commitments totalling at least 100 tonnes of macadamia output per year.

Keeping the light on, for everyone

Inside Maca Dai Viet, Khai’s leadership mirrors the light‑bulb philosophy from his youth. The organisation operates with minimal hierarchy, where responsibilities are shared rather than stacked. Every team member, from production workers to retail staff, is empowered with digital tools through the ERP system, and the company maintains strong gender equity, with women making up more than 45% of the workforce.

Khai used to joke, “I am the champion of failing”, not as a self-mockery but as a recognition that each setback becomes a component in a more effective system. The pandemic years tested his and his team’s resilience as supply chains, factory operations and market fluctuations collided. By reframing these challenges as opportunities to refine processes, he strengthened both the company and its mission.

His approach is always long term. Rather than reacting to short term pressure, Khai thinks in five, ten and fifteen-year horizons – planning for sustainable sourcing, digital maturity and product development cycles that avoid burnout or resource exhaustion.

Today, Maca Dai Viet’s products have reached ten countries, its operational model has earned CSI 100 recognition for sustainability, a rare achievement for an SME, and its 2026 roadmap includes the launch of six new macadamia-based innovations.

Yet, for all the milestones, what keeps Khai grounded is the same belief he expressed at 18, that leadership is not about individual brilliance, but about creating the environment for collective light. He once wrote that on an event day he organised during high school, as people enjoyed the experience he helped build, his heart felt “heated by some unfathomable light from the bulb underneath”.

He continues to build those bulbs today, across farms, in factories, within communities, and inside a business that reflects the values he declared a decade ago.

And the light he promised RMIT he would carry forward has not dimmed. It has simply found more places to shine.

Story: Ha Hoang

Alumni

Business and management

15 April 2026

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