Boon, the 82 year-old taxi driver

This morning, as Li Li and Noah were not around and I woke up on time, I got ready much earlier than usual. Feeling hungry, I decided to visit Soi Supaphong 3 Yaek 8, the place where everything started for me, where I spent 2 memorable years in, to reminisce old sights and sounds, to savour familiar tastes. Look deep into this blog (posts from 2009-2011) and you will find everything revolving around this beautiful area.

During my time there, I met a special man. His name is Boon, an old taxi driver. He told me he was 80 (I took it with a pinch of salt he looked too healthy) years old. I had friends who did not dare to take his cab because of his age, but I felt he drove perfectly. He always held my hand and told me how I reminded him of his youngest son (he has many), in reasonably good English, how he traveled to many countries to work when he was younger, and how he was going to retire after his taxi lease expires to live in his home near Pattaya. He told me where his favourite roast chicken was, and even dropped one at my doorstep to keep his promise of helping me buy one.

Then, all of a sudden, he disappeared. I heard he decided to park his taxi somewhere else in the vicinity, but I did not get to bump into him. I tried calling, but he always didn't seem to recognize my voice. Sometimes, I thought of him and wished he was still healthy and living life positively.

It's been at least 2.5 years since I last saw him, and guess who I met during my brief visit back to my old haunt?

Boon! What a priceless picture

He has aged. A lot. Even the Beauty Face app on my Note 3 (which made my face look like a mannequin) couldn't do much to make him look younger. He remembered me, and it really touched me when he sat down, held my hand again and wished me well. He said he's 82 now, and I believed him, though it made him 78 when he told me he was 80 nearly 5 years ago.

Thank you Boon for being the very special taxi driver who brought sunshine to my lonely life when I started off in Bangkok. I am glad that you are still happy and well. It's 1 year to your retirement, so please take care of yourself in the meantime and make sure you spend some good peaceful years in Pattaya after that, because you deserve it.

The Annual Trip to Ubon Ratchathani: Version 2013

Feeling Zen looking into the peaceful forest

In my annual agenda, a visit to Ubon Ratchathani has always been necessary. It's a very endearing province sitting by the Mekong River on the Northeastern Border of Thailand. More importantly, it is the home of my company's first official customers when we started operations nearly 5 years ago. Though it's technically a business trip, it's no longer one filled with boring academic business discussions. In fact, business is the least of our worries. It's more of an overdue get-together of old friends.

This time, my customer equipped himself with his new camera and took numerous pictures of me as he brought me around, doing many things I have never experienced before (I also got to know my first helicopter pilot friend as well as a couple of local Democrat Party elected members of Parliament). Though none of the activities were extremely exciting, it was still very heartwarming to see these precious moments captured.

I had Bak Mor for the first time, a steamed rice pancake stuffed with lots of fresh spring onion and minced pork. I am sure I will dream of having this soon.

I did this before at the Chinese Garden in Singapore, but fish feeding was a first for me in Thailand. I even had time to show off my smooth motion of bread-hurling.

My first buggy drive

My first ATV drive

My first long speedboat ride, along the majestic Mekong River, no less

Being an entrepreneur in a foreign country isn't easy, but as you can see, once in a while, it does have its perks, as a fundamentally serious business trip can be intertwined with many joyful moments.

It would have been perfect if I did not need to drink all that whisky........

Protect-A-Bed's official launch in Thailand: Sharing the game-changing decisions

After a year of intricate planning, my new venture finally had its chance to properly launch itself to the public, thanks to The Mall Group's support, at the Discount Overload warehouse sale at IMPACT Muang Thong Thani last month.

Anyone who knows me long enough would know that I am no stranger to trade shows, in fact, I can be considered an expert in them, but a day into the event, I realised that a warehouse sale in Thailand was no trade show. Visitors were 99.9% local, and were more attracted by celebrities and bargains than anything else. Launching a completely unknown brand (fyi we are selling waterproof mattress protectors) under such circumstances was not going to be straightforward.

Our initial strategy was simple. Look professional and foreign (making it clear that this is an imported product), make our booth accessible and welcoming (thus the 7-11 concept) and arm ourselves with 2 pretty PCs (product consultants) who were well-trained in the product.

The cashier was behind the booth, so we kept the back open so that customers will come in and browse after paying for other goods

The mattress protector minimart

Not helped by almost an entire day of torrential rain, our first day fell flat. There was some interest but 0 sales. Being the captain of the ship, I had to react, and over the next few days, changes were made everyday and rewards were reaped. Here's to share some of the game-changing tactics adopted that will ensure you do not make the same mistakes:

1. Close the booth up, it's a pop-up store, not a walkway

Customers can't walk through anymore

Yes, the booth needs to look open and welcoming, but it cannot be so open, especially on both sides such that it becomes a convenient walkway for customers to cut through to get from one point to another. Having uninterested traffic passing through does you no good, and is extremely distracting.


2. Communicate the concept effectively

As proper as our first design looked, customers could not link the booth to beds at first glance. This was very serious, as Thai people we already unfamiliar with the concept of mattress protectors in the first place.

My 2 pretty and hardworking PCs 

Once the mattress rolled in and the products were displayed, things started looking up, as very much less explanation was required to communicate our ideas to the customer.


3. Localise

The initial concept of looking imported worked, but to a limited extent. As important as it was to impress the public, it was even more important to attract their attention. It became obvious once it was clear that there would be no expat crowd and that most of the people came looking for huge bargains.

We quickly designed a new sign highlighting some main points in Thai, and of course about our discounts

4. Stop the crowd

This final and most important game-changer, was unfortunately, not initiated by me. Knowing our struggles, the organisers threw us a lifeline. They came to us with 2 racks which could be placed at the centre of our walkway, which ensured our products would intercept all passers-by.

The ultimate game-changer

Once the potential customer stopped, the selling could begin, and with a good product and some extremely committed sales people, there would be at least positive vibe generated from all the discussions. Our sales figures finally shot up considerably after this change completed our jigsaw of adjustments.

Though I would not consider our launch event as a rousing success, we definitely made the most of it and learnt some valuable lessons along the way. More importantly, it gave us a good feeling of the potential of our product and the motivation to move ahead and make bigger splashes in the market.

See you at our next event, most probably at Big C Rama 4 from 16-23 November 2013!

Producing a TV commercial in Thailand: Oregon. So Sharp, Saves Your Money

Over the past year, I had be fully involved in the production of my first ever TV commercial! And where better to do it in Asia than Thailand, the land full of whacky, witty, touching and viral TV commercials?

That said, we faced a difficulty. We are trying to promote chainsaw spare parts.

What?

Yes. Chainsaw spare parts, the parts you use to replace/repair those bloody rumbling machines used by psychos to hack people into pieces in the movies.

The users are limited. Censors will never allow us to showcase real tree-cutting action on public TV. So how?

Well, that's not really my problem right? The creative team of the media agency we worked with took our brief and worked wonders with it, and after half a year of hard work, I am proud to say that the final product has been on TV for a month already, and will continue to air until the end of November. It's not viral material, but for the subject matter, I believe we have done a good job. And here's a string of photos to commemorate what has to be one of the most fulfilling experiences of my time thus far in Thailand.

Countless meetings to refine the final storyboard and all the other details.

Final group photo with the talented team before actual production.

Preparing the studio

Final discussions with the 'project manager' before the shoot

Spying the shoot from afar, comfortably in reach of snacks and drinks

Finally, face to face with my lumberjack, has the air of Gerard Butler, doesn't he?

Thai lines for the British model

Noah busy snacking on the couch during his studio visit

Work in progress

How can we not sneak some pictures in during the lunch break?

A family picture or 2 would be nice too

The bloody gimmick, firmly rejected by the censors.

Witty gimmick formulated by the fun-loving director

With this introduction, I think all of you can now sit back and enjoy our final product, called "LUMBERJACK".

Running a business in Thailand Part 2: The Personal Touch

It's been half a year since my first post on this series, and it's really time for me to write my second post. There are a lot of things to share on this topic, especially since I had been busy running my current business and also starting a brand new business in Thailand during the last 6 months.

Having worked in Singapore for 4 years before I embarked my journey to Thailand, I got used to using emails for almost all my important work-related correspondences. Emails were fast, free, reliable and records are kept forever, so what's not to love? Sadly, it became easy to over-rely on emails and neglect the one important aspect that Thai people appreciate - The Personal Touch.

1. For customers:
   
   I cannot speak for all industries, but specifically for mine, which deals with owners of traditional businesses like hardware shops/regional equipment wholesalers etc., my old working style in Singapore was rendered completely obsolete the moment I came. Most of them, even the educated younger generation, are not active on their emails at all, at least for work.
   
   Doing business became a different game. From receiving 30-80 emails a day in Singapore, I started to receive less than 10 a day. This reduced workload on the emailing front came with consequences. Customers appreciated the personal touch. They like speaking face-to-face with you, or at least hear your voice. Many made their orders through fax, or even called you to tell you the details item by item. Time spent on the computer became even more time spent on the road during customer visits or on phone conversations. If you had visited me before, you might not believe it as I don't seem very busy on the phone, but that is only because I do not speak Thai, if I did, then I wouldn't even have time to speak with you during office hours.
   
   There are rewards though. As a result of more personal interaction, stronger bonds are built. I have become great friends with many customers, and doing business has already become a natural after-thought when we communicate.
   
   This might not apply to all industries, but I am sure this trait and preference runs through all locals, so be prepared for this change in mindset when you decide to do business here.
   
2. For colleagues:
   
   The incident that left the deepest impression was with my first ever sales manager 4 years ago, not long after I came to Thailand.
   
   I was on a week-long business trip in Singapore when I could not locate my sales manager during office hours. I was then told by my accountant that he frequently came late for work or did not come at all, without reason. Me being me, I could not wait a week to express how I felt face-to-face, so I sent a polite email (all my directors read it and said it was TOO polite) to remind him that I expected more discipline and communication during office hours. The only response I got was not a reply email, but a resignation letter on my table.
   
   This was really shocking to me, because with the tone I wrote, it would not have caused much friction in Singapore, and will most definitely not be a trigger to an abrupt resignation. My gentle 'reminder' might have been interpreted as a petty complaint. I subsequently invited him back for a chat and we parted with a hug and have remained friends since. On hindsight, I really should have done that in the first place, even if the result would be the same.
   
   This incident taught me a lot, and changed the way I treated my colleagues completely. I now do all my appraisals and conversations face-to-face. Even when someone makes a mistake or does something very disrespectful, I have learnt not to express myself when I am most angry. Instead, I will go home, cool down, then chat with them calmly the next day. This has reduced a lot of friction, and I believe my colleagues respect me more because of it.
   

Thailand is not the Land of Smiles for no reason. The locals are generally kind but very sensitive though they might not show it. Respect also needs to be earned, especially when your are younger than most of your correspondents in the industry. 

The extra effort to offer your personal touch will reap unbelievable rewards.

Let's have enough memories to last forever

19-month-old Noah

Dear Noah

2 nights ago, out of nowhere, you spouted your first "I LOVE YOU", complete with actions, almost directly pointing at me with your fingers at the end. Whether or not you meant it for me, or even meant it at all, my heart welled with delight and hugged you tightly for the longest time. It was perhaps the first time you joined 3 words together, and boy was it a good first ever sentence!

I remember a few weeks ago, Mummy wrote me a message telling me her SD card failed again. She was very upset. You did not understand what was going on and kept trying to 'disturb' her while she was working on her computer, finding all means to salvage your lost pictures and videos. I, too, did not realise the gravity of the situation until she hugged you and said, "Give Mummy a bit of time ok? I am trying to save memories of you."

I was reminded to cherish every moment spent with you and Mummy, that though I can do my best to increase our time spent together, every instant is unique and will never come back.

That is what I will do, son, to not only spend quality time with you and Mummy, but to spend quantity time with you and Mummy. Moments will never come back, but let's have many moments, many many moments, so many moments that we will have enough memories to last forever.

Love
Daddy

4 years in Thailand, 1st time in Phuket

The captivating view at the lobby of Pullman Arcadia Phuket

It's almost unbelievable that after 4 long years in Thailand, I finally made my 1st trip to Phuket, and it was actually initiated by work. Don't ask me why, but I am sure my friends in Singapore/Malaysia must have been here many more times than me!

In spite of the pretty boring Central Festival Shopping Mall and sky high taxi prices (I recommend you find a good resort and stay there for most of your trip), I must say that the short staycation I had there with Li Li and Noah after my meeting proved just why after so many years, Phuket is still one of the hottest destinations on the globe.

Noah preparing yet another plane ride, this chap is taking planes at a much higher frequency than taking a bus!

Trusting the recommendation of my potential client based in Phuket, we spent our weekend soaking in the newly-open Pullman Arcadia Resort located along the not-so-crowded Naithong Beach. Built on a steep hill, it boasts breath-taking views over the beach and close proximity to the forests, the best of both worlds for a family residing in urban Bangkok. One thing to note though, is that because of its terrain, it is not easy to walk from your room to the lobby or the beach, especially if you have elderly or small children, so you will need to prepare ample time waiting for the buggy service to bring you around. You are on a relaxing holiday anyway, so just be patient and let the concierge do their stuff!

Cosy room with sofa and bed facing directly at the sea, though not easy to capture on the camera

Noah enjoying himself with Pooky on the comfy bed

Father and son making a fool of themselves during breakfast

Having been in Thailand for so long, cultural shows, night market and street food no longer interest us, so spending all our time at a resort seemed the best way to go, especially in Phuket where it easily costs at least 15USD to go anywhere. We were lucky enough to find a place which is peaceful, beautiful and serves a decent spread for breakfast. In almost all our previous trips to new locations, Li Li and I would always spend 80% of our awake time out of our hotel, exploring as many new things as possible. I guess as we grow older (and especially after having Noah) we are starting to enjoy this new way of leisure, to just forget about time and let the world pass us by.

This trip, though relatively uneventful, was not without its interesting parts. At least, it told us that Noah is really not a waterboy (very much like his Dad). It was very amusing experience bringing him to the beach, where he spent half his time pointing to his feet full of sand screaming "DIRTY! DIRTY!", then into the pool, where he spent all the time trying to get out. I guess it's time to bring him to the pool more often!

Dirty..... My feet are sooo dirty................

For the first time in my life, I carried Noah hands-free with no external help... MAGIC!

Noah then stuck to me like glue for ages after leaving the pool, saying "NICE!" many times, what bliss!

Looks like the Stranger in Bangkok and his family are starting to get used to this kind of sabai-sabai (Thai for relaxing) enjoyment. What's more important than spending quality time together with your family anyway?

Till next time Phuket, we will be back!