Business
Villa Market expansion caters to Phuket yachties [VIDEO]
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PHUKET: Villa Market is set to slice off another slab of the imported groceries market in Phuket when it expands to Boat Lagoon. The new branch, set to open in early 2015, is designed to tap into the yachtie-catering market and to position itself as the go-to grocer, as development in Koh Kaew booms.
Phuket is already home to two of the three Villa Market stores with the highest spending per capita, with Laguna taking the number-one position and Hua Hin keeping the Chalong branch at bay, making it the third highest out of 34 stores in Thailand.
Both the Chalong and Laguna stores, however, are “A” class Villa Markets, while the new one to open at Boat Lagoon will be classified as a “C” class at about 900 square feet (84 square meters). Current projections expect it to generate about two-thirds the revenue of the Laguna branch.
Despite being about 25 per cent smaller than the Laguna branch, the new market will still have the exact same setup and many of the same products, just fewer brands. However, there will be a shift in priority toward ready-made meals, confirmed Villa Market Area Manager Adrian Lanter.
“We want to focus more on ready meals. We plan to have a huge kitchen with the idea that we can serve all the yachts here. That’s actually the main reason why we want to come to Boat Lagoon,” Mr Lanter told the Phuket Gazette.
“We talked with some of the companies here – some of the charter companies. Many of them at the moment come to buy products at our stores. For them it [will be] much more convenient to just order or buy it from here.”
To manage the expected demand for ready-made meals and catering services, Villa Market will have a full chef team on location.
Based on data collected from loyalty cards when the Laguna branch opened, the Chalong branch lost about 10-15 per cent of its clientele.
Mr Lanter expects to see a similar decline at the Laguna branch, as shoppers from Boat Lagoon, Royal Phuket Marina and nearby areas make for the new location and avoid the drive to Boat Avenue (story here).
“As the traffic gets worse and worse, people won’t have to drive up to Laguna or down to Chalong. I think from here, to drive anywhere is a headache right now, especially in high season,” Mr Lanter said.
Teaming up with Villa Market, both in Chalong and the Boat Lagoon location, will be Iniala bakery, which will replace the stores’ previous baked goods provider, Baked.
“It’s probably the highest quality bakery we have found on the island. The products are fantastic the setup is great,” said Mr Lanter.
To compliment the bakery and the market’s focus on ready-made foods, a large sitting area will be provided. The final plans have yet to be confirmed. However, there will be at least 20-30 seats, he confirmed.
Villa Market’s move comes now due to signs of rapid growth in the Koh Kaew area, especially around the British International School.
“Five years ago, there was nothing but Royal Phuket Marina and Boat Lagoon. Now there
is massive development,” Mr Lanter said.
With a mixture of area growth, potential for tapping into the yachtie-catering market and lack of competitors in the area, Mr Lanter is confident that Villa Market’s third Phuket branch will be a success.
— Isaac Stone Simonelli
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Business
Governments & old media versus social media – who will win? | VIDEO

We look at the recent changes made by the Australian and Indian governments to except control over the world’s biggest social media platforms. India has issued strict new rules for Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms just weeks after the Indian government attempted to pressure Twitter to take down social media accounts it deemed, well, anti social. There is now an open battle between the rise of social media platforms and the governments and ‘old’ media that have been able to maintain a certain level of control over the ‘message’ for the last century. Who will win?
The rules require any social media company to create three roles within India… a “compliance officer” who ensures they follow local laws; a “grievance officer” who addresses complaints from Indian social media users; and a “contact person” who can actually be contacted by lawyers and other aggrieved Indian parties… 24/7.
The democratisation of the news model, with social media as its catalyst, will continue to baffle traditional media and governments who used to enjoy a level of control over what stories get told. The battles of Google and Facebook, with the governments of India and Australia will be followed in plenty of other countries as well.
At the root of all discussions will be the difference between what governments THINK social media is all about and the reality about how quickly the media landscape has changed. You’ll get to read about it first, on a social media platform… probably on the screen you’re watching this news story right now.
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Business
The social media giants in battle with ‘old’ media and world governments | VIDEO

“The rules signal greater willingness by countries around the world to rein in big tech firms such as Google, Facebook and Twitter that the governments fear have become too powerful with little accountability.”
India has issued strict new rules for Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms just weeks after the Indian government attempted to pressure Twitter to take down social media accounts it deemed, well, anti social.
The rules require any social media company to create three roles within India… a “compliance officer” who ensures they follow local laws; a “grievance officer” who addresses complaints from Indian social media users; and a “contact person” who can actually be contacted by lawyers and other aggrieved Indian parties… 24/7.
The companies are also being made to publish a compliance report each month with details about how many complaints they’ve received and the action they took.
They’ll also be required to remove ‘some’ types of content including “full or partial nudity,” any “sexual act” or “impersonations including morphed images”
The democratisation of the news model, with social media as its catalyst, will continue to baffle traditional media and governments who used to enjoy a level of control over what stories get told.
The battles of Google and Facebook, with the governments of India and Australia will be followed in plenty of other countries as well.
At the root of all discussions will be the difference between what governments THINK social media is all about and the reality about how quickly the media landscape has changed. You’ll get to read about it first, on a social media platform… probably on the screen you’re watching this news story right now.
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Never miss out on future posts by following The Thaiger.
Business
Turbulence ahead for Thailand’s aviation industry | VIDEO

When the airlines, in particular, were asking the government to put their hands in their pockets for some relief funding in August last year, it was genuinely thought that international tourists would be coming back for the high season in December and January. At the very least local tourists and expats would head back to the skies over the traditional holiday break. And surely the Chinese would be back for Chinese New Year?
As we know now, none of that happened. A resurge in cases started just south of Bangkok on December 20 last year, just before Christmas, kicking off another round of restrictions, pretty much killing off any possibility of a high season ‘bump’ for the tourist industry. Airlines slashed flights from their schedule, and hotels, which had dusted off their reception desks for the surge of tourists, shut their doors again.
Domestically, the hotel business saw 6 million room nights in the government’s latest stimulus campaign fully redeemed. But the air ticket quota of 2 million seats still has over 1.3 million seats unused. Local tourists mostly skipped flights and opted for destinations within driving distance of their homes.
As for international tourism… well that still seems months or years away, even now.
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