Push to get tourists to shop till they drop
PHUKET CITY: As part of a drive to get tourists to do more shopping while in Phuket, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) will stage an exhibition of Phuket batik designs on July 30 and 31 on the second floor of the Big C supercenter.
Suwalai Pinpradab, Director of the local office of the TAT, said that Thailand currently receives income of 300 billion baht a year from tourism, of which 80 billion baht is spent on shopping, particularly by East Asian visitors.
She noted, however, that 20% of Phuket’s 73 billion baht income from tourism comes from shopping – a lower proportion of total income from tourism than in other provinces.
“We have to develop our products and promote them to attract more customers,” she said. “With more huge shopping malls opening in Phuket soon, the TAT and the Phuket Tourist Association [PTA] will organize roadshows to promote shopping in Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore, which are markets for visitors who like to shop.”
One Tambon One Product (Otop) artifacts have been a big hit with shoppers, Vice-Governor Winai Buapradit noted. “Our target for Phuket was sales of 180 million baht of Otop products this year, but already this year we have seen sales of 225 million baht,” he said.
The exhibition at Big C will include a fashion show with 30 models – all members of the Rotary Club of Junk Ceylon – dressed in wedding suits, party dresses and other clothing made from batik. The show will start at 3 pm each day.
