It’s been a while since Sansiri, one of Thailand’s top property developers, has exhibited to property buyers and investors in Singapore. This weekend the company returns with its Phuket beachfront project – Baan Mai Khao.
PropertyGuru’s International Group Editor Andrew Batt and DDproperty.com Editor Kanchana Paha recently met with the listed company’s Chief Executive Officer Apichart Chutrakul, the holder of a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from the University of San Diego and the driving force behind the company’s current drive for overseas recognition.
The question of whether a bubble exists in the Bangkok market is one that’s high in the minds of many Thailand watchers right now.
Apichart said: “In certain sectors there is certainly a lot of property coming up, but it’s more about how it’s being counted. In my view it’s not necessarily a question of whether or not there is a bubble, it’s as much about the shifting demographic and different uses.”
“Property in Bangkok today is much smaller and much closer to mass transit routes, and the way the people view property has changed. You really have to live in the city if you work in the city. People are more familiar with living in condos; previously that wasn’t the case. The largest number of buyers of condominiums now is the middle classes who are working in downtown Bangkok.”
Baan Mai Khao, Sansiri’s latest project, is showcasing to Singaporean buyers for the first time this weekend, but Apichart admits the decision to bring the project to the city-state hasn’t gone down well with all of his colleagues.
He said: “We have exhibited in Singapore in the past but I’ve had salespeople screaming at me, asking why we need to sell in Singapore? We’re selling off-plan very quickly to Thai buyers, but the reason is that we need to expand our horizons and expand our familiarity with foreign buyers.”
“Even though we are a number one player in Thailand, foreign buyers will never know us unless we expand. If we continue to sell so fast to Thais then we will never be number one in the eyes and minds of foreigners. We have to make the effort to attract foreign buyers, even though it means less margin because we must spend more, however I know that once foreigners know and experience some of our work they will understand we are a good company and one that can be trusted.”
Sansiri’s decision to come to Singapore came shortly before the latest Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) ruling regarding loan affordability, but Apichart isn’t worried.
He said: “Baan Mai Khao is going to be a second home for our buyers. If people cannot afford a second home and don’t have enough disposable income then they shouldn’t be buying.”
The biggest challenge facing Apichart and his company, surprisingly perhaps, isn’t increasing land costs or the quest for new land to develop.
“It’s people,” he said. “Finding qualified people is my biggest challenge. We just don’t have enough. We have more than 3,200 people in the company right now; we also provide property management which means we don’t just sell and go away.”
“If we don’t have enough qualified people throughout the company then we will not succeed.”
With 120 on-going projects and more than 200 under management, Apichart and his team certainly have their hands full. Having so many properties and brands must be a headache to manage?
“Not really,” he laughs. “I just hire people for that.”
Sansiri’s Bann Mai Khao property exhibition in association with CBRE Singapore takes place at St Regis Hotel on Saturday, July 27th and Sunday, July 28th, between 11am and 7pm on both days. The property provides freehold foreign ownership, comes with a six percent rental guarantee and fully furnished options.
Andrew Batt, International Group Editor of PropertyGuru, and Kanchana Paha, Thailand Editor, wrote this story. To contact them about this or other stories email andrew@propertyguru.com.sg or kanchana@ddproperty.com.
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