Issue 29
Oggi owner Phanomsook Meelugsana, shares how the company has grown to become one of the leading minimalist furniture brands, and its expansion plans for the approaching ASEAN Economic Community (AEC).
“It all started with a small business [producing] lifestyle products, then I realised that I wanted to do something bigger,” says Oggi owner Phanomsook Meelugsana “My concept has always been about simplicit
Meelugsana says that functionality has always been a key component of his design. “As you can see people now prefer to live in apartments, thus utilising the space is crucial and that’s one of our key concepts as well,” explains the former engineer. “Furniture should not only be about decorating your place, but be useful and practical too. That’s how I see it.”
The Oggi brand was established with the help of the Department of International Trade Promotion (DITP) in 2006. “My first approach was to consult the DITP as to how to proceed with the idea of exporting large furniture pieces and what were the requirements,” he says. “I also joined trade shows organised by the DITP as a means to introduce my company and our products to the market.”
“It wasn’t easy, especially building trust with foreign customers, but you have to take your work seriously and be persistent and consistent and that’s how you get rewarded,” says the winner of Prime Minister’s Export Award 2008 and Design Excellency Award 2014.
After gaining much experience and knowledge within the domestic market, Oggi started selling overseas initially to France. “Today, our products are being exported to Sweden, Netherlands, Canada, Australia, Japan, Taiwan and Hong Kong,” says Meelugsana, who has also noted an increase in demand from Singapore.
Domestic sales also play an important part in the company’s strategy. “Not only do we export, we also sell products to the local market,” he says. “We mainly customise and provide what the customers are looking for. The trends are shifting and people are looking for something trendy and unique.”
The company which started with only five employees has now expanded to a team of twenty. “It’s challenging to manage a team of so many people but I enjoy it nonetheless,” he says. “What’s more crucial is to be able to deliver products of a high quality, and being able to satisfy our customers. In addition, operating a small organisation gives us the benefit of adjusting, designing or customising orders much easier.”
Meelugsana believes that the Thai furniture industry is in a good position to capitalise upon the upcoming Asean Economy Community (AEC). “My customers often say what makes Thai furniture stands out is the design,” he says. “As for the AEC, we have an advantage in terms of the quality or materials, which Thai entrepreneurs give utmost importance to. It will also stimulate the creativity of Thai designers, which will be more acceptable and appreciated.”
For more information, visit www.oggi-living.com
Issue 28
Thailand is renowned for the quality of its jewellery and gemstones, but one company specialises in ensuring that the industry’s lustre will never fade.
Whether jewellery is purchased as a gift for a loved one or for your own personal use, each piece carries a special memory. Often, taken for granted or left unattended, jewellery quickly fades unless it is regularly cleaned and well maintained. What was once shiny can be dull and plain.
Having carried out much research on how to bring the sparkle and shine back to jewellery, Thai-based Wongkamol Co., Ltd produces a range of cleaning products for jewellery and gems that will make neglected trinklets a thing of the past.
“Founded in 1982 by my father, Wongkamol has been producing quality cleaning products by our team of specialists and researchers,” says Chonlakorn Dejsuwankamol, product manager of Wongkamol. “All of our products are certified by the Food and Drug Administration under the Ministry of Public Health, and are user friendly. The main products include jewellery cleanser instant dip, cleanser spray, pearl and gem caring foam, and semi-chamois.”
According to Dejsuwankamol, all the company’s products are ideal for restoring the sparkle to gold, platinum, diamonds, gems, precious stones and even watches. “The products are very delicate and won’t scratch or damage the items,” she says. “You’d be surprise to know that they even work well with leather watch straps and sensitive stones.”
The company also offers silver care products which are ideal for restoring that bright and shiny look. “Silver items can get tarnished in a very short time,” she says. “Our product development team has come up with a product to remove oxide from silver jewellery, and is effective for tarnish prevention for up to three months.”
Wongkamol’s products are well known both within Thailand and overseas. “Some of our main export markets include Australia, New Zealand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Russia, Singapore, Malaysia, Italy, Mexico and the United States. Currently we have distributors in Indonesia, Vietnam, China Philippines and Australia,” says Dejsuwankamol.
The company also places a high importance in providing the highest quality service to clients.
“We believe in offering the best to our buyers, hence we do not have a policy of the so-called ‘minimum order’. To me, the quality of products speaks for itself, if the customers are happy they will continue to place orders. The amount is not a priority, but maintaining a good relationship between the company and buyers is essential,” she says, adding that customer feedback is also highly valued. “It’s important that we listen to what our customers say in order to develop our products. This [feedback] is positive but that doesn’t mean we will take them [our customers] for granted. It’s an on-going process.”
Wongkamol also attends many tradeshows both within and outside the country. Dejsuwankamol believes this is key to, “showcase the quality of Thai products, services as well as original concepts and to build trust and loyalty with local and international customers.”
For more information, visit www.wkmcleaner.com
Words by: Manisa Phromsiripranee
Issue 26
The increasing demand for Halal cosmetics provides a clear market for businesses to enter the cosmetics market for Muslim women.
The global Halal cosmetics industry is huge. According to advertising company JWT MENA, estimates place it as high as US$14 billion, with annual growth of 20%. Especially in the country’s southern provinces with their large Muslim populations, there is great potential for growth within the Halal cosmetics market in Thailand.
The founder of Pimmara cosmetics, Pimmara Sridokbuab, 24, says she started manufacturing Halal cosmetics and skincare products in 2012, after experiencing success selling hijabs online. Starting from an online shop with nationwide delivery, she discovered that there was a greater demand for Halal cosmetics from Muslim women than she had previously anticipated.
“The feedback was great,” says Sridokbuab. “Within six months of launching the brand solely online using Facebook and social media, I had received such a large number of orders that I had to establish provincial distribution centres in the Southern provinces. To date, there are now more than eight distribution centres, with two shops in Bangkok.”
Issue 27
The internet is opening up new business models that would have seemed unthinkable twenty years’ ago. Thailand Horizon speaks to a company that is re-brokering the Kingdom’s car insurance market.
E-commerce is proving to be big business in Thailand as in many parts of the world. Driven by the rise of smartphones and tablets, and the government's commitment to the digital economy, the industry was valued at 744 billion baht (US$23 billion) in December 2014, and is forecast to rise to 1 trillion baht ($31 billion) by 2016, according to the president of the Thai E-Commerce Association.
“Thailand’s e-commerce will continue to thrive for years to come,” said Pawoot Pongvitayapanu, Managing Director and founder of www.tarad.com at a Thailand Online Mega Sale event in December 2014. “We expect the industry to grow by at least 20% this year and 35-40% in 2015 with the entry of e-commerce entrepreneurs and the government’s policy of investing more aggressively in broadband expansion and digital technology.”
Issue 25
After a dip in the first part of 2014, driven by cost and quality Bangkok is once more the leading destination for medical tourism within the region.
Thailand was ranked as the world’s No. 1 medical tourism destination in 2013 with over 1.8 million patients visiting its hospitals for a mix of necessary and cosmetic surgery, says US based consultancy Patients Beyond Borders.
“Certainly the number of medical tourists bounced back quickly last year,” says Num Thanthuwanit chief executive of hospital services at Bangkok’s Bumrungrad Hospital, which has lead the market in medical tourism after opening in 1997.
While local Thais make up about 50% of the hospital’s patients, it is the offshore patient market that rakes in the money. Dr Thanthuwanit says that the hospital hosts patients from all over the world and is popular with Chinese, Japanese and increasingly, Middle East patients as well as Australian and North American.
Bumrungrad is used by many expatriates who live in the Asia Pacific region as their designated spot for their yearly check up, often combing their visit with a holiday at one of dozens of popular holiday spots in the country. Last year, Bangkok Hospital reported that its Phuket facility was seeing an increasing number of cosmetic surgery patients, particularly from Australia.
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