Issue 30

Thailand has the potential to become the hub of international education within the ASEAN Economic Community, at least according to one of the country’s leading institutions.

Investment in educational is vital for a nation’s development. Thailand has a strong regional reputation for the quality of both its international schools and tertiary education. Mahidol University International College (MUIC) is one of the country’s foremost educational institutions.

“The college offers liberal arts and sciences majors, placing importance on creativity, problem-solving and research skills,” says Dr Chanuantong Tanasugarn, associate dean for International Affairs and Networking. “We currently have 20 undergraduate degree programmes, along with 22 minors, which include seven foreign languages. Our students come from many countries and half of the faculty members are foreign nationals, thus you can say MUIC offers a vibrant and dynamic environment for staff and students.”

MUIC’s exchange programmes offer many opportunities for students to join the more than a hundred partner universities in America, Europe, Australia and Asia. “This is what makes the college unique, so much that several universities in Asia are using our college as a model for their education programmes,” says Tanasugarn.

In today’s academia, students are looking for a more active role in the learning process rather than just attending classes, claims Tanasugarn. “MUIC moves forward with the times and the college encourages students to raise their questions and share their interests. Such initiation has attracted students from within and outside the country,” she says.

According to Tanasugarn, MUIC works closely with the Ministry to Education to ensure that standards are maintained, both in terms of academic performance and learning environment.

“The college truly believes that it is necessary to provide meaningful experiences for students,” she says. “MUIC has been granted the Thailand Trust Mark from the Ministry of Commerce, validating that the college is committed to offer the best to students. The college has also received the Best Practice Award for its exchange programmes from Thailand’s Ministry of Education in 2010 as recognition of its thriving Study Abroad Programme for inbound international students and outbound candidates.”

MUIC has already started to prepare itself for the formation of the ASEAN Economy Community (AEC), scheduled to take place by the end of 2015, by increasing the quality of the international student recruitment and exchange programmes, as well as the number of partner universities. “The AEC will bring many opportunities, not only for MUIC but for Thailand,” says Tanasugarn. “The country has all it takes to become the hub for international education, ranging from qualified universities and teachers, to lodging, food, infrastructure, warm hospitality, interesting culture and related support systems.”

For more information, visit www.muic.mahidol.ac.th

Words by: Manisa Phromsiripranee

Issue 28

New Zealand’s ambassador to Thailand talks about the relationship between the two countries, as 2015 marks the 10th anniversary of the Thailand-New Zealand Closer Economic Partnership.

“Our embassy in Thailand is one of the larger embassies, and that reflects the wide range of engagement between the two countries, whether it’s education, tourism, trade or consular,” says New Zealand ambassador Reuben Levermore.

According to the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, approximately 3,000 Thai students study in New Zealand annually. “In Thailand, New Zealand is a very popular destination for high school students, as parents see New Zealand as a safe destination that uses English and has a high quality of education,” says Levermore.

“We also do a lot of people-to-people activities to promote New Zealand culture and non-trade sectors,” he adds. “Thailand is very popular in New Zealand; [New Zealanders] love to come here on holidays, and they love Thai food. Now, more visits to Thailand are business-focused, reflecting Thailand’s success and development as a country.”

Currently, as an economic partner with New Zealand, Thailand ranks third in ASEAN and tenth globally at US$1.83 billion, a figure that has more than doubled since the Thailand-New Zealand Closer Economic Partnership (TNZCEP) was signed.
“We negotiated [the trade agreement] in 2005, so this is the tenth anniversary of Thailand-New Zealand trade agreements. The tariffs are progressively reduced, and … will reach zero this year [2015]. It gives our exporters an advantage so we value that very highly, and Thai exporters also benefit from zero tariffs.”

Major exports from Thailand to New Zealand are mostly automobiles, with trade constantly growing in the last decade. Conversely, exports from New Zealand to Thailand consist mainly of food products such as milk, fresh meat and seafood.

Levermore remarks that as a consumer market, Thailand has a very positive outlook. “Thailand has a large population, an increasing middle class, and has shown impressive economic growth in last decade,” he says.

As for the forthcoming economic cooperation across the ASEAN region, Ambassador Levermore views the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) as opening up more opportunities for Thailand and neighbouring countries. “[ASEAN] is an interesting region to be in, and Thailand has the advantage of being very strategically located in AEC. As projects like infrastructure and logistics [in the region] are realised, we expect that the economies that surround Thailand will begin to grow more quickly, and Thailand can become a premium hub for logistics and manufacturing, and there’re a lot of reasons [for New Zealand] to stay focused on Thailand in the long term.”

Word by Sirinuch Borsub

Issue 29

Thailand’s cosmetics industry is becoming well-known and accepted worldwide. A Thai brand in aromatherapy and organic cosmetics has already made its name in EU and Japan.

Looking beautiful can be good for business as well as for your appearance. Thailand's cosmetics market was valued at around 250 billion baht in 2014 – 150 billion baht for domestic consumption and 100 billion baht in exports – according to the Cosmetics Industry Club part of The Federation of Thai Industries. With the rising awareness of healthcare and wellness, this is only set to get bigger. Thailand's beauty industry is expected to grow by 8% to 10% in 2015.

One person to benefit for the industry’s growth is Wiriya Phungsoonthorn, the CEO and founder of Nature Touch International Co., Ltd.. He launched his first aromatherapy product in 1999, based family knowledge of Thai herbs and his own personal passion. Now, Nature Touch has over 300 products in 20 collections that have been exported to over 20 countries across the world.

“Our core business is aromatic skin care and we started our business from hotel amenities,” says Phungsoonthorn. Specialising in aromatherapy for more than 30 years since studying in advanced blending techniques in France, he develops all the products with exclusive natural essential oils from Charabot, a perfumery leader in France. The combination between Thai traditional recipe and western technology offers unique and fine products.

“We educate hotels that their expertise is services and hospitality while ours is body care and aromatherapy,” he says. “We asked them to put our products in their hotel for 20-30 rooms to check the guests’ feedback. At the end, they got a good feedback. So they felt confident that our good quality products could enhance their image and attract more customers.”

Nature Touch’s main customers are in the retail business and four- to five-star hotels in Europe and Asia, such as the Meridian, Orient Express and Imperial. “We also have created a smell tailor-made for Dusit International which we have supplied globally for almost 20 years,” he says.

Thailand’s cosmetic industry is focusing more on natural and organic products. However, penetrating global market requires fine quality of the product as well as great effort of the entrepreneur. “In the EU, to get certified by Nature Europe as a natural cosmetic, the product must contain 70% natural ingredients… [To be classified as an] organic product, it must contain 60% of organic ingredients. Any products less than specified cannot claim to be a natural or organic product,” says Phungsoonthorn.

Beauty care products sold in Japan also require ingredient approval, quality control, registration and label by MHW and certification. Nature Touch has been accepted by the Japanese market after taking seven to eight years to prove its quality. “Japanese consumers are very sophisticated,” says Phungsoonthorn. “Products must be nicely designed and packaged. They are quite particular about the quality and safety of the products they buy and use.”

Phungsoonthorn says this is a consideration for any business wanting to enter the Japanese market. “You should understand their [the Japanese] detailed-oriented nature,” he says. “Now we have gone through that process and our products are available in the shops, such as Tokyu Hand, Watashi No Heya, Estnation Ginza, Mitsukoshi, and hotels in Japan, such as Mahama Tokyo Disney, Imperial Hotel Japan, for instance.”

For more information, please visit www.naturetouch.co.th

Words by Natthinee Ratanaprasidhi

Issue 27

Relations between Russia and Thailand have been long-standing and cordial. The Thai-Russian Chamber of Commerce is there to further promote trade between the two countries.

Originally a Thai-Russian Trade Association that started with a few solitary members, the Thai-Russian Chamber of Commerce (TRCC) has evolved into a fully-fledged chamber of commerce that includes both Thai and Russian businesses.

As part of the Thai Chamber of Commerce, members of the TRCC can gain access to “information about various fields of businesses,” explains Chusak Direkwattanachai, former President of the TRCC, adding that the chamber also provides consultation services for members wishing to do business with Russia.

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