Issue 15

From tin mines and spice ships to beach paradise, the Pearl of the Andaman Sea has undergone many a make-over through the ages, but with the advent of mass tourism, experts are asking the question whither now?

Thailand has a burgeoning reputation for producing high quality international brands. But what of branding Thailand itself? A recent symposium held by the Greater Phuket Chapter of the American Chamber of Commerce (AMCHAM) at the Angsana Laguna Phuket asked this question of the island that hosted it. Clearly the question struck a chord, as it attracted some 200 or so hoteliers, property developers, tour agents and other business people reliant upon the tourism industry.

Phuket has enjoyed – and some might say suffered – from a tourism boom. According to official figures from the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) almost 12 million people visited the island in 2013, albeit arrivals and departures are recorded separately hence doubling the real figures, and some of those were transiting to the nearby havens of Krabi and Koh Pha Ngan. Still, six million visitors have placed a strain on an airport that currently has a capacity of 6.5 million.

The government’s response has been to expand the airport to 12.5 million, with a further extension planned to increase capacity still further to some 18 million, although it will be 15 months before visitors realise the benefits. There are also plans to expand the capacity of the airports at Krabi and Pha Ngan.

In an exclusive interview with Horizon Thailand, Phuket’s new governor Nisit Jansomwong, outlined the island’s two-phase infrastructure plan. The first phase includes two new underpasses at a combined cost of 1.5 billion baht, while the longer term investment consists of a tunnel between Kathu and Patong as well as a 23 billion baht development of new tourism trains between Surat Thani, Phang Nga and Phuket. The latter has been submitted to the Ministry of Tourism for consideration. 

Chanchai Duangjit, director of TAT Southern Region, believes the proposals will improve the island’s infrastructure. “The transportation in Phuket will be better and orderly,” he says. “For example, the intersection around airport will be expanded, more regulations for ocean travel, beach will be cleaner, etc.”
The latter is a key point. Since the military coup in 2014, there has been a concerted and effective attempt on the part of the authorities to clean up illegal structures on the island’s shoreline – beach chairs – as well as regulating the local taxi “mafia”.

In effect with the change of government Phuket now has a clean slate. And this does not just apply to the tourism market. Property is also booming.
“Phuket also stands out as an investment destination regarding real estate business due to its constant growth in the past 10 years,” says Jansomwong. “There have been more investments in luxury housings and condominiums from big real estate companies. Phuket Real Estate Association and Real Estate Broker Association were also established to prove our potential in trade, investment, and real estate business.”

Suriya Wannabuit, Executive Vice President for Project Management and Marketing at a leading property developer has described the island’s property market as “like a gold rush”. Since the company came to Phuket just three years ago, it has completed 10 developments, mostly apartment buildings, and has five more under construction. Phuket, he is reported as saying, represents about 30% of the 16 billion baht (US$490 million) in sales his department achieved in the past year.

What most of those present at the AMCHAM symposium agree is that development of the island should be planned. One of its keynote speakers, British branding guru David Keen, the who made Bangkok his home 18 years ago and launched his media company QUO in June 1996, believes that Phuket needs to develop its own niche brand, apart from that of Thailand.

“Brand Phuket must stand for much more than the communication and image of Phuket,” he writes in a column in his company’s STATUS QUO magazine. “We see the brand forming a vision for how Phuket will develop in the midterm and longer term.” He adds that the brand should incorporate multi-dimensional tourism development. “This path would have to embrace different types of development and could not be driven only by private enterprise.”
However, Jansomwong believes that Phuket already has a well-known brand image as being ‘World’s Marine Tourism Hub’. "We have the most beautiful and abundant sea resources,” he says. “Our people have great hospitality. Local food is sensational. So, that image already presents itself to the world.” He also cites the island’s growing reputation for medical tourism. For him, the goal is to focus on “developing, maintaining and promoting our long historical roots and precious cultural heritages.”

While stressing the importance of the mass Chinese market that accounted for over 1.1 million of the visitor numbers, Chanchai Duangjit sees a place for niche tourism. “The niche market will be more focused on such [elements] as MICE and corporate, weddings and honeymoons, health and beauty, golf, yacht and cruise trips,” he says.
Niche or mass tourism? Unstructured or planned development? The answer to these questions will largely influence the brand that Phuket portrays to the outside world. But whatever that may be, history suggests that both tourism and property development will continue to flourish on this island of immense opportunity.

Words by Mark Bibby Jackson