keestha

A bit scary how people can look at a business and because there are lots of bodies around, think - wow what a roaring success. Little do they realise what the overheads are and that in fact it could be loosing money like a leaky sump

Exactly. A good illustration could be a discotheque. Filled to the brim night after night, but all the people coming in small groups, bringing their own bottle, ordering just soda and ice, which makes a bill of about 350 Baht for a table of 4 people, including corking charge. Lots of people working: serving staff, the band playing, security, coyote girls, cleaning staff and so on.

What is the OP's criteria for judging "success?"

Is it how long the business has kept the doors open, with the same own?

Is it how many people go there?

Is it how many baht it puts in the owner's pocket?

I just assumed the first criteria, as that means citeria 2 & 3 must be positive.

No. The owner might have deep pockets, so that he can absorb losses for a long time. Or he might also have another source of income. Also he might be just about able to make both ends meet for 10+ years. Also sometimes farang business owners who are heading towards bankrupcy, manage to find a farang business partner who pumps new money into it, so that the doors can be kept open. Or the owner is a Thai lady with a German boyfriend, and when his money runs out and he goes home, she finds herself a Russian.

actually about homepro, i bought a sink there a week ago and when i opened the box at home i saw the drain hardware was missing

In my experience, wherever you buy, they are always willing to open the box in the shop so that you can check the contents. If it is an electrical appliance, you can also ask them to turn it on to test, if this is just a matter of plugging it into a power outlet.

What is often overlooked, is that far more guests than members read this sub forum and TV in general. I hope it's helpful for the guests, and not just entertainment.

The loss of face factor can make it an extremely hard decision for Thai people to close down a business. I have seen very clearly unprofitable businesses stay open for years at huge losses.

Thx Topt. I am in Khao Lak,. close to Phuket. Thanks also for the link to the other thread.

I think the usual transliteration is Chiang Dao cave. Went there in 1999, lovely countryside area, stayed in a near by resort, and the cave is certainly worth a visit.

I do believe 'where to find' would be a useful pinned thread

A 'where to find' subforum would be more practical. A 'where to find' pinned thread would become a mix of answers to very different questions, one is looking for a bottle of Chateau Dégoutant, somebody else wants a Yorkshire Terrier puppy, and again another one needs a non electrical lawnmower.

In my aging bungalow resort, I have an increasing problem with termites. Like somebody having constructed a wooden cupboard in the kitchen just a month ago, and now the thing being heavily damaged already. I used to only have the small type of termites, barely visible with the bare eye, but now I am plagued by a bigger more aggressive variety. Sure I know about the poison you can spray, and also once a pest eradication firm injected poison into the ground, but does anybody have any other suggestions? Thanks in advance for any useful replies.

When I am looking to buy a specific article and throw in a post asking for info, I always get useful replies promptly. Also posts here about the Phuket Immigration Office becoming more and more diligent made me decide always to take copies of my passport+visa when driving down to paradise island. Nice also to be warned about construction related traffic gridlocks instead of being taken by surprise.

Old problem. Mail delivery is hit and miss all over Thailand. In the part of Khao Lak where I live, 2 years ago there was no delivery service for months at an end. At the post office they kept telling me that they still couldn't find anybody willing to do the job. If they manage to find somebody, the person's work ethics will vary. Quite a few of them save up your mail till there is a lot before coming to your front door. No use if it is like bills which have to be paid before a certain date.Mail sent by EMS is more reliable, but still last week it took 7 days for documents sent by EMS from Bangkok to get to me.

If they ever crack down on long time overstayers in the sense of not allowing them back in again, I hope this will be well publicized, and that these people get a chance to report themselves, pay the fine, and try to clean up their act. Surely quite a few among them have a family here.

Political dynasties are an Asian thing, look at for instance Pakistan (Buttho), India (Gandhi), Indonesia (Sukharno).

As a whole, I am quite satisfied with Thai gas station culture. Driving long distances, I stop at PTT gas stations which have a Cafe Amazon and a 7/11, and sometimes even a food center and/or a KFC or a Mac Donalds. Service is OK, and at least in branded gas stations they can always make a VAT receipt. I learned to speak slowly and repeat my order when the staff is Burmese.

Only 3 times I had a bad experience: once getting diesel mixed in with lamp oil, once a rigged meter or getting diesel mixed in with air, and once a not to bright employee filling up my pick up with 91 (regular) instead of diesel. Not a bad score considering the about 400.000 km mileage.

Lived in Thailand 12 years and never done a single 90 day. Visa is always renewed in May and always make a trip abroad in April and it's never been an issue - way to go me!!!! Lol

You might be getting away with this now, but sooner or later this will catch up with you, for instance when your local immigration office gets a new boss. Then you will end up paying a fine, no more LOL. Initially my local upcountry immigration office did't pay much attention to the 90 days rule, but from one point on they started enforcing. It might also happen any moment that Immigration officers working at border checkpoints are instructed to pay attention to this.

In the Isarn, I saw a number of recently constructed spectacularly looking mega wats (temples) which were obviously made with the purpose of attracting as many Thai visitors as possible. And they do come.

Phuket taxi drivers and those taking commissions off them can be extremely protective of their turf. Once a customer staying at Bang Tao called me to arrange a taxi for him to go to Khao Lak. So I did, but the next thing what happened, was that I got a furious phone call from the hotel owner at Bang Tao, he wouldn't allow a Khao Lak taxi driver to pick up a customer at his place. So I gave in, but at least he agreed to let the customer pay just 1300 Baht, the price I had agreed on with him. Later the customer told me that before calling me, he had talked with the owner of the hotel, who had quoted a price in the range of about 2600 Baht.

Bound to be hit and miss, walking into a bank without prior announcement to buy foreign currency. Banks will quickly send foreign money they purchased to the main office, from where it will quickly be send to the country of origin. But if they have it they will sell it, best bet is going to the local main office early.

For a number of years, I had a bar/restaurant, the windowless kitchen right behind the restaurant. I took Khao Pad Khaprao off the menu, because its pungent fumes wafting into the restaurant made people's eyes watery, and made them complain or even leave.

Surely beggars, buskers and bums wouldnt have a work permit or visas. Their first priority is alcohol

Interesting post.

Is "recycling" an occupation reserved for Thai's only? Can a foreigner have a "recycling business/company?" Would that allow him to scavenge through garbage bins, legally?

It wouldn't. The foreigner would only be allowed to work as the general manager of the recycling business, assuming it is not on the prohibited occupations list. For those whose dream it is to scavenge themselves legally, the only way would be to first acquire Thai nationality.

By the way a load of paper, plastic, glass and metal which fits piled up on the back of a pick up easily bring in about 1100 Baht. So I don't pity the Thai scavengers too much, filling up the salaeng (motorcycle with side car) several times a day, they make way over the minimum wage. At the other hand it is a bit of a loss of face for status conscious Asians to do this, once the wife of an acquaintance blushed heavily when she saw I noticed her scavenging.

This passport pages copies requirement is strictly a Phuket thing. I went for my 90 days party in Phangnga today, they don't require it and never did.

For newcomers originating from countries where requirements are uniform all over the country this can be confusing, local officials making up their own rules, or just not knowing the rules. Now this copying thing is trivial, but it can be far more serious, like one Immigration office giving the foreign spouse of somebody holding a 1 year extension also a 1 year extension as a dependent, and another Immigration office not doing this.

^ Telling me where I cannot get information is very different from telling me where I can , especially as it conflicts with other responses

The Provincial Land Department has a list of prices, but they are often outdated. People will use these prices as official selling prices on which taxes are based.

Edit: It is probably not the Provincial, but the Municipal Land Department

Municipal, meaning the city? So the or bor tor or district?

District (Ampher), be it Kathu or whatever. But as others have pointed out, their list of prices is likely to be heavily outdated. Don't waste your time going there.