February 2, 20188 yr The city planning Act of Chiang Rai city prohibits settlement of large supermarkets. How Big C got an entry point is still a very good question. The Tesco at Mae Chan is thriving, but the company cannot open a store in Chiang Rai.
April 20, 20187 yr On 2/2/2018 at 8:19 PM, SoilSpoil said: The Tesco at Mae Chan Is this a large Tesco or one of the smaller ones?
April 25, 20187 yr One of charms of Tachilek is: it has no stores larger than a basketball court. Thank Bob it has no super markets or big box stores with acres of parking. Side note: giant parking areas contribute to heating surrounding areas, cut down on oxygen-producing plants, and cut down on drainage during wet periods. The annual floods in Central Thailand are partly exacerbated by the millions of rai of once-natural soil/foliage which are now covered in concrete and asphalt. I proposed a plan for all of Thailand: For every sq.M covered by roofs or concrete/asphalt (including driveways, car-parks, swimming pools, walkways, etc), builders should pay Bt.100 one-time tax. The money could go to flood-prevention. Big box stores put regular residents out of business. They bring in more processed food-crap, more plastic crap and run up prices. One of hundreds of examples: the fresh produce section at Makro has fruits/veges there that cost many times more than same (fresher and often better-quality) produce in local markets.
April 29, 20187 yr I am in Mae Lao and we buy most of our fruit and vegetables from the local people who grow them in their gardens. Fresh and cheap and also supporting the community.
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