Heinecke warns of more layoffs, closure of some hotels, as tourism continues to languish

By The Nation

 

William Ellwood Heinecke

 

Minor International (MINT) may have to lay off its employees for the second time and temporarily close some hotels that had previously resumed operations due to the impact of Covid-19 on tourism.

 

 

MINT chairman William E Heinecke told Bloomberg News that some hotels operated by the company were unable to pay monthly salaries to employees because there were no guests.

 

"MINT has faced net loss in the second quarter of this year and laid off thousands of employees to enable the company to operate its business amid the Covid-19 crisis that has caused an impact on tourism even in countries that have been able to contain the spread effectively, such as Thailand," he said.

 

Last year 27,259,855 foreign tourists, mostly from China, Russia and India, visited Thailand, generating revenue of Bt1.1 trillion. The revenue from foreign tourists accounted for 11.9 per cent of the country's gross domestic product.

 

Heinecke said that of the 526 hotels under MINT, 83 per cent of hotels were able to resume operations, while expecting that 90 per cent of the company's hotels will be able to resume operations in the fourth quarter of this year. He added that 6 per cent of MINT hotels were located in Thailand.

 

"We expect the company's performance in China to rise to the level before the Covid-19 outbreak, as the occupancy rate rose to 80 per cent in August, while the company's food business has revenue growth per branch at 8 per cent," he said.

 

Also, he expected that Thailand would be the first country to allow Chinese tourists to enter after the Chinese government allowed its citizens to travel overseas, as these tourists would help boost the country's economy.

 

MINT's second-quarter net loss was Bt10.22 billion, while its share price dropped by 43 per cent, lower than the Stock Exchange of Thailand Index that dropped by 20 per cent.

 

Meanwhile, NH Hotel Group SA, a leading hotel operator in which MINT holds a 94.1 per cent stake, is expected to announce its third-quarter results on November 9.

 

Source: https://www.nationthailand.com/business/30395986

 

-- © Copyright The Nation Thailand 2020-10-11

 

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It won't be too much longer now. I heard that 150 Chinese tourists will arrive in Phuket soon.

Everything will soon return to normal. ????

"some hotels" - bit of an understatement there.

Willy looks pretty well feed.  All the layoffs don't seem to be causing an anorexia type reaction to the pain being inflicted on his serfs.

 

This guy is just irritating as well.  Orlando Florida is did 75 million tourists in 2018.  TAT and all these executives should be fired as they cannot even do half as good as a rather bland city in Florida.  

 

Here in Vietnam many do not wear masks in shops; customers and workers.  Many countries are going to have to do the math and decide the risk.  But even doing that, China may not be in a hurry to help Highland's tourism woes.  What is in it for them?    US has record unemployment.  Thailand needs to stop listening to the 1%.   The need to build a middle class.  They need to stop Vietnam and Malaysia from effortlessly poaching foreign business.  This is a symptom of a much greater problem.   The virus just put it in the spotlight.   

2 minutes ago, yellowboat said:

This guy is just irritating as well.  Orlando Florida is did 75 million tourists in 2018.  TAT and all these executives should be fired as they cannot even do half as good as a rather bland city in Florida. 

How many of those 75 million were from outside the US?

my heart bleeds for this guy and MINT .....   so sad   !!  ????

12 minutes ago, yellowboat said:

This guy is just irritating as well.  Orlando Florida is did 75 million tourists in 2018.  TAT and all these executives should be fired as they cannot even do half as good as a rather bland city in Florida.  

 

Here in Vietnam many do not wear masks in shops; customers and workers.  Many countries are going to have to do the math and decide the risk.  But even doing that, China may not be in a hurry to help Highland's tourism woes.  What is in it for them?    US has record unemployment.  Thailand needs to stop listening to the 1%.   The need to build a middle class.  They need to stop Vietnam and Malaysia from effortlessly poaching foreign business.  This is a symptom of a much greater problem.   The virus just put it in the spotlight.   

Rich tourists like to spend money when they travel. And they cannot do that here, as they do not like getting taken for a ride. Most wealthy people are smart with their money. Thailand could be making a fortune on a 25% luxury tax. Instead of the 100% of more, which discourages most people from buying. How many people do you see in the luxury stores here? They are almost always completely empty. Inane. Beyond inane.
Quantity over quality is never a good thing, unless you are selling one dollar items at a swap meet. It just lowers the quality of the experience for all.

 

This is an emergency situation. It needs to be dealt with, and it needs a high degree of intelligence and competence. Not something Prayuth or Pipat possess. Someone else needs to handle this, and it needs to be handled yesterday!

The tourism industry is teetering on the edge of a tragic drop, and has already been devastated by this highly destructive administration. And now Covid? These problems existed long before Covid crushed the economy. It could now crush millions of families dependent on tourism.

 

I have been warning of the dangers of becoming too dependent on China and India for years. Now, after you have made your bed, you get to sleep in it. You have alienated all tourists but Indians and Chinese.
Westerners are not coming here anymore for a dozen very good reasons. You insulted us. You demeaned us. You accused us of being evil, and you accused us of being criminals. You mounted campaigns touting us as bad for the nation. You demonstrated deplorable amounts of racism and xenophobia, and fear of the outside world. And now you want us to come back? Really? How soon you forget. Sorry, but we have not forgotten what was done and said.

 

What we have forgotten is the nation named Thailand. There are too many alternatives now, and they are not only trying harder, they actually have competent people in charge! Surprise!
Sorry to say, but the high spending tourists are lost for good. And too much timidity when it comes to reopening the country to tourism is going to bite you hard. 

I know the man he use to fly his plane from the same field i used to, the is a billionaire few times over, and you hardly ever hear about him got into the right business at the right time and with the RIGHT PEOPLE, as such hard time even biting at the mighty feet not that it is going to make any different to his fortune...

Lovely hair / syrup though

As one of the richest elite here

He must be suffering ! although certainly not starving it seems

 

 

4 hours ago, Issanman said:

It won't be too much longer now. I heard that 150 Chinese tourists will arrive in Phuket soon.

Everything will soon return to normal. ????

bringing covid with them ,like they did before 

1 hour ago, yellowboat said:

This guy is just irritating as well.  Orlando Florida is did 75 million tourists in 2018.  TAT and all these executives should be fired as they cannot even do half as good as a rather bland city in Florida.  

....and nearly 70 million of them were domestic tourists.  Hardly a reasonable comparison.

Also, he expected that Thailand would be the first country to allow Chinese tourists to enter after the Chinese government allowed its citizens to travel overseas, as these tourists would help boost the country's economy.

 

 Insane, the country that gave the whole world a severe virus will be the first country to visit Thailand. Like nothing has happened.

41 minutes ago, bert bloggs said:

bringing covid with them ,like they did before 

Of course, many will do. 

1 hour ago, spidermike007 said:

Rich tourists like to spend money when they travel. And they cannot do that here, as they do not like getting taken for a ride. Most wealthy people are smart with their money. Thailand could be making a fortune on a 25% luxury tax. Instead of the 100% of more, which discourages most people from buying. How many people do you see in the luxury stores here? They are almost always completely empty. Inane. Beyond inane.
Quantity over quality is never a good thing, unless you are selling one dollar items at a swap meet. It just lowers the quality of the experience for all.

 

This is an emergency situation. It needs to be dealt with, and it needs a high degree of intelligence and competence. Not something Prayuth or Pipat possess. Someone else needs to handle this, and it needs to be handled yesterday!

The tourism industry is teetering on the edge of a tragic drop, and has already been devastated by this highly destructive administration. And now Covid? These problems existed long before Covid crushed the economy. It could now crush millions of families dependent on tourism.

 

I have been warning of the dangers of becoming too dependent on China and India for years. Now, after you have made your bed, you get to sleep in it. You have alienated all tourists but Indians and Chinese.
Westerners are not coming here anymore for a dozen very good reasons. You insulted us. You demeaned us. You accused us of being evil, and you accused us of being criminals. You mounted campaigns touting us as bad for the nation. You demonstrated deplorable amounts of racism and xenophobia, and fear of the outside world. And now you want us to come back? Really? How soon you forget. Sorry, but we have not forgotten what was done and said.

 

What we have forgotten is the nation named Thailand. There are too many alternatives now, and they are not only trying harder, they actually have competent people in charge! Surprise!
Sorry to say, but the high spending tourists are lost for good. And too much timidity when it comes to reopening the country to tourism is going to bite you hard. 

Really? how many tourists read the Bangkok Post back home? Thailand is teflon coated, once this covid is under control the bars will reopen like the hotels and the girls, the main attraction for the three week punters, will be back 'joking you'.

12 minutes ago, soalbundy said:

Really? how many tourists read the Bangkok Post back home? Thailand is teflon coated, once this covid is under control the bars will reopen like the hotels and the girls, the main attraction for the three week punters, will be back 'joking you'.

Nah. Not going to happen. Tourism was already falling off. The numbers may have been up, but that meant very little to everyone I spoke to in tourism. This time? Years and years before Thailand has even 5 million tourists. People forget. And the neighbors are trying harder, and actually improving. 

1 hour ago, soalbundy said:

Really? how many tourists read the Bangkok Post back home? Thailand is teflon coated, once this covid is under control the bars will reopen like the hotels and the girls, the main attraction for the three week punters, will be back 'joking you'.

...but...they have 0 new infections for months, now!

How much more (alledgedly) "under control" can it get?

So long as there's a 2 week quarantine procedure on the way back into China then forget about Chinese tourists.

3 hours ago, bert bloggs said:

bringing covid with them ,like they did before 

if they bring a few satang then the gurus have done their job... not their fault the visitors have Covid...

5 hours ago, Grumpy John said:

Willy looks pretty well feed.  All the layoffs don't seem to be causing an anorexia type reaction to the pain being inflicted on his serfs.

 

MR. Heinecke seems to be the Chairman of MINT, and not a fuedal lord. There Is no mention of any "anorexia type reaction" in the article that would support a similar statement. When one cannot express a counterpoint with rational thought, it is easy to attack a person's physical appearance and demean the person  with a shortened version of his/her name. 

 

Serf: an agricultural laborer bound under the feudal system to work on his lord's estate.

 

Anorexia: lack or loss of appetite for food (as a medical condition).

• an emotional disorder characterized by an obsessive desire to lose weight by refusing to eat.

   

   

3 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

The tourism industry is teetering on the edge of a tragic drop, and has already been devastated by this highly destructive administration. And now Covid? These problems existed long before Covid crushed the economy. It could now crush millions of families dependent on tourism.

I'm sorry, but tourism is not teetering on the edge of a tragic drop. It is over the edge, and a mangled wreck at the bottom. It is an industry which has had, effectively , no turnover, no income, for 8 months now.

 

The only way, perhaps, to salvage anything from the mangled wreck is to reopen the borders, with a simple cost neutral testing routine for travellers. Of course that poses a risk. If you are willing to take that risk then maybe you can start to rebuild. if you can't or won't take that risk then you must accept that foreign tourism is gone.

 

I have some interest  in a small bar. It is, just, precariously, surviving on the trade from local expats. It isn't making any money, 

9 hours ago, Issanman said:

It won't be too much longer now. I heard that 150 Chinese tourists will arrive in Phuket soon.

Everything will soon return to normal. ????

That's the reason he still can smile, now I understand.

1 hour ago, herfiehandbag said:

I'm sorry, but tourism is not teetering on the edge of a tragic drop. It is over the edge, and a mangled wreck at the bottom. It is an industry which has had, effectively , no turnover, no income, for 8 months now.

 

The only way, perhaps, to salvage anything from the mangled wreck is to reopen the borders, with a simple cost neutral testing routine for travellers. Of course that poses a risk. If you are willing to take that risk then maybe you can start to rebuild. if you can't or won't take that risk then you must accept that foreign tourism is gone.

 

I have some interest  in a small bar. It is, just, precariously, surviving on the trade from local expats. It isn't making any

True that. My question is this. If the extremely toxic and dangerously timid army are unwilling to take any risks whatsoever, with regard to Covid, why are they spending 22 billion baht on submarines? Obviously there is some risk in operating subs, and even more risk if as they say, they are purposed to protect against terrorist threats and any threat in the South China Sea. The real budget is more like 13 billion baht for the first 

S26T Yuan Class sub, due in 2013. And the real cost for the subsequent two? 

 

Thai naval forces have not operated submarines for over 60 years now, while neighboring countries, particularly those with a major dispute at sea with Thailand, such as Vietnam, are all equipped with modern submarines. 

 

Looks like they are willing to take a huge risk with the treasury. Why so timid with Covid? 

Edited October 11, 20205 yr by spidermike007

1 hour ago, spidermike007 said:

True that. My question is this. If the extremely toxic and dangerously timid army are unwilling to take any risks whatsoever, with regard to Covid, why are they spending 22 billion baht on submarines? Obviously there is some risk in operating subs, and even more risk if as they say, they are purposed to protect against terrorist threats and any threat in the South China Sea. 

This government is a whirlpool of conflicting loyalties and interests. It's leader has to manage those interests, and effectively buy the loyalties of the various parts of the armed forces. The submarines are the price he has to pay for the navy supporting him. They will end up unusable and unaffordable, as did the aircraft carrier

 

There is no strategic justification for the submarines. There is really no military threat to Thailand, none of the countries with which it shares a land border have the capacity for anything other than the occasional cross border firefight. If you look carefully at all the military procurement of recent years, they are all to support ambitions, and thus buy the support of the various rival groups within the armed forces. They simply do not add up to any sort of a coherent modernisation or re-equipment of what remains a largely obsolete, immobile and under trained force, able only to undertake the most mundane of garrison duties, whilst it's bloated leadership occupies itself with playing politics or their own largely unregulated business ventures.

 

The government however (or more realistically those to whom it reports) must rely upon the military to keep it in power. It was put into power for one core function; to prevent the nascent political, social and economic liberalisation of Thai society which arose with the arrival of new technologies and communications, which have allowed a (younger) population which has long been kept ill educated and dependent for any advancement on its elders and sponsors, to communicate, educate themselves and develop business independent of those elders and sponsors. The Covid crisis is in a dimension beyond that, and it's timid, chaotic "rabbit in the headlights" response to the challenges it brings are simply because it does not know how to react, other than to use some of the opportunities to exercise power, in pursuit of that core function, which the social and political restrictions they argue the disease has necessitated give them.

 

The tourist industry was largely beyond the scope of those to whom it owes its loyalty (existence). they neither understand nor are interested in it.  The same holds for the fate of those whose livelihoods and businesses have been damaged or destroyed by the reaction to Covid. They can, as we cynically joke, always" go back to their farms".

 

Whether the younger generation(s) will meekly accept their lot, now they have tasted the opportunity to communicate, educate themselves and develop business, we shall see.

Edited October 11, 20205 yr by herfiehandbag

18 hours ago, Susco said:

How many of those 75 million were from outside the US?

Good call. Of those 75 million visitors to Orlando FL in 2018, 6.48 million were foreign visitors, with nearly 1/2 of those from Canada.

He's suffering also.  Rich, yes.  But his net worth is already down $1 billion.  A big hit for sure, and the future doesn't look good.

 

The 2 cases just found in Myanmar truck drivers who had just crossed the border isn't helping.

 

https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30395984

 

To see how quickly it spreads:

Iceland's infection rate spikes after French tourists blamed | Daily Mail Online

On 10/11/2020 at 6:08 AM, rooster59 said:

Heinecke said that of the 526 hotels under MINT, 83 per cent of hotels were able to resume operations, while expecting that 90 per cent of the company's hotels will be able to resume operations in the fourth quarter of this year. He added that 6 per cent of MINT hotels were located in Thailand.

Where are the tourists coming from?

48 minutes ago, hotchilli said:

Where are the tourists coming from?

He has hotels all over the world.

27 minutes ago, Jeffr2 said:

He has hotels all over the world.

He must be relying on a lot of domestic tourism then, Thailand has many hotels, all empty because Thais won't pay the prices.