Makro Cash & Carry Grand Opening.

[Rimmer]

Pattaya, December 16 [PATTAYA ONE NEWS] : On Wednesday Morning, the much anticipated grand opening of the Makro Cash & Carry took place. The event was hosted by Khun Suchadar, the Managing Director of Makro Thailand. Guest of honor was Khun Saeni, the Governor of Chonburi Province who was joined by Khun Mongkol, the Chief of Banglamung Distirct and Khun Itipon, the Mayor of Pattaya. This is Makro’s 44th Branch here in Thailand and Pattaya’s branch is located on the Sukumvit Road close to the Pattaya Underwater World Park and cost the group 600 Million Baht to construct. Makro is open from 6am until 11pm, seven days a week and to celebrate their grand opening, special discounts on selected lines are available until 19th December. With over 10,000 individual low-price items to choose from, the first day of trading saw thousands converge on the location.

http://www.pattayaone.net/news

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16 Dec 2009

[wpcoe]

Is this store open to the general public? Or, just to commercial business members?

[Jonathanpattaya]

Is this store open to the general public? Or, just to commercial business members?

My question too?

[ericg1953]

Is this store open to the general public? Or, just to commercial business members?

My question too?

I was in there tonight and got a member card by just showing my thai drivers license. Beware of one thing...this store doesnt give you a bag to carry out your goods. There are some available at the checkout counter for 11 baht each. I saw some people just leave all the things they were going to buy because bags were not supplied at the register. So the answer is yes...it is open to everyone.

Edited December 16, 2009 by ericg1953

[Basil B]

Is this store open to the general public? Or, just to commercial business members?

My question too?

I was in there tonight and got a member card by just showing my thai drivers license. Beware of one thing...this store doesnt give you a bag to carry out your goods. There are some available at the checkout counter for 11 baht each. I saw some people just leave all the things they were going to buy because bags were not supplied at the register. So the answer is yes...it is open to everyone.

Is it open to every one?

If you have to show your Thai Drivers Licences, did you have to prove you have residency status?

[hansnl]

Funny thing.

When I was in Holland I used my Thai Makro card......no problem

First time I went to the Makro in Khon Kaen, showed my Dutch Makro card......same thing.....no problem.

However, the manager in Khon Kaen tells me that officially the card is only meant for businesses.

But non-Thai can get the card too, depending on having an address in Thailand

[Rimmer]

Made a trip there this morning, one half is a supermarket like Lotus, prices are much the same but the other side is bulk supplies of essential foodstuff stacked on pallets.

There are no baskets that I could see so everyone takes a trolley which are all outside, there are none inside, At the checkout there are no bags and no belt to place your goods on, they take the goods you have purchased from one trolley and put it into another trolley which you take out to the car. Simple really.

Prices must be cheaper than other places, I saw people loading up pickups to the top in the special loading area outside, we paid cash and walked out, apparently you can get a card which entitles you to some kind of saving or rebate stamp if you spend over Baht2000. That's all I got to report.

[wpcoe]

I just returned from my initial visit, and here are my perceptions. To have proper perspective: I'm single (no ti-rak/spouse/roommate) so bulk-quantity purchases don't mean much to me. I also have no car/truck/moto-sai, so either walk (about 25 minutes) or take moto-sai taxi.

Registration to get member card is easy: I just presented my (expired) Thai driver license and the gal filled out the application form, just asking for my phone number and for me to sign the form. Other farangs, who apparently did not have Thai driver licences, presented their passports.

As Rimmer mentioned, grab a shopping cart before entering the store. Nice wide aisles, and very clean (of course, it's only day #2 of operation...) and well lit. Also, somewhat out of step with most retailers here, prices for items were prominently displayed and even gave the bulk (multi-item) price and the per-item price. They even went so far as to put arrows pointing up or down to show if the price applied to the item above or below the tag.

I didn't find the prices overall to be cheaper than Tesco or Carrefour. I think the benefit is the large quantities. You might find napkins cheaper at Tesco, but you're not going to be able to buy a couple carton loads.

Some prices that I recall off the top of my head:

B57 for a 6-pack of Nestle bottled water. That's more than Tesco.

B120 for a 4-pack of tinned tuna (B30 per can). That's about the same as Tesco.

B95 for a 16-oz bottle of apple cider vineger. That's cheaper than FoodMart, although a different brand.

They had multi-packs of Malee juice, and though I forget the price now, at the time I noted a 4-pack of pineapple juice was more than Tesco or FoodMart.

I forgot to bring a bag (even though I knew they charged for them) so for my B300 purchase, I sprang for B11 extra.

When I finished shopping, of course the first rainfall in weeks was coming down in bucketfuls. There are no moto-sai or sawn-taeuw taxis, so I waited out the rain (about 30 minutes), then walked out to and down Sukhumvit to catch a moto-sai taxi home.

So, definitely YMMV, but I doubt I'll shop there often.

[PoorSucker]

Best place to go shopping, my wife don't want to come.

No shoes, clothes, handbags etc.

[popshirt]

I acquired a giant food cooler in order to load up at Makro here in Bkk when I come to Pattaya........I think their frozen food selection is the best in Thailand and reasonably priced. I especially like the frozen fruit although certain fruits seem to come and go, but I have puchased apricots, peaches, blueberries and raspberries that I use in blender drinks for breakfast. Also for those who are weary of cocktail size paper napkins or the "see through" type so familiar to Thailand, Makro sells good quality farang-lap-size dinner napkins and is the only place in Thailand I have been able to find them. They also offer white cotton bedsheets and cases, hotel quality. I approve of the no bag policy and keep cloth bags in the boot of my car for transport. The Makro I frequent in Bangkok also has a special counter for TGM meat products at lower prices than Tops, Tesco and Carrefour, I hope for the same in Pattaya, will find out next week!

[happylarry]

Is this store open to the general public? Or, just to commercial business members?

My question too?

I was in there tonight and got a member card by just showing my thai drivers license. Beware of one thing...this store doesnt give you a bag to carry out your goods. There are some available at the checkout counter for 11 baht each. I saw some people just leave all the things they were going to buy because bags were not supplied at the register. So the answer is yes...it is open to everyone.

Where in the world is there a commercial cash and carry that does pack everything into bags for you.

Anyway as much of the goods are supplied in cardboard boxes and large bottles and packets etc then bags are out of the question.

Its a CASH and CARRY that is used mainly by the trade.

HL

[timekeeper]

i went to Makro today to buy the Xmas grog

they were very friendly, very efficient and by the time i had sampled all the samples on offer in there, lunch was a fast fading idea

i got talking to the General manager who was watching the checkouts

he turned out to be a very friendly Brit called John who hails from Blackpool!

he will be right at home here in Pattaya........

apprently he has spent a lifetime in this business with Linfoods, Bookers and other major international food distributors

he opened the Macro store on Koh Samui before this one.

he seemed like a 'champion fellow'' as they say in Northern parts of the UK

i for one wish him all the success in the world

[jb4446]

Same as UK then,about the same prices as Tesco etc. Popshirt I used to do the juicer/blender thing too with fruits ,did you see the (think Canadian report) about fatty liver eventually leading to cancer caused by drinking,not eating the fruit?. Got me thinking

[craigt3365]

I think they were referring to drinking fruit juice (canned, bottled, processed, etc) as opposed to blending the natural, raw fruit. Can't imagine why blending is an issue. Was a great article a few days ago in the BKK Post about making fruit/veggie smoothies. Really good info....

[Basil B]

Seems just like the Makro's here in the UK, they are a "Cash & Carry" warehouse, supposedly selling onto retailers hence the need to register and carry a card, but it is not that difficult to register and they do not check up to see if you are a retailer, as for the prices, not much of a saving except for the special offers.

[popshirt]

Two days ago I was waiting to have fruit and produce weighed at Makro where there was a queue of about 4 people, all farang. An elderly non-farang woman ignored the queue and continued to place her bags to be weighed on the counter in the jumping-the-queue manner we all have experienced so often here. After several tries the Makro employee told her in no uncertain terms there was a queue and to go to the back of the line. (I was prepared to tell the woman "dtam queue na krap" when I reached the head of the queue!).

I have never seen that happen in Thailand in the six years I have been here!

For this, and other good reasons, I am very favourably impressed with Makro in Pattaya and I wish them success.

One thing I have been unable to find there is low-fat or zero-fat milk and yoghurt milk (boxed individual servings). I hope they stock it soon as they do in other Makro stores.

Congratulations Makro Pattaya!