City Fathers Move To Cramp Phuket Tesco Plans

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City fathers move to cramp Phuket Tesco plans
Nattha Thepbamrung


Phuket Town residents say 'no' to Tesco

PHUKET: -- Following a year of intermittent local protests over the proposed Tesco-Lotus complex planned for Bangkok Rd, Phuket City Municipality is aiming to bring in a local bylaw that would limit the size of any retail operation in the city to 300 square metres.

The original plan for the Tesco outlet envisaged buildings covering a total of 15,950 square metres. However, an existing national law already limits such buildings in certain areas, including inner Phuket City, to a maximum of 1,000 square metres.

However, local residents and retailers who oppose the project were still worried that even this amount of space would allow Tesco to set up in Bangkok Rd. This, they argue, would affect local life and damage existing local business, and also cause heavy traffic jams in the narrow streets of the city.

“The new bylaw is under the process,” Deputy Mayor Thavorn Jirapattanasophon told The Phuket News. “Next month we will hold a public hearing and then send the request for approval of the bylaw to the central government.”

The 300 square metres stipulated in the new bylaw would cover only the Tesco retail-wholesale area, not the parking area, nor other part of a mall such as restaurants, beauty salons or a cinema.

The Deputy Mayor said that consideration was given to applying for a ministerial regulation to limit the size of stores in the town, but that this would have conflicted with the country’s laws on free trade.

“If the main law limits the size of wholesale-retail complex [through a ministerial regulation], it would affect the economy.”

Mr Thavorn said the bylaw would limit stores anywhere in the city to no more than 300 square metres – the size of a Tesco Express convenience store. It would not apply outside the city. This, the bylaw’s proponents hope, will persuade Tesco to go somewhere else on the island.

But he said he was still not sure whether Tesco would back away or reduce the scale of their plans.

No comment could be obtained from Tesco-Lotus headquarters in Bangok, but an expert on these matters said that size was not a problem.

For example, he said, the large Tesco store in Thalang “is not a hypermarket. Look over the door – it says ‘department store’.”

The Tesco store is constrained by the 1,000-square-metre rule, so it is broken into separate sections, or departments, none of them more than 1,000 square metres, and each with a separate till. This allows it to conform to the rules.

He felt that the greatest difficulty for Tesco might be in obtaining planning permission – this has to come from the Phuket City Municipality, which now appears to be firmly on the side of the opponents.

Source: http://www.thephuketnews.com/city-fathers-move-to-cramp-phuket-tesco-plans-37358.php


-- Phuket News 2013-02-27

[Bangna Betty]

So the real story is...? Local traders don't like competition?

[bearpolar]

Meh they might not like competition but there's already a big ass tesco and big c 5mins away. Having an other one would make absolutely no sense. There's enough concrete in phuket. Let them invest in 2-3story high parking @ the first tesco instead. Or they could add a few other stories to the current tesco platform.

Who knows if they defeat tesco we might for once get a NEW type of business. Theres still a 95% chance it'll be 50 7/11's and pharmacy next to each other and a non negligible 5% that it wont

[Locationthailand]

Tesco's certainly have cruelled local businesses. Retail conglomerates always do but time to move on as retail technology is far superior to family stores who cannot compete with pricing. Simply a sign of the times. I hope for the sake of the local businesses they can rely on that law, but Tesco will flip some coin at a few councillors who will overturn it on a vote under the guise of job creation and all will be forgotten.

[JetsetBkk]

The majority of people want and like big stores like Tesco, Big C, Makro. It is only a few residents and the local traders who know they will lose out who are opposed. So let's stay in the past, pretend we love those little "mom & pop" stores who never have exactly what you want and charge an arm and a leg for the old dusty stuff they do have. Yeah, I really love them.

And I'm sure all those people who currently have to drive right through the centre of the town, along Bangkok Road to Chao Fah West and up through the Central traffic lights to get to the Tesco on the other side of town are really happy that they can't cut their travelling distance and time by half and will continue to clog up the roads.

[Valentine]

At least there would be parking for the shoppers. unlike just about every other shop in Phuket Town. If you go to the big Tesco the car park is full most of the time which to me is an indication of the growth & need for another large one. If the locals were not happy with the large shopping centres why are they always busy? So now the council feels it is better to revert to the stone age & have everyone drive all over town for inconvenient shopping at different "mom & pop" stores rather than being able able to buy everything in air conditioned comfort under one roof.

[LivinginKata]

At least there would be parking for the shoppers. unlike just about every other shop in Phuket Town. If you go to the big Tesco the car park is full most of the time which to me is an indication of the growth & need for another large one. If the locals were not happy with the large shopping centres why are they always busy? So now the council feels it is better to revert to the stone age & have everyone drive all over town for inconvenient shopping at different "mom & pop" stores rather than being able able to buy everything in air conditioned comfort under one roof.

The car park at the big Lotus on the bypass is full because many locals park there and take the company bus from this central collection point to their place of employment. I always thought this this was the case but recently confirmed by a friend who works out the Sheridan out by Laguna who parks her car at Lotus and catches the company bus.

[bearpolar]

At least there would be parking for the shoppers. unlike just about every other shop in Phuket Town. If you go to the big Tesco the car park is full most of the time which to me is an indication of the growth & need for another large one. If the locals were not happy with the large shopping centres why are they always busy? So now the council feels it is better to revert to the stone age & have everyone drive all over town for inconvenient shopping at different "mom & pop" stores rather than being able able to buy everything in air conditioned comfort under one roof.

false. Go there before it opens and they car will be 30 to 60% full. It's patong workers that are leaving theirs cars to commute to patong. Fix that and you'll always have a spot. Those nice people even take up the shaded spots instead of parking next to the bend.

Edited February 27, 2013 by bearpolar

[JetsetBkk]

At least there would be parking for the shoppers. unlike just about every other shop in Phuket Town. If you go to the big Tesco the car park is full most of the time which to me is an indication of the growth & need for another large one. If the locals were not happy with the large shopping centres why are they always busy? So now the council feels it is better to revert to the stone age & have everyone drive all over town for inconvenient shopping at different "mom & pop" stores rather than being able able to buy everything in air conditioned comfort under one roof.

false. Go there before it opens and they car will be 30 to 60% full. It's patong workers that are leaving theirs cars to commute to patong. Fix that and you'll always have a spot. Those nice people even take up the shaded spots instead of parking next to the bend.

Do the same as Jungceylon - a price for parking unless you have a receipt from the store. 200 baht per day should do the trick.

[bearpolar]

Khun tesco is so rich he doesnt care about an extra 5k baht per day

[Valentine]

Khun tesco is so rich he doesnt care about an extra 5k baht per day

Maybe, but he should care about the inconvenience to his paying customers.

[Sayonarax]

Your giving them crap for defending their lively hoods?

I see the capitalist mongers are here already.

[Unwisemonkey]

Tesco's certainly have cruelled local businesses. Retail conglomerates always do but time to move on as retail technology is far superior to family stores who cannot compete with pricing. Simply a sign of the times. I hope for the sake of the local businesses they can rely on that law, but Tesco will flip some coin at a few councillors who will overturn it on a vote under the guise of job creation and all will be forgotten.

I disagree with the technology bit. Thai's in general don't play well with each other,not just foreigners. So gathering all the mom and pop stores together to form a collective bargaining unit so they can remain competitive in their prices and autonomous although it is a solution, won't happen.

[belg]

maffia for taxi that is controlling the absurd extortionist high prices, now fighting again a retailer that would bring fair prices...

people, just leave the PIRATE island for what it is

[evadgib]

The "Beanz Meanz Heinz" brigade that turn out to these protests are the very same people that can be seen on opening day trying to drag trolleys laden to the gunwails with a single item (toilet roll, drinking water etc) that they plan to knock out @xxx% mark up to unsuspecting tourists.

G-R-E-E-D!

[stoli]

Khun tesco is so rich he doesnt care about an extra 5k baht per day

Why do you think the satang is still being used? They do care about 5k baht per day. Multiply that by 365 days in a year.

[khunken]

Same old story - big retailers 'killing' the little guy. This is xenophobic crap.

It's 7-11 & Family Markets who are taking over from the small stores but we don't see protests against them.

[korbandallas]

Meh they might not like competition but there's already a big ass tesco and big c 5mins away. Having an other one would make absolutely no sense. There's enough concrete in phuket. Let them invest in 2-3story high parking @ the first tesco instead. Or they could add a few other stories to the current tesco platform.

Who knows if they defeat tesco we might for once get a NEW type of business. Theres still a 95% chance it'll be 50 7/11's and pharmacy next to each other and a non negligible 5% that it wont

I totally agree with these guys there will be no Thai Bashing here from me.

Competition is good for the consumers but in the form of Tesco and Big C I disagree.

In the Uk 30% of shops are closed due to big stores killing their businesses!!

Also if these big stores keep popping up it does take away the feeling of us actually living in Thailand.

Lets not forget some of the reasons us expats left our native countries in the first place