Major push underway to promote Thailand's OTOP merchandise

[webfact]

Major push underway to promote Thailand's OTOP merchandise
By English News



BANGKOK, April 14 – The Commerce Ministry is embarking on an ambitious plan to upgrade Thailand’s native products through franchising and online shopping systems, a senior official said today.

Pongpun Gearaviriyapun, director general of the Business Development Department, said the department will coordinate with the public and private sectors in selecting premium-quality products in the OTOP One Tambon One Product group nationwide to join the programme.

About 100 manufacturers of over 300 products have been registered as “OTOP Product Champions,” she said, adding that these products have high potential for marketing expansion.

The products are divided into four major categories: textiles and clothing, decorative items and souvenirs, food and beverages, and Thai herbs.

Ms Pongpun said the department was working on guidelines to assist OTOP manufacturers in creating and extending their business franchises.

She said the department has also cooperated with the Thai e-Commerce Association in finding online marketing channels for OTOP manufacturers while OTOP producers will be given training on online shopping and relevant systems on logistics, payment, sales and marketing promotion and finding suitable business partners to reach the right target groups.

Some of the leading online shopping operators in the Thai market are tarad.com, weloveshopping.com, rakbankerd.com, sabuyshop.com, KTCUshop, itruemart.com, Lazada.com, Shoponline-tescolotus.com, readyplanet.com, lnwshop.com, thaishope.com.

The Commerce Ministry will also work with the Interior Ministry and the private sector in launching “OTOP Shop Corner” – a shopping website for OTOP products – in August.

Ms Pongpun said this year’s sales value of OTOP products should reach at least Bt80-90 billion, representing a 5-10 per cent growth year-on-year.

She said the department has also encouraged OTOP manufacturers to produce top-quality products to compete with local products in neighbouring countries given the launch of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) next year.

Most Thai entrepreneurs lack management skills and capability in finding distribution channels, she said, weaknesses needing to be improved.

She added the Foreign Trade Department will be asked to find potential overseas markets for high-quality products under the OTOP Select Project category. (MCOT online news)


-- TNA 2014-04-14

[kingalfred]

Hmmm.Thailand has huge tariffs on imported food and drink products, and much of it is better quality and far preferable to the Thai product of lower quality that is not thoroughly checked to a high enough standard for many of us , and many Thais.It will be interesting to see if can sell some of its products further than neighbouring ASEAN countries.Management skills only an issue for Thailand.Overseas countries will be concerned with price and safety standards.

Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Edited April 14, 2014 by kingalfred

[clockman]

I think the chickens are coming home! panic setting in.

[BawBae]

Weighing 125 grams on an uncalibrated 15 kilogram mechanical scale is truly today's 'Genius Moment'.

[Robby nz]

It would seem that without a parliament in place and the handbrake of political interference various ministries are coming out with some realistic plans to actually get something done.

I read that the education ministry has dusted off the Dems education reforms that were dumped by PT in favor of tablets.

Several other ministries have been formulating reform plans and handing them to suthep, the health and finance ministries are two.

The transport ministry has been suggesting ways to get things done within budget.

Now if only there were a way to get budgets approved while keeping the sticky fingers of politicians out of the till and ensuring annual audits of all departments then the country could start to go ahead.

I have a suggestion :

Let them have their election then lock them all up in their flash building with the expensive clocks, coffee tables and air conditioners in the garbage room and ignore them completely.

Put a cabinet of competent people in place who know the business of the ministries they are in charge of with a mandate to clean up corruption and put in place reforms recommended by an independent reform body.

Hire an outside audit company to do an audit of the last 10 years and use the result to recover as much corruption money as possible.

That would be a start, but of course it wont happen because of to much vested interest.

[noitom]

When Thais drop back to gimmicks like OTOP, you know they are floundering and thrashing about.

[Scarpolo]

Thai economy poised for major contraction as money dries up.

Interest in Thailand and its policies is weak and has weakened their position globally.

There is opportunity and the web is probably the number one best place to seek it

[tomyummer]

OTOP is the biggest ripoff market of overpriced Thai goods out there. One Thailand Over Priced.

It's one of the best ways for the government to spend and sieve off of promotional events and marketing schemes. A traveling circus.

[SOTIRIOS]

.......in light of recent reports that 'natural products' including vegetables.... are full of chemicals......

[realenglish1]

Why is everyone ripping OTOP In general it is a very good concept that is helping the cottage industry to grow. If anything you are living here in Thailand and should try and support OTOP by buying OTOP products that are good . And I have found a lot of OTOP products are very good.

[samtam]

Why is everyone ripping OTOP In general it is a very good concept that is helping the cottage industry to grow. If anything you are living here in Thailand and should try and support OTOP by buying OTOP products that are good . And I have found a lot of OTOP products are very good.

Can you name one?

[marko kok prong]

The two workers pictured look so happy.

[Frank James]

Sounds like a very positive approach to me, but some people in here just seem to want to bash it. Why? Wasn't OTOP a concept once put forth or originated by His Majesty the King?

I once ran into a guy on the street in Chiang Mai selling native parang type knives and choppers. They were stamped OTOP, and were by far the best blades of this kind I have ever seen. Very well made and finished, much better than the crude ones sold by the roadsides. I would like to meet whoever was making these blades, to buy them and somehow sell them online.

Our local Tops market has set up a nice section of their store to promote local Chiang Mai food products. This is nice to see.

Anything that promotes Thai products and handcrafts to a wider audience seems like a program worthy of support. I hope this effort is successful.

[samtam]

Sounds like a very positive approach to me, but some people in here just seem to want to bash it. Why? Wasn't OTOP a concept once put forth or originated by His Majesty the King?

I once ran into a guy on the street in Chiang Mai selling native parang type knives and choppers. They were stamped OTOP, and were by far the best blades of this kind I have ever seen. Very well made and finished, much better than the crude ones sold by the roadsides. I would like to meet whoever was making these blades, to buy them and somehow sell them online.

Our local Tops market has set up a nice section of their store to promote local Chiang Mai food products. This is nice to see.

Anything that promotes Thai products and handcrafts to a wider audience seems like a program worthy of support. I hope this effort is successful.

Well thank you. I did not know about this product. OTOP was created by Thaksin.

I've found the website - these are their 5 star products.

Edited April 15, 2014 by samtam

[Mentors]

OTOP is a very good concept and helpful especially for people living upcountry in every part of the country. Its a successful project.

Created by Thaksin and no one else.

One of the reason why some people doesn't like OTOP (and Thaksin).

I very like to wandering around OTOP exhibitions twice a year in my province.

Many great natural products to reasonable prices.

Edited April 15, 2014 by Mentors

[siampolee]

One Town One Product (OTOP) is a project begun in 1989 and supervised by the Small and Medium Enterprise Administration (SMEA) of the Ministry of Economic Affairs of the Republic of China (ROC) to promote products from the territories in the ROC jurisdiction.

As usual O.T.O.P. was copied from elsewhere imitation as opposed to innovation.

Sad to say in the greater majority of cases O.T.O.P. products are produced as a stop gap income earner and quality is questionable as is value. Add in a lack of business acumen and one gets the full picture.

We found a supplier of products that were of a high standard some years back, the plan was to export the products to the U.K. After some three months the quality declied and was poor, the work force had vanished due to the farming calendar, hence the market died.

Six months later the village.O.T.O.P. organiser reappeared and was ready to go again ,she couldn't understand why we had found another source of supply in China and the local Thai O.T.O.P. products were no longer needed.

[how241]

Weighing 125 grams on an uncalibrated 15 kilogram mechanical scale is truly today's 'Genius Moment'.

I never trusted those types of scales...I prefer the digital ones but they need to be calibrated too.