Kingpower - Why Just Them?

[vladaman]

I was wondering if anybody has inside info about this company. I noticed, that all duty free shops with Liquor, Tabaco, News Stands and Parfume shops are operated by this company. I could not see any other there. Do they have some exclusive rights to rip-off customers?

They give away a Bentley car monthly, so they must be making millions a month. What do you think about them?

I still shop at Hong Kong, better prices.

[britmaveric]

Do they have some exclusive rights to rip-off customers?

Yes!!!!

[Tywais]

Possibly bid for it, possibly they are the only company with duty free experience in Thailand? Not sure, but here is their website - http://www.kingpower.com/home.asp

Seems there motto is "King of Duty Free", a little pretentious I would say.

[ovenman]

Possibly bid for it, possibly they are the only company with duty free experience in Thailand?

Possibly they are kicking bags and bags of cash back to all the right people?

[haroldc]

Check out their history. King Power was incorporated in Nevada and the stock was traded on the American Stock Exchange. Management held about 85% of the shares, took the company private at a very low price, and there were at least 3 lawsuits, one a class action.

I used to sell perfume to King Power. We had to pay duty, excise tax, and VAT on every every incoming shipment. King Power got the perfume "duty free" because they bought it from us inside Thailand and didn't pay the duty - we did! We asked them if they could import duty free directly from our factory, and they said that they couldn't.

The new anti-corruption bodies should investigate how they were awarded the concession and its terms, as I don't believe their was any bidding at all. Enormous amounts of money are involved here.

[womble]

Perfect example of how so many Monopolies in Thailand are created by paying off the right people. This kind of thingh is detrimental to the whole country, the prices are a complete rip off, more expensive than bangkok, many tourists buy stuf assuming it is good value, then when they get home and see a conversion of the cost into their home currency on their statement realise they have been ripped off.

Disgusting!

The shopping at the new airport is rubbish and over priced, same as the food, monopolies in these situations are terrible for the consumer.

[planemad]

I could be way off the mark, however, my wife tells me that Mrs T got her hands onto the company some while back. Nothing to do with Mr T of course but it might answer a few questions.

[lomatopo]

How are duty-free (alcohol, tobacco, perfume, jewelry, etc.) shops set up at other airports thoughout Asia and the rest of the world? I guess I just assumed these were monopoly operations everywhere? But it sounds as though experienced people here are saying that everywhere else each shop is independently owned and operated, and that prices are subject to competitive pressures?

Whenever I am in SIN, KUL, HKG, NRT, FRA, MUC, JNB, CMB, SFO, ORD, I see the exact same prices on the same goods in every shop within a single airport?

Also, if prices are so bad at BKK then why oh why is there so much money involved? ( "...bags of cash.."; "Enormous amounts of money are involved here.")

[ovenman]

How are duty-free (alcohol, tobacco, perfume, jewelry, etc.) shops set up at other airports thoughout Asia and the rest of the world? I guess I just assumed these were monopoly operations everywhere? But it sounds as though experienced people here are saying that everywhere else each shop is independently owned and operated, and that prices are subject to competitive pressures?

King Power are a combination of being both a monopoly and price gougers. Even if a duty free operator has the monopoly on that concession in a particular airport, this doesn't necessarily equate to that operator having to charge exorbitant prices.

[cclub75]

The shopping at the new airport is rubbish and over priced, same as the food, monopolies in these situations are terrible for the consumer.

Yes. but the new uniform of sales girls are really narak.

Non ?

As for the shopping... I took my first international flight at Suva friday night... It looks like a shopping mall. Nice shops, nice sales girls, very funny prices and no customers. Like Siam Parangon.

And I was very disappointed, the Cartier boutique was not opened yet.

Seriously : they have pushed the concept too far. An airport is for moving people, and goods, with comfort and efficiency, and with services (food). But, again, an airport is not a shopping mall.

[Heng]

Also, if prices are so bad at BKK then why oh why is there so much money involved? ( "...bags of cash.."; "Enormous amounts of money are involved here.")

Perhaps because it sounds more dramatic?

[linglop]

A bottle of gin in the duty free shop hong kong was only marginally less costly than bangkok duty free.

Check out www.kingpower.com

[johnnyk]

Somewhere I got the impression King Power was connected to a British Virgin Islands company called Ample Rich.

[johnnyk]

deleted duplicate post

Edited October 15, 2006 by johnnyk

[sriracha john]

Apparently not content with their monopoly on practically everything else at the airport, King Power is moving in on the car parking business :

AOT seeks car park deal 'with King Power'

Airports of Thailand (AOT) is seeking a long-term contract to manage its car park buildings at Suvarnabhumi Airport with King Power, which is interested in the deal, an AOT source said. According to the source, AOT executives were considering a proposal by King Power to operate the two car park buildings in a contract which will include the right to collect parking fees for AOT. AOT plans to outsource the car park management to limit the size of its workforce. Due to the rushed opening of Suvarnabhumi airport on Sept 28, AOT may select the contractor without a bidding contest , according to the source. AOT had asked King Power to operate the car parking buildings for now pending the selection of an official operator, he added.

Continued here:

http://www.bangkokpost.com/News/24Oct2006_news11.php