Siam Piwat Co, the operator of Siam Center and Siam Discovery Center, will spend 60 billion baht to develop new retail and property projects from next year to 2015.
Ms Chadatip sees the new Siam Center as an 'ideaopolis' where fashion, technology and entertainment will converge.
The huge expansion is a response to the entry of foreign retail investors who have put Thailand on their investment map in preparation for the Asean Economic Community in 2016.Chief executive Chadatip Chutrakul said 4.4 billion baht will be spent next year to develop a retail project next door to Paradise Park, renovate Siam Discovery and give Siam Tower a major facelift.
The company will also start piling work for its new retail project on the banks of the Chao Phraya River near the Millennium Hilton Hotel.
The remaining budget of 55.6 billion baht will be spent from 2014-15 on new retail projects and office buildings.
Mrs Chadatip said foreign investors have contacted Siam Piwat to develop retail projects in their countries, but she does not think it is the right time for her company to go abroad.
"We saw huge room to grow retail business in the domestic market. We saw many locations both in Bangkok and upcountry with the potential for new retail projects," she said.
Siam Piwat has closed Siam Center for a 1-billion-baht revamp under its revolutionary "ideaopolis" concept as a place where great new ideas are presented and fashion, technology, lifestyle and entertainment converge to create an inspiring experience for every visitor.
Some 800 million baht will be spent by 200 brand owners on their new initiative concept stores, putting Bangkok among the world's most innovative shopping destinations when the centre reopens on Jan 11.
"We often hear a desire to make Bangkok a shopping capital like New York, London or Hong Kong. Now we can proudly say that other countries will be looking at Bangkok to see what a progressive shopping capital should be," Mrs Chadatip said.
The new Siam Center is being filled with stores where brand owners and retailers will join forces to create prototype store designs.
More than 50 international and local firms are on a waiting list to open stores at Siam Center.
Some foreign brands are ready to open their first stores in Thailand if the government considers changing out-of-date laws so that it is easier for foreigners to do business here.
The government should set up a neutral organisation to provide one-stop service for companies setting up new branches in the country.
The government should also look at details for retail infrastructure and incentives to encourage them to invest here, said Mrs Chadatip.
Related search: Siam Center, Chadatip Chutrakul, Siam Piwat, Bangkok
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About the author
Writer: Pitsinee JitpleecheepPosition: Business Reporter
Article source: http://www.thethailandlinks.com/2012/11/28/siam-piwat-eyes-b60bn-in-projects/
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