At a workshop in Pattaya, the Small and Medium Enterprise Development Bank of Thailand explained how owners of ordinary guesthouses can boost business by transforming them into boutique hotels.
Pattaya Deputy City Manager Ittipat Pungsiritanyarat opened the June 30 seminar at the Grand Bella Hotel Pattaya. Over 100 inn and guesthouse operators and other tourism executives and officials attended.
Featured speakers were Woraphan Klaamphaiboon, an architect and creative designer who owns the Samsen 5 Lodge; Nattawuth Teerawuth, director of arts and culture promotion in the Pattaya Tourism Promotion Office, and SME Bank executives.
SME Bank in cooperation with the Department of Industry Promotion, Ministry of Industry and Designated Areas for Sustainable Tourism Administration organized the workshop to increase the country’s income.
Attendees learned how small- and medium-size accommodations can be customized into unique destinations that are both sustainable and fashionable and draw upon culture to attract guests.
Woraphan explained that inn operators need to analyze their location to determine the best selling points for a new boutique hotel.
Panelists reviewed business models for various types of hotels and shared experiences in operating small- and medium-sized hotels on a small budget.
Chatchai Sangcharoen, manager of SME Bank’s Pattaya branch, said the bank is ready to support and help various kinds of businesses requiring investment. The bank is willingly to listen to problems for approval consideration.
Loans are available from 50,000 to 15 million baht, he said.
