Asia Sense Invests in Samui

KOH SAMUI : Amid the downturn, hotel developer Asia Sense Group has confidence in the tourism market in Samui, where it is launching Asia Spirit Lodge & Spa, its second hotel on the island, with an investment of 72 million baht, said executive director Jean-Pierre Verjus.

The hotel developer Asia Sense Group is showing its faith in Samui’s tourism market by launching Asia Spirit Lodge& Spa, its second hotel on the island, with an investment of 72 million baht.

"Tourists are still travelling but they just spend less time and money," he said. "With these limitations, they will be more selective and will tend to choose a quality destination to relax. And Samui is that choice."

Foreign tourists visiting Samui usually spent a month in Thailand and travel to several destinations including Bangkok, Pattaya and Chiang Mai. With the recession, some will shorten their holiday to only two weeks and not visit so many destinations, said the Belgian, who has spent 17 years on Samui.

"We need to work harder this year and try to tap every target," he said.

After roadshows in London and Bangkok last month and in Berlin this week, the group plans to attend tourism fairs in Asia and Europe in the second half of the year.

The group's second hotel, Asia Spirit Lodge & Spa, is on a two-rai plot on top of a hill near Baan Taling Ngam, in southwestern Samui, which the group has leased for 30 years. It has 21 Indochinese-style rooms priced between 4,500 and 7,500 baht a night.

Mr Verjus, 45, said the hotel's highlights were privacy and a panoramic sea view over the National Marine Park and Samui's neighbouring islands. The company is targeting an occupancy rate of 35-40% this year and 60% in 2010. It expects to reach a break-even point within eight years.

He said Baan Taling Ngam was an emerging location in Samui as the island's famous Chaweng and Lamai beaches are now full. At least four five- and six-star hotels are expected to open in Baan Taling Ngam, including Grand Hyatt, Club Med, Marriott and Conrad, which would also have Samui's first marina near its site.

Asia Sense was set up five years ago with registered capital of 4 million baht. It is equally held by Mr Verjus and two Thai investors - the owner of a Thai restaurant in Belgium and the owner of the Samui construction firm Advantage Properties, which has also built projects in Chiang Rai.

The group's first venture was Bang Kao Tropical Boutique Residence & Spa, built on a leasehold plot from 2005. Eight of its 28 units are owned by the group. The units include three hotels and 15 villas operating as hotels with room rates of 1,500 to 7,500 baht a night, targeted at family tourists.

"Some buyers stayed only two weeks a year so they decided to rent out their units, which are operated as hotels by the group," he said. He expects occupancy to be down to 60-70%, from 70-75% last year, due to the downturn.

The group also plans to invest around 50 million baht to develop a boutique hotel with 30-40 rooms on five-to-seven rai by the Mekong River in Chiang Saen, targeted at families and couples.

He said funding for future projects would be raised from investment firm Asia Sense, which was established in the UK last year and held by a group of his friends, some of whom were villa buyers at Bang Kao Tropical.

"It will be not only an investment but also a way to have resorts in Asian countries' major tourist destinations where we can stay whenever we want," he added.

China Town in Singapore is one location it is looking at. Krabi, Chiang Mai, Bali and Vietnam are other destinations where it plans to open small hotels with a budget of around 50 million baht each, said Mr Verjus.

Mr Verjus came to Thailand 25 years ago and started a tour agency in Bangkok that targeted Belgian and European tourists. He felt an instant attraction to Samui and moved there in 1992 to run DJ Paradise Tour before entering the hotel business five years ago.