Tarida Klaipracha, chief executive officer, said the company opened its sales office in Thailand in 2004 focusing on the business-to-business (B2B) segment, mainly supplying office furniture to Japanese firms in Thailand. In 2008, the company started expanding its customer base by targeting selected groups of Thai companies in the design, architecture, and interior sectors with specific products catering to their diverse needs.

For the shareholder structure, Kokuyo holds a 49 per cent stake in Kokuyo International (Thailand), with Central Marketing Group (CMG), a manufacturing and marketing arm of Central Group, and Practicable, a Thai furniture manufacturer, holding a 24 per cent stake each. Mizuho a commercial bank in Japan, holds the balance.

The company commands a 80 per cent share of the office furniture market for Japanese firms in Thailand, he said.

Kokuyo has been operating in Japan for 113 years. The company has sales offices in other markets in Southeast Asia, including Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, China and Hong Kong. It also has a sales representative in Australia.

“We achieved Bt460 million in total sales last year, up from Bt430 million in 2016. Japanese clients accounted for 70 per cent of our sales with the balance to non-Japanese firms,”said Tarida.

“We aim to achieve Bt600 million in sales in 2020, with Japanese companies accounting for half of the total. About 5 per cent of sales is expected to non-Japanese clients who will be end-consumers,” she said.

Tarida said the company has opened a 250-square metre showroom for walk-in customers on the ninth floor of CentralWorld on Rama 1 Road in Bangkok.

“We are studying a dealer system as well as opening sales corners or shops in department stores in the next stage,” she said, adding that the company’s 400-square metre major showroom is expected to open in a shopping mall in 2020. The company expects to double its annual sales to Bt800 million by 2023.

Managing Director Sachio Kobayashi said Thailand’s furniture market is huge and the office furniture sector still has growth potential of between 5 per cent and 10 per cent per annum.

There is no real major player in the office furniture. The overall furniture market in Thailand was worth about Bt55 billion last year, with Bt5 billion in office furniture. “It is a trend that more Thais are now working more. Office furniture for home will cater to such a trend,” he said.

Tarida said that Kokuyo operates three major factories for its furniture in three different countries – Japan for all furniture products; China for work stations, chairs and document cabinets; and Malaysia for steel furniture such as document cabinets and tables. Malaysia is also the production base for Southeast Asia market.

“We have no plan to set up factory in Thailand as we can import office furniture from our facility in Malaysia with no import duty. We also enjoy cheaper raw material in Malaysia, especially for steel furniture,” she said.

Tarida said the Thai office also manages the sales of Kokuyo office furniture to Myanmar and Cambodia, while Malaysia is responsible for the Philippines and Vietnam.

The team, from the Robotics Field Institute of King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thon Buri, have lost no time in capitalising on the recognition from their winning entry in the UAV-Startup 2017 competition.

They established the company, Novy (2018) Co Ltd, to provide the drones for the benefit of agricultural producers – especially those with coconut tree plantations.

UAV-Startup 2017 was conducted by the National Innovation Agency (NIA) and Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (Public Organisation) (GISTDA).

The students are Kridtat Satharanond, 22, Wirachat Kamkun, 23, Natthapong Changkaew, 22, Chinnawat Chinnapun, 22, and Wuttipat Chokanantasup, 22, led by their adviser teacher Dr Orapadee Joochim.

Kridtat said the inspiration to research and develop the drone for the agriculture sector came from the decision by he and his fellow students to join with Orapadee in the UAV-Startup 2017 programme last year.

“We had been learning about the robotics field and, as a result, we began thinking about how to develop drones for the benefit of our country – as most of the people are still engaged in farming,” Kridtat said in an interview with The Nation.

“Most of them need technology to support them in their efforts to get more yield from their crops. |But this is particularly difficult in the case of coconut trees, given their height.

“Farmers often have trouble knowing whether the trees are affected by pests or weeds. As a result, our group decided to propose our drone project for the UAV-Startup 2017 programme.”

After the project got past the first stage of the competition, the team began their research and development work on the drones after securing Bt200,000 in funding from the UAV-Startup programme for this purpose.

The drone they have developed has a range of functions, such as a camera that can reveal the presence of pests or weeds in a plantation. It also has a spraying system for insect repellent and for fertiliser.

A year after joining the programme, Kridtat and the team were declared the winners of UAV-Startup 2017.

The team took pride in displaying the drone at an exhibition stated by the NIA and GISTDA. Their creation drew plenty of interest from visitors, including those who were keen to buy one.

This interest presented a challenge for Kridtat and his fellow team members to establish Novy (2018) Co Ltd with registered capital of Bt1 million early this year after they gained contracted orders from customers for six drones.

“We do not have enough funds to produce our complete product for sale before we get an order,” Kridtat said.

“Our business model enables us to make the drones for order by our customers, who can pay in instalments throughout the process of producing them. Our drones can also be tailor-made according to our customers’ specifications.”

The six orders are worth a combined Bt1.8 million, based on a unit price of Bt300,000 each. All those who placed the orders are agricultural operators that provide services to farmers, reflecting the fact that the cost of a drone could be too high for many individual farmers, said Kridtat, adding that such an outlay meant the hi-tech devices were suitable for companies providing such agricultural services.

After their initial success with the drone project, Kridtat and his team were also announced as winners in the category of Life Enhancement in the Thai Green Design Awards 2018. The event was held by the Kasetsart Agricultural and Agro-Industrial Product Improvement Institute (KAPI) of Kasetsart University this month.

“This kind of recognition helps us to promote our product to farmers and to carry out further research and development on products that can serve the needs of the country’s farmers,” Kridtat said.

The offer includes money transfers as well as general payments.

For example, the fee of Bt25 to Bt30 will be waived for customers transferring money from LH Bank to other banks.

The company is also looking to open up more branches and develop systems to accommodate the growing needs of target groups.

Chatchai Chinvetkitvanit, president of Deves Insurance PCL said that after deducting underwriting and operating expenses, its net profit for 2017 amounted to Bt265.65 million, an equivalent of Bt5.31 per share.

As for the company’s 2017 investment performance, the investment income stood at Bt137 million, a 3-per-cent decrease from the previous year. As of December 31, 2017 the company’s consolidated financial statements showed total assets of Bt11,094 million, total liabilities of Bt8,336 million, and total shareholders’ equity of Bt2,758 million.

The board of directors will propose at the 2018 annual general meeting of shareholders on April 24 that dividends on the 2017 operating results be paid to the shareholders. As the net profit for the year amounted to Bt265.65 million and the total earnings available for appropriation stood at Bt507.50 million after deducting accumulated deficits and legal reserves, the board of directors will propose a dividend of Bt3.20 per share, to be paid on May 8, 2018.

For 2018, the company has aimed for a growth of approximately 8 per cent and gross premiums of Bt5 billion, with 60 per cent coming from motor insurance and 40 per cent from non-motor insurance, both of which are expected to grow at a similar rate of 8-10 per cent on average, Chatchai said.

All its domestic businesses set to be certified by third and second parties within this year to ensure a solid performance in the area of sustainability throughout the organization, according to its press statement.

Virachai Ratanabanchuen, CPF Chief Operating Officer, said the standard has been drafted specifically for the company’s business to mitigate the impact on the environment and communities, using international principles as a guideline.

It aims to reduce risks on health and safety of those who work with the company and, consequently, decrease operating cost, helping the company to achieve sustainable goals.

“The company also plan to extend the certification process to overseas operations. The employees from all 16 countries where the company is operated will be trained to make sure that the operation will run smoothly, consistently and with the highest effectiveness across the world.”

The standard consists of two aspects including Management Standards and Technical Standards. Both parts are in compliance with highly recognized standards such as ISO14001, OHSAS18001, ISO50001 as well as regulations and demands from the government and customers.

The global concerns such as health and safety, natural resources & energy consumptions and global warming will also be taken into account in every business operation.

Recently, CPF’s food processing plants in Nongjok and Nakhon Ratchasima Chicken Breed Business, a local breeding farm, have been certified at “Excellent” level by AJA Registrars, an independent third party certification body, and internal auditors respectively. Both businesses are the first two business units that have been certified the standard.

And their digital channels are becoming increasingly important.

Nathalie Gerschtein Keraudy, managing director of L’Oreal (Thailand) Ltd, said, “2017 was especially notable for the accentuation of our digital edge, as digital channels became omnipresent for providing impeccable customer service”.

Thailand’s beauty market is one of the largest in Asean. The market grew by 7.8 per cent in 2017 over the previous year. Skincare remained the biggest beauty category while make-up was a growth contributor to the industry.

L’Oreal Thailand is the parent company’s largest subsidiary in Asean.

In 2018, the company will focus on the four key priorities of development, consumer centricity, digital acceleration, great employer and great citizen, said the release.

All CPF’s domestic businesses are set to be certified by third and second parties within 2018, the company said in a Friday release. This is to ensure a solid performance in the area of sustainability throughout the organisation.

Virachai Ratanabanchuen, chief operating officer at CPF, said the standard has been drafted specifically for the company’s business to mitigate its impact on the environment and communities, using international principles as a guideline.

It aims to reduce risks for the health and safety of those who work with the company and, consequently, decrease operating costs, thus helping the company to achieve sustainable goals.

“The company is also planning to extend the certification process to overseas operations,” said Virachai.

“The employees from all 16 countries where the company is operating will be trained to make sure that the operation will run smoothly, consistently and with the highest effectiveness across the world.”

One of Thailand’s leading creative innovators, Bit Studio integrates technology through interactive installations in an effort to create enjoyable experiences. Their aim is to bridge people’s digital experience through creative play and interactive activities.

Bit.playground will feature 10 different play stations in an effort to inspire awareness that technologies are more than just screens.

Some bit.playground stations will be presented in San Francisco and Tokyo in May before being fully launched in Bangkok – at the EmQuartier shopping complexes – for seven months.

Kiattiyot Panichprecha, founder and CEO of Bit Studio Co Ltd is hoping the new landmark will be embraced by both Thais and foreigners.

The company has already enjoyed some international recognition as developer and creative technologist for business (B2B), said Kiattiyot, and decided the next step was to host a bit.playground based on the concept of “creative play”.

Unique interactive experiences in this playground will bring people together in creative ways to interact with technology, said the company is a Thursday press release.

This is the first time bit.studio has entered the B2C market. Through bit.playground, they are aiming to give people the opportunity to interact with technology in a new way. Attendees can create their own digital art pieces and experience new forms of technology. They hope that bit.playground will also build public awareness of how people should get benefits from technology by interacting with it more creatively – or better yet, create it themselves.

“Most people nowadays think that using technology is just an experience with a touch screen. Parents are encouraged to keep their children out of technology because of concerns about developmental delay in child or ADHD. As adults, they also begin to limit their use of technology,” said Kiattiyot.

“However, technology has a different meaning for bit.studio – technology is a process of thinking, creating and using information in new ways, creating innovations of various engagements. We want to present this concept to inspire people to gain access to it. One day, Thai people may be the creator by themselves.”

The same-day service applies for orders placed before 11 am.

The new investment means Kerry Express will invest at least a total of Bt1.8 billion, double the fleet size of its Bangkok same-day delivery network, and revise its projected number of services points from 1,500 locations to 2,500 by the end of 2018.

“Kerry Express’ extensive service points network does not only provide Thai people easy access to its first class delivery services, it is also part of Kerry Express’ O2O (online-to-offline) strategies,” the company said.

“Kerry Express also plans to open more distribution centres, build more mega-size sorting centres, procure more vehicles, and most importantly recruit more people to enhance its people’s network.”