Vichai Jaivisuthansa settled on the Sacha variety of peanut as the foundation of the business diversification into supplements, guided by a suggestion from a friend. He spent a year researching how to produce an oil rich in omega nutrients from the peanuts. The Organoid brand, since its establishment in 2013, has made steady inroads into the domestic and overseas markets and now generates sales of Bt10 million a year.

Vichai brought his daughter Buntita Jaivisuthansa into the business. She serves as marketing manager of Omega 3.6.9 and Lycopene Co Ltd, the company that Vichai set up for the supplements venture.

In an interview with The Nation, Buntita said the enterprise had benefited from her father’s scientific expertise, citing his studies in organic chemicals for the bachelor’s degree that he gained from Mahidol University.

“My father started his research into the production of an oil rich in the omega fatty acids in 2012,” she said.

“A year into that research, he encouraged a farmer in Kamphaeng Phet to grow the Sacha peanuts in the province. In 2013 he also had a production plant built that can extract the omega-3 nutrient from the peanuts.”

Buntita said the company began producing and distributing the products resulting from his research under the Organoid brand, including the omega-rich oil from the Sacha peanut and a protein powder that is also made from that peanut variety. By 2015, the company was making annual sales of up to Bt2 million.

“I resigned from a post in executive marketing at Sanook.com to join my father in the business in 2015,” Buntita said.

“In my focus on marketing, I sought ways to expand the market for our products by looking at both offline and online channels. I have also been promoting the products in the traditional and modern trade outlets.”

After three years of pursuing these aggressive marketing strategies, the company made sales of up to Bt10 million in 2017. Up to 97 per cent of these came from the domestic market, with the rest from overseas. The company is confident it can sustain sales growth in the double digits each year.

As part of its marketing efforts, the company joined the One Province, One Agro-Industrial Product (OPOAI) programme conducted by Industry Ministry.

The scheme provides training for companies to manage their production costs as well as assistance for finding opportunities in the market. The challenge for the company, said Buntita, is to improve its production capacity and better control production costs in order to maintain the target of double-digit growth in annual sales.

Buntita said that among the ways the company has sought to promote the products is consumer education about their quality as well as by expanding distribution channels. On the online side, this includes activities on Facebook and Instagram and offline, outlets include the Lemon Farm and Bai Miang health food stores.

On the export front, the company is selling into the Asean market, including Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. The company is negotiating with importers from China for sales to that key market this year, Buntita said.

“The key to our success is the research and development that we put into products with the use of our own technology. This approach differentiates our business from that of our competitors in the market,” she said.

Buoyed by the double-digit sales growth, Buntita said that the company plans to launch a new item, a coffee-like product from the Sacha peanut that will also go out under the Organoid brand. It will be presented at the Thaifex-World of Food Asia 2018 next week. The event runs from Tuesday to June 2 at Impact Muang Thong Thani in Bangkok.

The company also is researching the production of a cosmetic serum from the Sacha peanut and is looking at a launch this year or the next.

Buntita said that the market for health supplements is valued at more than Bt60 billion a year. The challenge for the family business is to get a bigger slice of this market, she said.

“We are confident in the outlook for our products and believe that once we get more opportunities to explain their quality and the health benefits they offer to consumers, we will improve our business and achieve sustainable growth over the long term,” she said.

B Grimm Power Plc has confirmed that its two major power projects, with a combined generating capacity of 240 megawatts, will proceed as planned despite a change of location.

Company president Preeyanart Soontornwata said the shifting of the project site from Ratchaburi to Samut Prakan would not affect the scheduled commercial operation date, set for 2021.

The company is seeking permission from the Energy Regulatory Commission to change the location of the BGPR1 and BGPR2 co-generation facilities, she said.

At the same time, B Grimm has coordinated with the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat), purchaser of the power supply, to make available a grid connection and substation at the new location.

Once approval is granted, B Grimm will commence construction. The plants are to be completed within 26 months, before the power sale agreement with Egat takes effect on June 1, 2021.

“We are striving to meet the timeline and no change is foreseen, at least for the time being,” Preeyanart said.

Nestle plans marketing campaign for cereal

Nestle yesterday announced a marketing campaign for Koko Krunch called “Awake Happiness” aimed at strengthening the brand’s role appeal in the children’s breakfast segment.

“To make children’s breakfast even more fun, Koko Krunch now comes in a new-look Koko Bear shape, which will permanently replace the old shape as part of a brand revamp in many countries in Asia,” the company said.

“The New Koko Krunch combines whole grains and chocolate to offer rich nutrition, fortified with Vitamin B and iron, making it the ideal choice for a healthier and happier breakfast that provides fuelling energy for kids.”

The company said Thai families are more concerned than ever about breakfast.

The programme will focus on providing the bank’s business bankers with the skills to help SMEs digitalise and grow their business. The programme will also continue to include training in other areas, including business and finance management, credit knowledge and trade financing.

With SMEs accounting for more than 80 per cent of employment and 42 per cent of gross domestic product in the country, UOB wants to ensure it can provide the right advice to help SMEs remain competitive in the digital economy, said Sayumrat Maranate, country head of business banking for UOB Thailand.

“Thailand’s economic future hinges on the growth of SMEs,” Sayumrat acknowledges, noting that the bank is already helping SMEs benefit from digital solutions such as UOB BizSmart, a cloud-based integrated digital solution that offers a simple and cost-effective way to manage business administrative processes.

“We have also invested in our people to ensure that they have both the skill sets and mindset to help our SME customers understand technology trends that can help our customers to transform their business and to succeed in the digital era,” said Sayumrat.

Dr Pipop Udorn, dean of Thammasat Business School at Thammasat University, underlined the importance of bankers who understand the specific needs of SMEs.

“SMEs need bankers who understand what it takes to do business in a digital economy and who can help them be more future-ready. This knowledge and competency has implications for how SMEs attain and sustain a competitive advantage,” said Pipop.

Adding digital entrepreneurship to the syllbus of the certification programme will better equip business bankers “to help SMEs achieve and sustain their competitive edge,” he said.

The three-month UOB-TBS Banker’s Executive Certification Programme combines classroom-based study with practical skills training. It was first rolled out in 2017 as part of UOB’s career leadership development programme to encourage continuous training and skills development among its employees. The Bank trained 25 employees last year and expects to train another 25 small business bankers in 2018.

The notes will be issued in tranches with maturities of up to 10 years.

The issuer has an option to redeem the notes after five years.

Proceeds of the issue will be used for general corporate purposes and refinancing.

Jurors tacked on an additional $5 million in damages for a pair of patented functions. The award appeared to be a bit of a victory for Apple, which had argued in court that design was essential to the iPhone.

The case was keenly watched as a precedent for whether design is so important that it could actually be considered the “article of design” even in a product as complex as a smartphone.

“We don’t think it is supported by the evidence,” Samsung attorney John Quinn told US District Court Judge Lucy Koh after the verdict was read in her courtroom in Silicon Valley.

“We have every concern about the determinations about the article of manufacture.”

Quinn declined an offer by the judge to send jurors back for further deliberation, saying Samsung would pursue post-trial motions to address its concerns about the verdict.

Juror Christine Calderon said the panel agreed that one of the design patents — the grid of colored icons — did represent the whole phone, while the other two at issue in the trial were seen as the display assembly that gave the iPhone its look.

She compared it to the Mona Lisa: “you use the paint, but it is not the article of manufacture.”

“I had to really think about it,” the 26-year-old Calderon, a technical writer, said after Koh dismissed the jury.

“We kind of felt like we ended up at a happy medium.”

– Long legal road –

The case had been sent back to the district court following a Supreme Court decision to revisit an earlier $400 million damage award.

Apple reasoned in court that design was so integral to the iPhone that it was the “article of manufacture” and worth all the money Samsung made by copying the features.

The lower figure sought by the South Korean consumer electronics titan would have involved treating the design features as components.

The jury had been asked to determine whether design features at issue in the case are worth all profit made from Samsung smartphones that copied them — or whether those features are worth just a fraction because they are components.

Apple argued in court that the iPhone was a “bet-the-company” project at Apple and that design is as much the “article of manufacture” as the device itself.

The three design patents in the case apply to the shape of the iPhone’s black screen with rounded edges and a bezel, and the rows of colorful icons displayed.

Samsung no longer sells the smartphone models at issue in the case.

Two utility patents also involved apply to “bounce-back” and “tap-to-zoom” functions.

An original trial finding that Samsung violated Apple patents preceded a lengthy appellate dueling over whether design features such as rounded edges are worth all the money made from a phone.

– Technology vs Style –

Samsung challenged the legal precedent that requires the forfeiture of all profits from a product, even if only a single design patent has been infringed.

The US Supreme Court in 2016 overturned the penalty imposed on the South Korean consumer electronics giant.

Justices ruled that Samsung should not be required to forfeit the entire profits from its smartphones for infringement on design components, sending the case back to a lower court.

“Today’s decision flies in the face of a unanimous Supreme Court ruling in favor of Samsung on the scope of design patent damages,” the South Korean company said in response to an AFP inquiry.

“We will consider all options to obtain an outcome that does not hinder creativity and fair competition for all companies and consumers.”

Apple did not respond to a request for comment.

The key question of the value of design patents rallied Samsung supporters in the tech sector, and Apple backers in the creative and design communities.

Samsung won the backing of major Silicon Valley and other IT sector giants, including Google, Facebook, Dell and Hewlett-Packard, claiming a strict ruling on design infringement could lead to a surge in litigation.

Apple was supported by big names in fashion and manufacturing. Design professionals, researchers and academics, citing precedents like Coca-Cola’s iconic soda bottle.

The case is one element of a $548 million penalty — knocked down from an original $1 billion jury award  — Samsung was ordered to pay for copying iPhone patents.//AFP

President Wiwat Hemmanatharop said the company planned to introduce new products in the automotive parts market to help increase sales.

“The lubricant-container market is starting to recover and we are planning to rent a factory in China and try to double sales in China next year,” he said. “This will help strengthen our earnings performance significantly.”

It was recognised for Best Service Provider Cash Management in Thailand (an award it also won last year), Best Service Provider: E-Solutions Partner in Thailand, and Best in Treasury and Working Capital-LLCs.

Accepting the awards were executive vice president Silawat Santivisat, first senior vice president Kitiya Rerkpooritat and executives of the Cash Management Department.

President Preeyanart Soontornwata said the shifting of the project site from Ratchaburi to Samut Prakhan would not affect the scheduled commercial operation date, set for 2021.

The company is seeking permission from the Energy Regulatory Commission to change the location of the BGPR1 and BGPR2 co-generation facilities, she said.

At the same time, B Grimm has coordinated with the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat), purchaser of the power supply, to make available a grid connection and substation at the new location.

Once approval is granted, B Grimm will commence construction. The plants are to be completed within 26 months, before the power sale agreement with Egat takes effect on June 1, 2021.

“We are striving to meet the timeline and no change is foreseen, at least for the time being,” Preeyanart said.

BGPR1 and BGPR2 were originally to be located in the planned VRM Industrial Estate in Ratchburi, but the Industrial Estate Authority of Thailand cancelled the estate development.

Preeyanart said that prompted her company to move the projects to the Asia Industrial Estate in Samut Prakhan, which is attracting local and foreign companies.

B Geimm’s facilities will strengthen the security of power supply not only for Samut Prakhan and Bangkok, but also the Eastern Economic Corridor, which requires significant electricity supply, Preeyanart said.

Mumuso, which operates more than 600 stores around the world, yesterday announced the expansion plan that builds on the opening of its first store in Thailand last year.

The Mumuso brand originated in Shanghai and promotes lifestyle products with a Korean flavour.

The brand moved into Thailand in August 2017 with a Mumuso lifestyle shop opening in The Mall Nakhon Ratchasima.

Pakorn Supawarapong, strategic director of Mumuso (Thailand) Co Ltd, said that the company sees a growth opportunity in the retail market in Thailand, including the expansion of specialty stores.

“It’s not all about e-commerce these days as the trend for specialty stores is something we all need to be aware of, ” Pakorn said.

“We now operate six company-owned stores as well as one franchised outlet. We target to open at least 150 stores in the Kingdom over the next five years, of which half will be company-owned stores and the rest with franchisees.

“We expect our annual sales to reach Bt2 billion in the next five years. We target to achieve Bt200 million in annual sales this year.”

Amnuay Supawarapong, president of Mumuso (Thailand) Co Ltd, said that Mumuso is a lifestyle shop brand that enjoys popularity worldwide.

The lifestyle shop gathers under one roof good-quality merchandise with contemporary designs from Korea, Amnuay said.

There are more than 600 branches of Mumuso lifestyle shops in 150 cities around the world. In Thailand, the six Mumuso are in Siam Square One in Bangkok, Supanburi, Bang Saen in Chon Buri, The Mall Nakhon Ratchasima, Samut Sakhon, Ayutthaya, and in Phitsanulok. The Phitsanulok shop, which opened early this month, became the company’s first franchised outlet in Thailand.

“The aim of Mumuso is to offer impressive experiences to individual customers via the use and touch of products themselves at our lifestyle shops,” Amnuay said. “The products are based around three core values – quality, design and raw materials. We (Mumuso) set out to never stop innovating in product development and the quality of our service.

“We tend to provide products that are affordable to everybody, and to raise the quality of living of the society and the communities we are involved in. This is in line with Mumuso’s philosophy, which is ‘Life starts with Mumuso’.”

Pakorn said that the name Mumuso has its origins in the Korean word “Mugunghwa”, which means the Rose of Sharon. It is a symbol that represents targeted Korean people, who are students and people in general walks of live in any career, male and female, aged between 15 and 50.

“They prefer products with beauty and contemporary designs. The targeted customers of Mumuso also include travellers, who demand products for their daily uses. All products at Mumuso lifestyle shops have been selected and tested for the good quality standards set by the company,” Pakorn said.

“From our market survey in Thailand, we found there are an increasing number of consumers who are willing to spend money on products that cater to their lifestyles,.

“They have less loyalty to brands, but are selective for good quality and value for money products. With these encouraging factors, we have seen a gap in this potential market to be further penetrated by Mumuso.”

Pakorn said the retail prices of products at Mumuso lifestyle shops start from Bt39. Most of them are fast-fashion items, which are flexible to adjust to changing times and occasions. There are about 3,000 different items of merchandise at Mumuso lifestyle shops covering children’s products, apparel, kitchen items, bags, stationery, skincare and cosmetic goods.

“Mumuso’s skincare and cosmetic products are especially popular with Thai consumers due to their good quality and attractive packaging,” Pakorn said.

The company has set aside Bt150 million as an operational budget for this year, focusing on sales promotional activities at its Mumuso stores, such as for new-store openings, price promotions, free new member applications for customer loyalty points, and social media activities on Mumuso’s Facebook and Instagram accounts.

The budget will also include point-of-sales advertising, special activities for festive seasons, and co-promotions with partnered department stores. The company expects to achieve about Bt200 million in sales this year.

Alissara Supawarapong, managing director of Mumuso (Thailand) Co Ltd, said that, in terms of business direction, a significant channel for the growth of Mumuso’s business in Thailand is via franchising.

“We believe that Mumuso will secure strong interest from individual investors who want to start their own business with an appropriate investment budget. Each Mumuso lifestyle shop requires between 80 and 200 square metres of retail space, in high-traffic and accessible locations,” Alissara said.

“The store will take about one and a half years to achieve a return on investment.

The brand will, however, provide individual franchisees a one-stop service, which includes informative training on franchise management, as well as marketing activities for the lifestyle shops and product trials so that they will enjoy in-depth understanding on product quality.”