“We will be spending about Bt500 million on school equipment, improvement of facilities and human resources,” the school’s chairman of founding team Sakorn Suksriwong said yesterday in an exclusive interview with The Nation.

The new international school will be a branch of King’s College School in Wimbledon, London. Last year, the school opened two branches in China, making the one in Thailand its third branch to open overseas. Sakorn noted that the school has in the past two years invested at least Bt1 billion in construction, teaching equipment and human resources.

“The construction is nearly completed, and all the buildings should be ready by the beginning of 2020,” Sakorn added.

“We have taken a 30-year lease on approximately 23 rai of land from ICC International Plc for the school campus,” he said, adding that involved parties have already informally agreed to extend the lease by another 30 years. Thai law only allows land to be leased for a maximum of 30 years at a time.

Sakorn did not disclose the funds required for the leasing.

Students at Kings College Wimbledon are known to excel in academics, sports and co-curricular activities, said Thomas Banyard, the founding head of King’s College International School Bangkok.

“In King’s College Wimbledon, up to 25 per cent of our graduates are accepted into either Oxford or Cambridge University,” he continued. “Here at King’s College International School Bangkok, we aim to emulate that kind of success, both in academic performances and in co-curricular activities.”

It is important to attract high-quality teachers to get high-quality performance from students, Sakorn said.

“Hence, King’s College Wimbledon will itself be selecting teachers for the Bangkok branch to ensure they are of an exceptional standard,” he said.

In its first year, the Bangkok branch will offer classes from pre-nursery to year five for students aged two to 10 years old, Sakorn said, adding that he expects some 150 to 200 students to be enrolled.

“In the second year, we will expand to years six to eight. The school aims to offer education from pre-nursery to year 13 in the next seven years,” he said. “Once all grades are opened, we expect to have approximately 1,500 students.”

Judging by the location and market situation, Sakorn expects 70 to 80 per cent of students to be Thais and the remaining 20 to 30 per cent to be foreigners.

He said the school fees will match those charged by top international schools in Thailand, though he did not reveal specific details.

King’s College International School Bangkok will place a strong emphasis on student’s well-being, striking a balance between allowing students individual freedom and instilling a strong sense of discipline, Banyard said.

The school will be governed under the policy of “pastoral care”, a system that aims to meet the academic, social and personal well-being and needs of students, he said.

“We will make our company go fully digital to improve our sales and service channels under the ‘TQM Digital’ strategy to be the leader in the online insurance market,” TQM president Unchalin Punnipa said at a press conference yesterday.

Under the strategy, eight projects will be launched: Big Data, product segmentation, life insurance platform, non-motor insurance platform, affiliate/strategic partner, use of technology to promote sales volume and cost reduction, financial broker and Line Chatbot/AI/Chat Centre.

TQM expects all the projects to be completed by this year, he added.

The firm has just launched Chat Centre, an inclusive platform where all the company’s online communication channels – website, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram – are integrated to provide our clients 24 hours daily service, Unchalin said.

Through the Chat Centre, customers can buy all types of insurance products and make insurance claims.

The firm earlier introduced a real-time Chatbot feature through its Line official account “TQM Insurance Broker” for sales and after-sales, operational 24 hours a day. Unchalin said the move had been successful and currently there are 20 million users in Line’s official account.

Among the digital projects, Big Data is important, as it will help us to define customer needs, deliver targeted messages and boost business efficiency, TQM chief executive officer Napassanun Punnipa said.

“We use Chatbot engine to communicate with them and we are using Machine Learning for getting data and learning human language and behaviour better, she added.

“If we offer what the customers really need or exactly what they want, they will use our service because they will feel it’s worth the money,” said Napassanun.

Over the last four years, the company has invested Bt200 million in digital technology, including AI, Big Data and Cloud Server, Unchalin added.

The firm’s sales revenue amounted to Bt5 million when it started in 1996 but now total sales volume has risen to Bt11 billion with 1.5 million clients. Since the firm started to invest in digital in 2015, sales volume jumped from Bt8.9 billion to Bt11 billion, he said.

Napassanun said that in a mobile-first era, TQM needed to employ more technologies to boost its sales and services.

Employing more technologies can help TQM to manage their cost as well, she added.

Currently, the firm has around 4,000 staff working for customer services and it has no plan to hire more human workforce.

“We will use technologies to help drive sales volume to Bt15 billion without employing more people. This is what we call efficiency [in terms of management],” said Napassanun.

However, she said human beings were still needed, so the company will also arrange a stand-by workforce along with the Chatbot 24 hours as well.

“Technology is a tool to facilitate convenience. If we are worried that it could disrupt or make human workforce redundant, we will fail to catch up with trends,” said Unchalin.

So, we need to learn how to live with it and use it as a tool to help us to improve customer experiences, he added.

Founded as a family business 60 years ago, TQM Insurance Broker has become the market leader who offers car, life, personal-accident, health, travel and property insurance.

The aim is to expand its sales channels to cater to the growth and expansion of its products and services.

The first partner is media giant Thairath TV Channel 32. The companies in early March launched a new sales channel, T Shopping, to offer free delivery nationwide and a cash on delivery option. This marks the first time RS has utilised a media channel outside its own group.

This is the first year for RS to fully enter into commerce and retail business, said Surachai Chetchotisak, CEO of RS Plc. “Following our strategy to grow our business both vertically and horizontally, we have strengthened our Multi-platform commerce (MPC) business by joining forces with strategic partners to achieve maximum results in a shorter time with an aim to increase distribution channels vertically.

“Our products available on Channel 8 will be offered on other digital TV channels, starting with our partnership with Thairath TV Channel 32. We are introducing T Shopping, with free delivery anywhere, cash on delivery, to offer Life Star products and services.”

With its expertise in accurately analysing customer data as well as selecting products and services, and crafting attractive campaigns and marketing promotions, RS has succeeded in reaching its target.

On average, a customer spends Bt2,000 per transaction. It is expected that its MPC business will attract 40-per-cent new customers, thanks to products from skincare brand Magique, haircare brand Revive, food supplement brand SOM, as well as CMAX, Lingzhi mushrooms, ICARE, Time Capsule, and Lek Capp herbal extracts. The channel also offers lucky charms, as well as home appliances and healthy footwear.

Given Thairath TV’s strength in news and sports content, it holds a solid fan base aged above 35 nationwide, said the CEO.

“This partnership is a step in expanding our big database to reach out to new customers for our MPC business, adding some 300,000 viewers to our reach. Together with Thairath, we have estimated our revenue for 2019 to be around Bt350 million and Bt455 million in 2020.”

RS is also planning to expand vertically by partnering with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and original brand manufacturers (OBMs), with results expected in the third quarter of this year, predicted Surachai.

They also have plans to introduce another 15 exclusive products in 2019, to be sold through their LSbiz representatives in order to expand the customer base, he added.

After adjusting its MPC business model, MPC has become the biggest earner for RS with a fast-growing performance.

RS believes that joining with digital TV partners to expand its sales channels, using the same platform as Channel 8, will result in even bigger success and strengthen its business to reach its goal. Many digital TV channels have expressed their interest in joining with RS, which is banking on this new business model crating a new phenomenon that seamlessly connects digital TV with retail.

Emerson, a world leader in air conditioning and cooling systems, has signed an MoU with Phetchaburi Technical College to promote Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education and also to advance Emerson’s “Women in STEM” program, according to Emerson’s press statement.

The partnership, which includes the donation of commercial refrigeration equipment as well as internships and study trip opportunities, aims to enhance students’ abilities among female students in particular, by providing  opportunities for hands-on experience, and promoting the wider acceptance of women in engineering roles.

Ong-art Veerachartyanukul, general manager of Middle East and Africa Operations for Emerson Commercial and Residential Solutions said, “Emerson is pleased to partner with Phetchaburi Technical College to promote STEM education. The donated commercial refrigeration equipment will be used as teaching equipment. In addition, study trips to Emerson’s factory and internships will be offered so students will have hands-on experience for career preparation.”

The promotion of STEM education and the Women in STEM program is an Emerson global initiative Target groups include students, especially female students, and working women with the objective of increasing competence and opportunity for career growth in the STEM field, according to the statement.

In many countries in Asia, there simply aren’t enough women in these roles, so we are proud to be promoting engineering as a profession in order increase the number of female engineers,” said Ong-art.

Ruangsang Haasakul, director of Phetchaburi Technical College said, “It is highly gratifying that the private sector realizes the importance of developing STEM teaching. Support from Emerson is in line with the commitment of Phetchaburi Technical University in developing teaching and learning continuously, as well as producing qualified personnel that meet the needs of the labor market.

“This collaboration will help increase knowledge for students and is also a good opportunity for students to learn and accumulate experience from working in real situations for their self-development and benefit to the community.”

The Hello Kitty’s lucky superfans will be the first to experience the activities, fun game kiosks, and photo booths from the kawaii theme park, “Hello Kitty Go Around!! Bangkok.”

The event was joined by Hello Kitty’s superfans such as Bo, Vanda Sahawong, and Mali and May, Patida Kamnerdploy, and Mayu and kawaii teen idols such as Pimtha Thanida Manalertruengkul, Guzjung Jirantanin Pitakporntakul, and Pang Naiyarat Thanawaigoses.

Moreover, Hello Kitty is taking lucky fans to a Meet & Greet with Hello Kitty. This fun-filled event will dazzle Hello Kitty’s fans with their adorableness and cheerful atmosphere that the event exudes, according to the press release.

Adopting a theme park’s setting, the event will take the fans back to their sweet childhood when they were enjoying the liveliness of Hello Kitty and Friends through television screens.

The event consists of various activities, game kiosks, and larger-than-life photography spots such as
• Lucky Ribbon Game is one of the many game kiosks from Hello Kitty. Fans will enjoy this fun game by tossing a coin to get a chance to win souvenirs, exclusively for this event only.
• Hello Kitty Official Goods offers cute toys and adorable figurines from Hello Kitty and Friends for fans to own.
• Apple Temple is a photography spot for all to have fun with. Inspired by the architecture of old Japanese shrines, fans can also pray and write their wishes down on the tablet.

Bo, Vanda Sahawong, a Thai celebrity and Hello Kitty’s superfan, would join the event with her beloved daughter. She said “I am very excited that Sanrio is bringing Hello Kitty to Thailand. This is the first time for Thai people to get a chance to enjoy an authentic moment with their beloved childhood character.”

“Mali and I have been such die-hard fans of Hello Kitty and we are very impressed with how lovely this event is. We enjoyed taking pictures at cute photography spots such as Hello Kitty Ferris Wheel and Hello Kitty Merry-Go-Round which we are sure social media lovers and instagramers out there are going to die for. Mali also loved seeing the parades and meeting with Hello Kitty. She has been begging me to take her back here again ever since.”

Another hardcore fan of Hello Kitty, May Patida Kamnerdploy and her daughter, Mayu, said “I am very impressed by the activities at Hello Kitty Go Around!! Bangkok. There are a lot of fun activities to join. Mayu, my daughter, had a really good time here, especially at Hello Kitty Official Goods store, where she spent half of the day deciding which doll, she’d like to take home. I would recommend superfans of Hello Kitty to come and have this larger-than-life experience which will be especially beautiful, when you share it together with your friends and family.”
“Hello Kitty Go Around!! Bangkok” officially opens for the public from March 22 until June 2 from 11am-10pm
at @Thonglor Hall, 5th floor, DONKI Mall Thonglor. Tickets for an adult entrance is Bt350 and Bt280 for a children ticket.

A special offer for the Hello Kitty’s lovers only on March 22, Hello Kitty Go Around!! Bangkok will give out free entrance tickets to the first 50 people who show their authentic Hello Kitty products from Sanrio, and free popcorn to the first 200 fans who post pictures of the event on their social media with #HelloKittyGoAroundBangkok. For
more information go to http://www.facebook.com/Hello-Kitty-Go-Around-Bangkok or call 02 002 7770 Ext. 12