Bangkok floods hit Phuket bars with 'beer crisis'

[FarangRed]

Bangkok floods hit Phuket bars with 'beer crisis'

With the tourism high season looming, the head of the Patong Entertainment Business Association says the situation will reach 'crisis level' for Patong bars within 30 days.

PHUKET: Phuket’s critical tourism and entertainment industries are struggling to cope with the disrupted supply of consumer products and price rises brought on by the floods in Bangkok and central Thailand.

The latest shortage to take hold on the island is alcohol, with reports flooding in to the Phuket Gazette of bars either running dry or short of stock and having to pay inflated prices for beverages.

The Patong Entertainment Business Association (PEBA) says the situation will reach “crisis” level within 30 days if steps are not taken to bring booze back to Phuket’s party town.

“At the beginning of the flood crisis, we didn’t expect it to affect us much,” said PEBA President Weerawit Kurasombat, whose members generate more than 100 million baht annually for the local economy.

“But now we are starting to feel the effects – we are running short of alcoholic beverages,” he said.

Mr Weerawit said that even small bars in Patong make 6,000 to 7,000 baht a night from alcohol sales.

“The main income generator for each bar is beer sales. Big bars can usually make about 30,000 baht a night from selling beer alone,” he said.

Alcohol sales comprise a critical portion of income for entertainment businesses, he said.

“Overall, between 20% to 30% of the income generated by entertainment businesses is from alcohol beverage sales alone.

“Of that income, 60% is from beer sales, 30% is from sales of whiskey and wine, and the remaining 10% is from cocktails,” he added.

“This is the beginning of the high season. If the supply situation does not improve within about 30 days, I believe the entertainment business will start showing real signs of a crisis,” Mr Weerawit warned.

Major retailers across Phuket say they foresee little respite in the near future.

“We’ve had no beer in stock for more than a week, and we’ve yet to hear from our headquarters in Bangkok on any news of when new stock will be delivered,” said Napatsorn Jammeun, a shelf stocker at Tesco Lotus on the bypass road.

The alcohol situation at another Phuket retail giant is much the same.

“We don’t have much left in stock and we haven’t received a delivery from Bangkok in nearly a week,” said Supawadee Kaewthai, a worker at Big C on the bypass road.

“We do not know when new stock will be delivered, as that depends on our head office in Bangkok. We are still waiting to hear from them,” she added.

The shortages have even hit the ubiquitous Family Mart and 7-Eleven convenience stores across the island – some are even running short on water.

“We’re short on bottled water, Singha beer and Chang beer.... We have some Leo beer in stock, but not much,” said Kesinee Sanyee, store manager of a Family Mart on Rat-U-Thit 200 Pi Road in Patong.

She explained that Family Mart stores in Phuket are served by local distributors.

“We order stock from local agents in Phuket, but they too have only limited stocks.”

Ms Kesinee told the Phuket Gazette she was at a loss of what to do with the problem.

“I don’t know what to do to resolve the shortages, and I am not the one who is in charge of planning,” she said.

Meanwhile, 7-Eleven stores nationwide are suffering the same.

A spokesperson for CP All Group, the parent corporation for all 7-Eleven stores in Thailand, told the Gazette, “Our problems are just like every other store in Thailand.

“We source most of our products directly from the manufacturers in Pathum Thani, where they are flooded. We try to distribute what we can to all our stores in Thailand.”

However, she added, “7-Elevens are restocked through our network of distribution centers set up in each region in Thailand, so we are not really worried about running out of products for sale in all of our stores.

“We still can deliver some products such as rice, sugar, instant noodles and milk – but I can’t guarantee beer. We are selling what we have, and it is running low,” she said.

Further up the supply chain, the manager of the Corporate Information Center for Boon Rawd Brewery Co, the parent company for Singha Corp, told the Gazette, “We have five factories in Central Thailand, and four of them are flooded. “

“One of those flooded factories is dedicated to producing Singha. That’s the main reason most stores in Thailand are short of Singha beer for sale.

“We actually have factories all over Thailand. Our factory in Chiang Mai produces bottled water. The one in Surat Thani produces bottled water and soda water, and our plant in Khon Kaen produces bottled water and Leo beer,” she added.

“Even though we are running out of Singha beer, we still have Leo beer for sale as our Khon Kaen facility remains unaffected by the floods.

“However, we are unable to produce any more Singha beer until the situation is back to normal,” she said.

A spokesperson for Thai Beverage Co Ltd (ThaiBev) reported a slightly brighter situation.

“Our factories are not affected by the floods. The only thing that is causing shortages of our products in Phuket and other parts of Thailand is the shipment,” she said.

“We still have the same amount of product to send out to all of our distributors, but most of the roads out of Bangkok are flooded. That is what is delaying the whole shipment process,” she added.

The spokesperson said that ThaiBev’s top sellers in Phuket were Chang beer and Chang bottled water.

“We usually dispatch deliveries of beer and water to Phuket at least once a day. Now we have had to cut it down to once every three to four days,” she explained.

“Although we are still able to deliver about 30 per cent of the regular volume of beer and water that we usually dispatch, we still have more than enough for consumers,” she added.

Regarding rising prices for the beverages that do make it to the shelves in Phuket stores, the spokesperson said that ThaiBev had not passed on any extra costs of delivery to their customers.

“We have a policy to expressly not raise prices during this period. We are selling all of our products at the same prices they were before the floods,” she said.

[SiLeakHunt]

that's what you call a crisis !

[Bettyboo]

They could allow beer in from neighbouring countries, as is stipulated in a recent ASEAN free trade agreement, but Chang and Singh won't be allowing that... they'd rather everyone have nothing than their competitors make any profit; welcome to Thailand...

See: https://teakdoor.com/thailand-and-asi...nse-asean.html (New Thai beer tax - as a response to ASEAN free trade.)

[Marmite the Dog]

but Chang and Singh won't be allowing that... they'd rather everyone have nothing than their competitors make any profit;

Actually, Beer Laos made a deal with the Thai companies (mainly Singha) so Thai beer wouldn't flood the Laotian market.

[Begbie]

Just came back from Lotus near the house. They had a ton of Chang a few bottles of Tiger (fewer now) and nothing else.

Disasterous situation, what does Yingluck intend to do about it?

[IceSpike]

[QUOTE="FarangRed"]“Even though we are running out of Singha beer, we still have Leo beer for sale as our Khon Kaen facility remains unaffected by the floods.[/QUOT
The Issan is safe and secure...

[Bettyboo]

but Chang and Singh won't be allowing that... they'd rather everyone have nothing than their competitors make any profit;

Actually, Beer Laos made a deal with the Thai companies (mainly Singha) so Thai beer wouldn't flood the Laotian market.

Stupid then aren't they...

Chang and Singh would cost more than Beer Laos (in Laos) and taste worse... In this 'agreement' it's likely that the Thais protected their market which they need to do because their ability to compete on a level playing field is close to zero. Never do business with Thais, simple, the Laotians should know that... Fuked over again by the Thais...

[IceSpike]

Never do business with Thais, simple, the Laotians should know that... Fuked over again by the Thais...

I have to disagree BettyBoo. Have you ever been to a Casino in Laos? SavanVegas is all Thai Baht.

[Begbie]

^^Chang and Singh would have sold below cost in Laos until beer laos went bust. Beer Laos does not have the ability to do the same in the Thai market.

[IceSpike]

Chang and Singh would have sold below cost in Laos until beer laos went bust. Beer Laos does not have the ability to do the same in the Thai market.

I disagree again, I think Beer Laos could go bust in the Thai market!

[Bettyboo]

^ any company can go bust in any market... The fact that Beer Laos is a better product that almost certainly has lower costs is a good start. The Thai market is not a level playing field hence why Beer Laos would struggle here - it's basic Thai corruption; massive lobbying by Chang and Singh over decades... Which is the whole point I was and am making...

^^ sounds possible, Begbie, but I don't think Thais would put beer in Laos at a lower cost than Beer Laos; they might threaten too, but their famous Thai pride would stop it. Production costs for beer Laos in Laos must be far lower than Chang/Singh in Thailand, add in the transportation costs and it becomes expensive - it is possible as a 5 year business plan to wipe Beer Laos out, but Thais don't do 'long-term' business plans.

Thus, I don't agree that it would've happened; I could understand that the Thais would threaten it, no more than a threat.

Never do business with Thais, simple, the Laotians should know that... Fuked over again by the Thais...

I have to disagree BettyBoo. Have you ever been to a Casino in Laos? SavanVegas is all Thai Baht.

I'm not sure what point you are making here. Are saying that Laos casinos are owned by Thais as per the Cambodian and Burmese ones are, allegedly? That Thais go into a bordering country and make massive profits? Does this not underline my point, if indeed that is what you are saying.

[IceSpike]

Not even close.
Maybe you should have a LEO.

[Bettyboo]

^ would you like to express yourself more clearly; you do know that one cryptic maniac is enough for any forum, and we already have Rural Surin.

[chitown]

you do know that one cryptic maniac is enough for any forum, and we already have Rural Surin.

[Marmite the Dog]

Chang and Singh would cost more than Beer Laos (in Laos) and taste worse...

The last time I went to Laos, the beer Laos was dreadful in every bar I went to. I was actually hankering after a Leo. I do hope they've got their shit together now.

[Bettyboo]

^ that's a reasonable point, Marmite. I remember drinking BL years ago and loving it, but the bottles I've drunk in Bangkok over the last couple of years taste no better than Chang... Do you reckon it has changed? They had Germans in to bring the taste up, are they still there? Been kicked out?

[IceSpike]

Beer Lao is a fine Brew, I had a few last week in Laos.
If the ""Laos brewed"" Beer Lao ended up in Phuket; it would be an acceptable alternative to nothing.

would you like to express yourself more clearly; you do know that one cryptic maniac is enough for any forum, and we already have Rural Surin.

Only one Cryptic Maniac? Your a party pooper!

[FarangRed]

[quote=IceSpike;1927437]Beer Lao is a fine Brew, I had a few last week in Laos.
If the ""Laos brewed"" Beer Lao ended up in Phuket; it would be an acceptable alternative to nothing.


We used to get in Phuket and I thought it tasted good but they priced it out of the market

[Thetyim]

The last time I went to Laos, the beer Laos was dreadful in every bar I went to.

I reckon its something to do with the shelf life of the beer and that some twats turn the cooler off at night.

[Marmite the Dog]

The last time I went to Laos, the beer Laos was dreadful in every bar I went to.

I reckon its something to do with the shelf life of the beer and that some twats turn the cooler off at night.

I think the same. Beer doesn't like changing temperature all the time. It'd rather stay warm and only be cooled the once than go through cycles of warm and cool.

[Gerbil]

^ Yep, especially if they let it freeze.

[Orroz]

“We’ve had no beer in stock for more than a week, and we’ve yet to hear from our headquarters in Bangkok on any news of when new stock will be delivered,” said Napatsorn Jammeun, a shelf stocker at Tesco Lotus

Good to see that the shelf stackers are kept in the loop

[IceSpike]

6-9000 Kip for a long neck Beer Lao is damn good. less than 40 Baht.

[sunsetter]

beer lao is super tasty in lao, straight from the brewery, after that, when its been sat around at border checks etc, then served in crap fish and chip shops near kao san it tastes like 10 year old chang, ill pass unless im in laos thanks

[ribblerat]

Just reading this thread has got me hankering for a trip to Vientaine and quaffing loads of lovely Beer Lao Dark !!
Now that is most likely the best regional Beer by a country mile . Lovely stuff indeed .