McDonald’s Targets ‘Seat Hoggers’ in Thailand

**StrontiumDog** · 21-12-2012, 02:42 PM

McDonalds Takes Action Against People Who Hog Seats in Thailand - Southeast Asia Real Time - WSJ

December 21, 2012, 1:51 PM

McDonald’s Targets ‘Seat Hoggers’ in Thailand

By Oranan Paweewun

Across Thailand, ubiquitous Starbucks SBUX -0.11% and McDonald's MCD +0.37% outlets have become much more than a place for a quick coffee or a hamburger. Outlets are increasingly packed with students and freelancers camping out at the branches for hours, using the small tables as workstations.

But not for much longer. McThai—the sole McDonald’s franchisee in the country—earlier this week issued a notice limiting customers to a one-hour seating limit during lunch, dinner and weekend hours.

ReutersMcThai—the sole McDonald’s franchisee in the country—issued a notice limiting customers to a one-hour seating limit.

It is not yet clear how stringent McDonald’s will be in enforcing these new rules, but the company—which has 178 restaurants across Thailand, serving seven million customers per month—is also discouraging customers from charging laptops and mobile phones for more than 30 minutes at electric outlets available in the fast-food restaurant.

The new rules come as many frustrated customers complain about not having seats to eat their meals, which are often crowded with customers using the tables to work or study for hours, long after their fries and burgers are all gone.

People are “hogging seats for group teaching or working” without ordering second or third meals, said McDonald’s Corporate Affairs Director Saichon Submakudom, who said the new move is “protect[ing] equal rights for all customers”.

According to Ms. Submakudom, the company also ran a survey through social media asking for feedback on the new time limits, with most of the 1,370 respondents supporting the rules.

The company also reserves the right to remove any belongings used to reserve seats and is eligible to request customers to buy more food and drink if they are seated in a large group with hardly any food purchases.

McThai’s new seating rules come after that of Starbucks Coffee in Thailand, which in July this year issued a similar notice, requesting that students and private tutors not use the cafe for large group lessons during peak hours.

“In extreme peak-time cases, we may ask for customers’ kind cooperation not to stay unreasonably long after finishing their beverages and snacks, and not to ‘reserve seats’ while away from the café, out of respect for other customers who would also like the seats to enjoy their purchases,” Marketing and Communications Director Sumonpin Jotikabukkana said.

But for many students, joints like Starbucks and McDonald’s have become go-to spaces for long hours of work, offering a more relaxed environment than a library or school study spaces. A recent study in the Journal of Consumer Research, a publication of the University of Chicago, found that a moderate volume of background noise—about 70 decibels—allows people to think more creatively, possibly explaining the draw of studying in cafes.

One Thai student, 15-year-old Luksika Kitsirisin, said she always goes to coffee shops or fast food restaurants to read books and for tutoring sessions when examinations are near, allowing her to sit with friends and order food conveniently.

She admitted that she and her friends some time have spent several hours there.

“I agree with the time limit, but one hour is too short period,” said Ms. Luksika.

Thappawat Thongnunnuen, 21 years old, is also among the large number of students who opt for cafes or fast food restaurants over studying at a library or at home during exam period.

“Library is too quiet and makes me sleepy, but television distracts me when I’m at home,” he said.

**Cujo** · 21-12-2012, 02:55 PM

Bit late aren't you.
https://teakdoor.com/the-dog-house/12...hour-time.html

**Imminent** · 21-12-2012, 05:21 PM

I hope they get people thinking. There are plenty of other places where these people doing sit-ins are such as Starbucks.

**aging one** · 21-12-2012, 05:29 PM

Starbucks was the first to implement the no buy no sit rule. Its not just the students and tutors, its also cheap shits who want air con.

It is a duplicate thread though.

**Imminent** · 21-12-2012, 06:30 PM

You get parents buying a small coffee and sitting for three hours while their kids study on Saturday an Sundays in Siam Square. If you buy something of course you should be able to sit down but not forever. McDonald's is different than other restaurants in that its prices are geared towards the poor and quantity. If the demand gets high enough prices are raised and the problem doesn't exist well at least not for the wealthy.

**Looper** · 21-12-2012, 06:47 PM

Pretty difficult to enforce. If you are teaching or working there then it is not much cost to go and buy another coffee or cheeseburger to get another hour of laptop charging, aircon, table and chairs.

Keeps all the TEFLers and scum and parasites in one place so decent folk can enjoy a coffee elsewhere.

They deserve each other.

**Imminent** · 21-12-2012, 07:03 PM

Else where? I gues there are some places around but mornings on weekends not too much is open until 10 or 11.

**Mid** · 21-12-2012, 07:03 PM

Originally Posted by Looper

Pretty difficult to enforce.

Nah , uncomfortable seating is the answer , seem to remember it's already been done somewhere , sloping benches that aren't conducive to prolonged stays .

**bretby** · 21-12-2012, 07:04 PM

Well done McDonald’s, a common sense decision. They will ultimately sell more products as seats become available more quickly and customers will be less frustrated and will return.

**xanax** · 21-12-2012, 07:23 PM

Another one should be stopping people using bookshops like libraries, I'd hate to own a book store here. People doss all day reading your stock then bugger off without buying owt.

**Humbert** · 21-12-2012, 08:32 PM

Both McDonald's and Starbucks global store design strategies have backfired on them in Thailand. McDonald's introduced McCafe following Starbucks strategy of using comfortable seating arrangements, nice lighting and a mellow color scheme which encouraged people to linger and spend more money. In Thailand, tutors and students took this to an extreme and started using the restaurants for meetings without buying anything.

**Rural Surin** · 21-12-2012, 09:10 PM

Noticed the franchisee parent corp - ReutersMcThai.

By any chance, would this [Reuters] be the same British news agency [Thomson-Reuters]???

**wasabi** · 24-02-2013, 06:57 AM

When people say why don't Mc Donalds do a delivery service? I know why they don't. It's because they have great difficulty getting lukewarm food as far as as the drive through window,never mind down the street to my house.

**toslti** · 24-02-2013, 08:08 AM

McDonalds Thailand do a delivery service..... 1711 is the number and it is a 24hr operation

**DrAndy** · 24-02-2013, 08:20 AM

Originally Posted by xanax

Another one should be stopping people using bookshops like libraries,

why? it has always been quite normal to read books in bookshops; some even go so far as to provide coffee and seating

some shops here do shrinkwrap magazines to stop browsing, but any books like that I take off the wrap to skim through the book

**Boon Mee** · 24-02-2013, 09:04 AM

^
Indeed.

There's a nice little coffee shop/used book store just down from the Emporium in Bangkok that doesn't discriminate against browsers.

**Fluke** · 24-02-2013, 10:35 AM

The McDonalds in Bunglumpoo quite often has between 5 - 10 thais actually sleeping in there at night

**the dogcatcher** · 24-02-2013, 12:07 PM

Tescos might like to limit the time that Thai men sit on the shitters.
Looks like the fellows have discovered the enjoyable past time of reading the paper whilst having a dump.
Can't do that on a squatter.

**Rocksteady** · 24-02-2013, 01:02 PM

Originally Posted by DrAndy

Originally Posted by "xanax"

Another one should be stopping people using bookshops like libraries,

some shops here do shrinkwrap magazines to stop browsing, but any books like that I take off the wrap to skim through the book

So, the bookshops are protecting their merchandise from free loaders (like you) and you purposely destroy their protection? Hope they make you buy the book after you have got the best out of it! Would you go into 7/11 and unwrap a sandwhich, eat half and put the rest back on the shelf and walk out without buying?

**Rocksteady** · 24-02-2013, 01:05 PM

Originally Posted by the dogcatcher

Tescos might like to limit the time that Thai men sit on the shitters.
Looks like the fellows have discovered the enjoyable past time of reading the paper whilst having a dump.
Can't do that on a squatter.

Indeed, the same with McDonalds. Thais use them as a second home though I don't think they pass the time by reading when they have their pants round their knees

**Tom Sawyer** · 24-02-2013, 06:50 PM

It's about time they did this. I've noticed this many times in many places - tutors with 1-3 students sitting there for long periods especially on weekends. It is the first thing I look at to decide whether to buy a meal - is there a seat? No? Move on to another place

**terry57** · 24-02-2013, 07:00 PM

Originally Posted by Looper

Keeps all the TEFLers and scum and parasites in one place so decent folk can enjoy a coffee elsewhere.

They deserve each other.

Yes i agree with loopy, keep all the cheap scum in one place. After all is said and done there is no room left on Kho San Road.

**Gerbil** · 24-02-2013, 07:47 PM

Smeg would be devastated if he was still here.

The 'free classroom space' provided by McDonalds was the foundation of his entire 'career'.

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