Page 34 - Forbes - Asia (July - August 2018)

FORBES ASIA
SUPATRA & CHAO PHRAYA EXPRESS

in the same business for three generations, versity’s School of Hotel Administration. Her ants to ill the space. Only 26 at the time, she
studies have found. mother had recently opened two riverside could sometimes detect that her youth star-
Fortuitously, Supapan’s formidable moth- restaurants and a resort hotel in the coastal tled potential tenants: “Saying that I ran a sis-
er, Supatra Singholaka, enjoyed an unusu- town of Hua Hin, fulilling an early interest ter company to Supatra always helped.”
al pastime when she wasn’t building her in hospitality, and Pim wanted to build and During the same period, Pim also de-
boat company. “She loved buying land,” re- own more hotels. But studying at Cornell veloped three projects across the river from
calls Supapan. here are plots all over hai- widened her horizons. “I wanted to build Bangkok in honburi. She transformed an
land waiting to be developed, from Bangkok more than hotels. I wanted to be in the real apartment building into the 68-room Riva
to the coast to northern Chiang Rai Prov- estate sector, to build perhaps condos, apart- Surya hotel, built the 25-room Riva Arun
ince. Pim launched Supatra Real Estate Co. ment houses, maybe retail.” Ater a year as boutique hotel and turned a ramshackle
in 2015, and the ofshoot has already opened an analyst at Colliers International in Bang- shopping center into the Wang Lang mini-
two riverside hotels and two mini-malls. kok, she returned to the U.S. to earn a mas- mall last year. “Ater so much investment
Pim had ideal preparation for the work. ter’s in real estate development at Columbia the past few years, Supatra Real Estate is at a
In 2004, ater high school at Switzerland’s In- University. loss,” she says, “but the revenue is there, and
stitut Le Rosey, she headed to Cornell Uni- Pim says she learned “a way of thinking it’s on par with our expectations. For every
about a project in business unit we expect growth, but it’s dif-
360 degrees. It preps ferent from business to business.” Overall,
you in the stages of the group makes money, she says, thanks to
development. Who the steady proits of the boat business.
are the stakehold- hat business is set for a makeover. Su-
ers? he inanciers? papan plans to spend more than $20 mil-
How to get inanc- lion on the high-speed boats for her express
ing?” Returning to service, which started in 1971 and accounts
Bangkok in 2011, for most of the boat business’ revenue. To
she faced her irst fund this ambitious upgrade, the moth-
challenge: what to er-daughter pair is exploring a stock mar-
do with a prime riv- ket listing, signing up a partner or both. he
erside piece of prop- partner would most likely be a foreign com-
erty. hen serving pany because experts in riverboat design are
as a parking lot, the overseas. Well aware that “tourists love the
1.2 acres are adja- wooden boats,” the two quickly ofer assur-
cent to Supatra’s ha ances that the old boats will be switched to
Chang pier, where, tourist services, such as charters, hotel shut-
along with students tles or additional single-pass “hop-on, hop-
attending two near- of” boats.
by universities, thou- he launch of the irst lines of the Sky-
sands of tourists pass train in 1999 and the MRT subway in 2004
through daily to visit raised expectations for comfort and speed in
the sights of the old mass transit. Once the new eet is deployed,
royal city. moving from commuter rail to boat to air-
Ater ordering a conditioned bus should be “seamless,” says
feasibility study, Pim Pim. “We want high speed so that we can
decided to build ha work against time,” explains Supapan. “Peo-
Maharaj, a two-story ple are willing to buy time. We travel much
shopping mall front- faster than buses and we are very punctual.
ed by a public park It will change the scene completely.” What’s
along the river. “I did more, the government will allow the com-
my own loan pack- pany to raise its fares. By the end of the year,
age, negotiated the commuters will be able to use a stored-val-
terms, talked to ar- ue card on both the express boats and two
chitects,” she says. subway lines.
hen she had to re- As the modernization progresses, Pim
cruit 42 shops, ki- is becoming more immersed in the boat op-
osks, restaurants erations. “I didn’t sign up for the boat busi-
From the scrapbook: Supapan and young Natapree with Supapan’s and a few oice ten-
mother, Supatra, who loved buying real estate in her spare time. ness,” she says, but in the past year she has

32 | FORBES ASIA JULY / AUGUST 2018