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Shopping in Thailand – Shopping Tips on Saving Big Bucks in Thailand

Thailand, especially Bangkok, is touted by many, usually mall owners and officials from the Tourist Authority of Thailand, as the number one tourist shopping destinations in the world. I’m not convinced but no one can dispute the availability of good and number of shopping venues spread throughout the Kingdom of Thailand. If you want to buy a camera, watch, consumer electronics and alcohol you don’t even have to leave the Suvarnabhumi International Airport. Just fly in buy goods marked up 100% then discounted 7½% and fly home happy. Duty Free is one of the biggest theft schemes in Thailand. Shopping in Thailand and the retail culture may shock you at first so I want know a bit about the sales staff’s mindset. “Knowledge is Power” so be enlightened and save tons of money while you’re spending like a rock star.

Thai sales staff receive little or no training for the position they are placed in. They may know a bit of your particular language but are reticent to use it because their skill level is rudimentary. You want a certain make and model of a product inevitably they will be out of stock and try to ram something else down your throat. This is what they are trained to do. For the sales staff and their manages here there is little place for independent thought in the Thai retail culture. Living in Thailand you will find that sales staff are usually just in the way, used sparingly and only when absolutely necessary. The Thai sales staff are probably good people and many could actually be trained to assist and interact with customers. Most retail stores have failed to adjust to a shifting paradigm in retail and still hold on to whatever was done in past years to reel in customers. Here are a few examples of my actual experiences I had while shopping in Bangkok, Thailand for big ticket items last month.

I was moving to a new home and decided I needed to make the transition to LCD television technology. I have lived in Bangkok, Thailand for more than 5 years so I knew going in to have low expectations when it comes to sales staff. Myself and a friend arrived at Power Buy in Central Rama III and were immediately overwhelmed with choices. Sizes, brands, features and styles hit us like an elephant on Sukhumvit Road. Basically, about 100 rectangles with a fame surrounding an LCD screen. We finally settled on a brand because the model had just came out that week, incorporated the latest technology, was one inch larger than most in its class, and the brand is known for reliability. The two salesmen said I was a ‘lucky man” because Power Buy was running a promotion that would give me a free 32” LCD TV with the purchase of the 47” model I wanted. Sounds good but this is where the deal began to go bad.

I told the two salesmen that I wanted two of the 47” LCD’s but I really didn’t want two 32” giveaways. Just give me one 32” LCD and a cheap home theater system that is about half of the value of the 32” LCD TV. After much lip licking and glances between the salesmen you can guess what happened next. “Cannot” was the expected and given response. I told the poor guys that I was ready to hand over Bt260,000 cash, the price of the two televisions so maybe they should call their manager and see if something could be worked out. One guy took off running, came back a few minutes later and uttered, “Cannot”. These two actually let us walk out the door.

The next day I went to Thailand’s Power Buy in Silom Complex and made the same proposal to the six salesmen assisting me. One dutifully called his manager and the “head office” to get options in an attempt to make the sale. The bottom line is that I spent far less than Bt260,000, was given a top of the line home theater system and they even threw in a HD DVD player along with my free 32” LCD TV. Same company, two different stores that appear to be worlds apart when it comes to training and customer service.

On a high from my positive experience with consumer electronics I thought I was on a roll so I went bed shopping. My girlfriend and I found the ultimate bed at Home Pro, Chitlom. The Thai saleswoman said I was “lucky man” because the bed we wanted was on sale. The bed was marked down from well over Bt100,00 to only Bt93,000 and included what I describe as a funky, cheap wooden headboard with two small lights built-in to use if you wanted to drive the bed at night on the highway. I told the saleswoman that I didn’t need the headboard and asked what was the adjusted price? After about 45 seconds with her calculator she showed the “lucky man” could have the bed for Bt93,000. I reminded her that was the same price of the bed with the headboard. I proposed a small amount be knocked off the price because I didn’t want the headboard. She said, “cannot”. I told her she should probably check with her manager as I was ready to pay cash for the bed. “Cannot” was the last thing I heard before I went out the door.

A short distance down the road I went into Thailand’s famous Paragon Department Store and found the same bed. The wonderful Thai saleswoman kept finding ways to reduce the price once she found out I was a serious buyer. 10% for this 5% for that, sale price, etc. amounted to a savings of more than Bt33,000 from the price at Home Pro. I could not believe the price difference and sales staff between the two stores.

My latest positive experience has to deal with the future of sales in Thailand. We love the VIP chairs in the Thailand’s Major Theaters at Siam Paragon. They are the ones in the Nokia branded screening rooms made with leather and are electric powered recliners. In this case I was able to get the manufacture’s name from the head office of Thailand’s Major Theaters and using only a mobile phone and the internet had two chairs built and delivered to my exact specifications. The theater seats were expensive but the ease of the sales process and the outstanding sales staff at Image Sofa and Motion Furniture made the whole experience worthwhile. Picking the model and color were done using a catalog sent on the internet. My special needs were never questioned and no one ever said “cannot”. Payment was accomplished using Internet Banking and the product was delivered in perfect working order on time. In my opinion, no company in the world could have done a better job than this particular Thai company.

It may be years down the road but evidently progress is being made towards delivering proper customer service and making shopping a world-class pleasure in Thailand. Your Thai shopping experience is what you make it. I suggest you comparison shop in Thailand, ask questions and don’t miss an opportunity to walk away from any deal you are uncomfortable with. The grass could possibly be greener at the next store.

David Barkdull
Bangkok, Thailand

Shopping in Thailand – Shopping Tips on saving big bucks in Thailand

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