Small Pathum Thani hotel prospering anew after floods drove away golfer clientele

“We have tried to boost our occupancy by promoting our N-Siri Resort and Hotel to golfers, because there are five golf courses nearby that supported our business before the flood in 2011,” president and chief executive officer Sirikan Onsonkran said.
Sirikan, 44, holds a bachelor’s degree in public health, a master’s degree in environmental studies from Mahidol University, and a PhD in business from Western University. She started her working life as a sales representative with Pfizer International Co, and then for insurance firms.
In nine years from 1993 through 2002, Sirikan managed to save more than Bt10 million. She then went into business for herself by establishing Narupornsiri’s Gallery Co with registered capital of Bt5 million to develop a hometown townhouse project worth Bt159 million in Lam Luk Ka district, Pathum Thani province, in 2002.
Two years after the launch of this first hometown residential project, it generated sales revenue of about Bt100 million. However, she saw signs in 2005 that the property market would slow down and her company would face high competition from market leaders.
“I decided to change our business from property development to the hospitality business after seeing strong demand from foreigners who visit Thailand to play golf in Pathum Thani, which has five courses around the province,” she said.
Sirikan spend her budget about Bt10 million to renovate the building, which is develop by others property firm and open for 15-years lease hold and offer to sale in the next time, that locate at Lum Luk Ka district of Pathumthani province in the year 2005 and start to operate in the year 2006.
Sirikan spent about Bt10 million to renovate a building in Lam Luk Ka and started operating it as a hotel in 2006.
The 55-room N-Siri Resort and Hotel was soon enjoying an average occupancy rate of more than 80 per cent, and up to 70 per cent of its guests were foreigners who came to Thailand to play golf. The hotel generated revenue of more than Bt50 million a year.
In 2011, however, major flooding hit the Central region, including Pathum Thani. N-Siri Resort and Hotel had to close for nearly 10 months, including seven months for renovation after the flood damage, while the nearby golf courses also closed for more than two years to rebuild.
Sirikan said it was a hard time for her, as she needed financing from commercial banks to renovate the hotel and for operational expenses.
“I took the time to go to several banks, but most of them needed more collateral in the form of assets such as my savings and land. Then I asked the Thai Credit Guarantee Corporation to guarantee the loans,” she said.
She said the TCG accepted her business plan and guaranteed Bt12 million in loans from Krungthai Bank and Kasikornbank.
At present, the hotel continues to operate with an occupancy rate of about 60 per cent and generating revenue of Bt40 million a year on average.
“The market will recover slowly because fewer foreigners are coming to Pathum Thani to play golf than before the 2011 flood, because the golf courses only started to reopen last year,” she said.
However, she is confident that the golfer market will recover this year. Meanwhile, the hotel has diversified from golfers to cater to honeymooners and the MICE (meetings, incentives, conferencing and exhibition) market. They will get the occupancy rate back up to 80 per cent this year, Sirikan said.
She added that the key to success for a small hotel was to cooperate with related parties and learn what its guests want, and who the target customers are, and create activities and design the hotel to match their demands.
“The strong point of a small hotel is that we have the ability to match our business with our customers’ demands faster than hotel chains can,” she said.