The business of faith, and how it only pays during downturns

Since 2020, when Covid-19 brought the country to a near standstill, most people have been relying on “mutelu”, or spiritual support by travelling to revered places or relying on talismans.

During the economic downturn, many faith-based businesses offering to fix people’s problems popped up. Some even engaged influencers and celebrities to share their experiences to promote and sell these services.

“However, very few faith-based businesses registered as companies, mainly because most fortune-tellers, amulet sellers etc, prefer to get clients through word of mouth,” Deputy Commerce Minister Sinit Lertkrai said.

“According to data collected by Mahidol University’s College of Management, Thais normally rely on five beliefs to bolster their spirits. They are horoscope [daily, weekly and monthly], amulets, auspicious colours, lucky numbers and the supernatural,” he added.

In response to the boom in faith-based businesses during the pandemic era, the Commerce Ministry began urging them to register as companies so they could gain credibility and expand their market.

In 2020, 11 such businesses were set up with a registered capital of 7.59 million baht. The number rose to 20 in 2021, with a registered capital of 13.41 million baht, and then to 24 in 2022 with a total capital of 49.54 million baht.

However, though the number of registered companies rose during the Covid-19 era, not many were very profitable. In 2020, the net profit of these companies came in at 1.52 million baht, but the following year their revenue dropped, recording 1.86 million baht in losses.

This vast difference in earnings over just two years seems to suggest that people’s need for spiritual support is falling, now that the pandemic is over and jobs are returning.

Related News:

Korn pledges to create Thai spiritual tourism industry with THB1bn per province

What the future will bring

Famous Myanmar fortune teller ‘ET’ remembered as ‘genius’ after death