GERMANY LIFESTYLE & TRAVEL 2008

German design and lifestyle products are well known in Thailand. Thailand's elite and the expanding urban middle class are increasingly using German products in their homes and private lives – products for house and garden, kitchen and tableware, fashion, hi-tech consumer products, food and wines.

Germany is also Thailand 's favorite destination when traveling to Europe. More than 75,000 Thais visit Germany per year. Most of them are repeat travelers with high purchasing power.

Germany Lifestyle and Travel 08, together with GTS 08, will take place on 8-11 November 2008 at Centara Grand and Bangkok Convention Centre at CentralWorld, Bangkok, Thailand.

Thailand - a top-30 World Economy

Dynamic and steady economic growth has placed Thailand among the top 30 world economies with a gross domestic product of more than US$ 240 billion. It is common knowledge that Thailand is a big customer of German machinery and luxury cars. Unfortunately, the potential for German consumer goods is often underestimated. The same is true for Thai tourists: Germany is their top tourist destination outside East Asia.
German lifestyle goods are present in the Thai market, but there is even greater potential. In Thailand, quality and beauty are important. The very large Thai middle and upper classes spend money on beautiful items, delicious food and seeing the world. “Germany: Lifestyle & Travel 08” is the first fair event that markets German lifestyle and tourism in Thailand’s growth market.



Special Show: Design

Thailand is a centre of design in Asia. After New York, Milan and Cologne, world-famous Material ConneXion opened its fourth branch in Bangkok. The city also has Asia’s first design materials library.
International design schools such as the Raffles Design Institute and local design universities compete for talents. Some 40,000 design patent applications and registrations have been made in Thailand since 1979. Graphic design, interior design, corporate branding, the international film industry and related areas are flourishing. This provides ample opportunities for German companies. On the other hand, design-conscious Thailand will buy everything that is chic. Selling German designs or the development of joint designs go hand in hand at the special show, DESIGN.



Fashion, Cosmetics, Jewellery and Watches

A number of Thai fashion designers are already globally known, and they are pushing to make Bangkok the “Paris of the East”. International fashion design institutes, some of them from Italy, are coming to Bangkok to accelerate this trend. Also, a number of international names have parts of their design processes in Thailand. These supply a textile industry of 2,400 companies employing one million people.
The other side of the fashion industry is the enormous retail business. Most international brand names are available in Thailand. Their Bangkok flagship stores are within walking distance of the exhibition area. Many of those companies – including German ones – produce in Thailand. The same is true for cosmetics companies.. Demand for high-end imported jewellery and watches is also fast-rising.



Modern Living

Thailand is having a new real estate boom. Since 2000, land values have increased by more than 30 per cent. Condominium prices have doubled or, in some cases, tripled. Some 65,000 condominium units per year are being built in Bangkok alone. In tourist provinces, the construction of condominiums, five-star hotels and shopping centres is moving even faster. This is not a bubble but a response to demand. Young and affluent Thai families are seeking city and weekend homes. Thailand is the “in” trend in Asia. More and more foreign condominium customers, long-stay tourists (including pensioners and health tourists) as well as traditional shorter-stay tourists are arriving.
Within 10 years, tourist arrivals have doubled. In 2006, total inbound tourism grew by 23 per cent, while German tourist arrivals jumped by 21 per cent. For 2007, 15 million visitors were expected. Foreign direct investment, and with it the number of affluent expatriate customers for real estate and imported items, is rising.
There are many opportunities in this housing boom for German companies, especially for manufacturers of kitchen, bathroom and other appliances, furniture, glass, cutlery, porcelain, decorative items, locks, fittings and other building-related products as well as services, including design and architecture.



Food and Beverage

German food products are very successful in Thailand, as can be seen for example from the – often Thai-made – German-style sausage products available in Thai supermarkets. However, imports of German food are still low. Too few German food and beverage producers (including beer, wine and liquor) seriously try to enter the market.
German wine is an ideal companion to Thai food. The Thai wine market is growing in double-digit figures. Until now, few German wine producers are participating in this growth.
The food and beverage part of “Germany: Lifestyle & Travel 08” aims at changing this situation. The partner for this event, Central Food Retail Company Ltd., runs Thailand’s biggest supermarket chain. A concurrent German food show at Central’s supermarkets – for the third year in 2008 – complements the German food and beverages show at the exhibition. Matchmaking with distribution channels such as hotels and importers is assured. Additional marketing events will take place before and during “Germany: Lifestyle & Travel”.

German Technology Symposium (GTS08)

“Germany: Lifestyle & Travel 2008” will be held in parallel with GTS08, the ninth German Technology Symposium & Exhibition in Bangkok. Since 1985, the three-yearly GTS event has attracted Thailand’s top decision makers to a stylish presentation of German technologies. Energy, environment, packaging, material science, transport (including luxury cars) and construction will be major highlights of this technology-oriented show.
Furthermore, German universities will present themselves. GTS08 and “Germany: Lifestyle & Travel 08”, while being clearly separate events, will be held at the same time in order to maximise synergies. For example, a visitor who goes to GTS08 in order to buy German machinery, or to look for a university placement for his children in Germany, might also be interested in booking a journey to Germany or buying lifestyle German products.



Tourism to Germany

Thailand is the third biggest Asian origin market for tourists to Germany, and has a spectacular growth rate (+21 per cent in 2006). In Germany, this fact is little known. In reality, Thailand is easily a global top-20 origin market for Germany. According to Tourism Authority of Thailand figures:
● About 72,000 Thais spend up to 820,000 room nights in Germany;
● On average, Thais are staying up to 11 days; and
● The daily expenditure per Thai visitor is, on average, US$ 120, mainly for accommodation, food and beverages, transport and sightseeing.
Tourism from Thailand is top-end tourism. Many Thai tourists combine business and leisure. A large number travel individually and have been to Germany more than once. They are always looking for new destinations and exclusive specialised offers within Germany. All potential travel-related partners seeking business growth will be brought together at this event.



Venue: Central World

“Germany: Lifestyle & Travel 2008” will take place at Centara Grand and Bangkok Convention Centre at CentralWorld, Bangkok, Thailand, a brand-new integrated venue. This top-of-the-line Convention Centre on 22nd floor boosts 12 function rooms and more than 5,400 sqm of exhibition space. It is located in the Cental business and shopping district at CentralWorld, and combines South-East Asia’s biggest shopping centre, an office tower, a five-star hotel and a state-of-the-art convention centre.
Features are a dozen shopping complexes, two of which each cover more than 550,000 sqm; more than 12,000 four- and five-star hotel beds; two convention centres, office towers, an opera house, cinemas as well as South-East Asia’s largest aquarium.
This shopping, tourist and entertainment paradise is easily accessible and connected by walkways to two Skytrain stations. It is Bangkok's and South-East Asia's “lifestyle headquarter”.

TIME

Germany Lifestyle & Travel 2008, together with GTS 08, will take place on 8-11 November 2008.

ORGANISER


German-Thai Chamber of Commerce
25th Floor, Empire Tower 3, 195 South Sathorn Road
Bangkok 10120/Thailand
Tel.: +66 (0)2-670-0600
Fax: +66 (0)2-670-0601
www.gts08.org and www.gtcc.org
e-mail: gts@gtcc.org