I have been working in business development for 11 years, living abroad most of the time. After developing Ghelfiondulati’s business in France and Italy, I decided to come to Asia in 2006 for an MBA exchange study experience at Tsinghua University, Beijing. Asia stunned me. It seemed like everything was happening in Asia: economical growth, social imbalances, new trends… all that within countries that altogether are inhabited by more than one third of the world’s population, with an extremely young average age. It was clear to me that I had to come back at some point. And I did as a business development manager for Asia for SAATI Group. This experience allowed me to implement different managerial techniques within a multinational company on Asian markets. Between 2011 and July 2013 I was involved in a strategic project of market development in Asia for Viabizzuno, a leading Italian company focusing on design lighting and the manufacturing of lighting fittings. This experience in the design industry allowed me to start to build up a wide network and knowledge of the dynamics of the design and architectural industry in Asia. I started to work in close collaboration with architects, designers, hotel operators, developers, contractors, distributors and showrooms. Starting up with Alifer, which was established in Bangkok in September 2013, is part of a natural process. We do international business development focusing our attention on the design and architectural industry. This new entity was created in partnership with Marco Cattaneo, managing director of MC Asia Co. Ltd. (Thailand) and MC Square (Hong Kong) – two companies with many years of experience in international business development in Asia in various industrial sectors.

 

Why did you choose Thailand over other countries in the region?
The Company was founded in Thailand for several reasons: First, our main focus are the ASEAN countries and Hong Kong. These countries are constantly growing and the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) is coming up. Thailand is in the heart of ASEAN, and its economy is well connected regionally and globally. Many companies have targeted Thailand or are targeting the country for investments. Also, we find a very interesting design and architectural environment here. Last but not least, Thailand allows you to live well: an excellent environment for working and living.

 

Who are your customers?
Our customers are all organizations and companies working in the design and architectural industry that need to develop their business activities in Asia. Our expertise and network of partnerships offer the chance to cover a wide range of countries and to reduce time and costs of business development activities.

 

What is the added value of your business?
We are a team of professionals, based in Asia, with several years of experience in business development in Asia, coupled with extensive knowledge of the design industry in Asia.

 

How do you assess the market for design products in Thailand?
My experience and direct involvement in the design and architectural world in this region tells me that many countries in Asia are very open and receptive to art, design, architecture and new trends. Thailand is definitely among the most receptive countries, for several reasons: It has a long history of handcrafting and caring for details, the “niche” of wealthy and educated people is growing day by day, the country has a young and growing part of the population that travels, studies and works abroad, more and more people are demanding quality imported products, infrastructure investments are taking place, the hospitality and residential businesses are growing, its geographical location, and, last but not least, there is an overall friendly and stimulating environment for designers and artists. All those reasons plus many others make Thailand a good place to do art, design and architecture. In fact, quite a few Thai designers and architects work on international projects. Many new young architects are entering the market. New galleries of art are popping up. Many artists reach Thailand every year. Many international design firms have set up their office in Thailand. As a result, the quality of design and the awareness of operators and of the end users is growing.

 

Thank you very much for this interview.

The interview was conducted by Viktor Vavricka, Deputy Head of Mission, Embassy of Switzerland,
Bangkok.