The government is being urged to compensate tenants of shopping complexes whose businesses were hit by the coronavirus outbreak at 10,000 baht a month for three months to boost their liquidity.
Kriengsak Tantiphipop, chief executive of Emporium Group Co and executive committee member of The Mall Group, said almost all tenants are reeling from tight liquidity after retail stores were ordered to close for almost two months.
"The proposed 10,000 baht a month would at least give breathing space to afflicted tenants using it as working capital," said Voralak Tulaphorn, chief marketing officer of The Mall Group. "We believe that about 50% of prospective shoppers will come back to retail malls in the first three months after the reopening and 60-70% at best."
People will no longer shop on an emotional basis, but for a functional purpose, Ms Voralak said, adding that it will take 3-4 months for the shopping situation to return to normal.
Mr Kriengsak called on the government to move the curfew deadline to 11pm for tenants and staff so they can clean their workspace, prepare various safety measures for the next day and get home on time.
He cited research from Siam Commercial Bank's Economic Intelligence Center that Thailand's retail market is to shrink by 14% this year, with 500 billion baht in lost sales after last year's total of 3.5 trillion baht.
The lower sales stem from three main factors: fewer tourists, weak purchasing power and a decrease in merchandise stock supply due to limitations on products from China and reduced production in the manufacturing sector.
Mr Kriengsak said the coronavirus pandemic has changed consumer behaviour. Shoppers will be more concerned about their health, the necessity of masks and temperature monitoring as a norm, the necessity of social distancing for everyone, the need for digital platforms as it becomes part of people daily lifestyle, and the fast-forward push into a cashless society.
Ms Voralak said the company will launch 100 measures covering every dimension, including the five main measures of intensive screening, physical distancing, touchless interaction, hygienic cleansing and comprehensive information tracking.
"One of the priority strategies is to create TMG (The Mall Group) Touchless Society, providing safety measures that will ensure customers that they can shop without having to come in contact with surfaces, from entering the department store and covering areas such as check-in, payment and digital parking," she said, affirming that the group is 100% ready to reopen its complexes once allowed.
In addition, the company is spending 100 million baht on technology to complete its omnichannel platform in the fourth quarter.
In related news, Wallaya Chirathivat, deputy chief executive of Central Pattana Plc, the operator and developer of shopping centres like CentralWorld, CentralPlaza and CentralFestival, reaffirmed CPN's master plan covering five core criteria with more than 75 measures announced last month.
The company has just launched a "touchless elevator", the prototype of its latest touchless innovation experience at CentralFestival EastVille.
Moreover, the company is willing to offer 40,000 square metres of free space to farmers and SMEs to sell their products throughout its 33 shopping centres nationwide.
"Central Pattana set the highest safety standards for the best interest of everyone, such as rolling out our 'Central Hygiene and Safety' master plan for retailers to get ready beforehand to reopen once the government's mandate is announced," Ms Wallaya said. "Every store and all staff will be ready to embrace this new standard, and customers can resume their normal daily life in a worry-free environment at our malls. Another thing is to support our retailers, as well as help farmers and SMEs nationwide in order to sustain businesses, create jobs, generate income and help boost the economy."
