The luxury bodycare and aroma products all boast very traditional Thai scents like jasmine and lemongrass, but the flagship store they sit in is fashioned like a futuristic science lab -- with circular fluorescent haloes and an awe-inspiring line of glass columns filled with perfume.
This concept of "Atelier Of Dreams" -- a flight of fancy where perfume is concocted -- is in CentralWorld, and is considered to be Panpuri's grandest store. The upscale beauty and wellness brand celebrates its 20th anniversary this year and the latest retail store transformation is just one of the many plans on their expansion agenda.
Since day one, its founder and CEO Vorravit Siripark has always had his sights set on international appeal and global recognition.
"Personally, it's like building a house and tearing it down every two or three years to build it even better," he jokes of his penchant for doing the hard things and constantly seeking improvement. "I am always thinking I am in a sporting competition and that I need to take Panpuri to the Olympics, not just regional games. My bigger purpose is to be building an industry Thailand becomes known for."
Since its birth two decades ago, Panpuri has become a household name locally, boasting stores in 13 countries around the world, as well as a total of four spas in Bangkok and Penang. Next year will see their first store in Hong Kong through direct investment, which is to be followed by a new spa launch every year.
Panpuri founder and CEO Vorravit Siripark. (Photos: Varuth Hirunyatheb)
While their high-quality products and services warrant their own merits, what's most compelling is Vorravit's jab at modernising Thai culture. The brand-maker's precise inspiration hails from humble roots -- that of seeing his grandmother infuse water with jasmine petals, an old Thai tradition that dates back centuries.
"If I did something of my own one day, I wanted to reinterpret my roots and bring it to the world stage," says the 48-year-old. "This was very difficult because there were no previous examples to take after. Back then there were hardly any global luxury Thai brands -- Jim Thompson was one of the few.
"Adhering to tradition will keep us outdated, but if we keep innovating new things and never look where we came from, we can be lost. People think Thainess is antiquated or a specific look, but it must evolve and develop. Some tweaking is required, where you can't just paste Thai kanok patterns directly.
"Thainess can be in the small nuances, but you need to understand your own DNA first, before you can reinterpret it."
The latest example of this is their line of perfume oils released last year. Hailing back to days when perfume was created without alcohol, they feature even more concentration (25-30%) than Eau de Parfum (15-20%) and are cased in geometric bottles shaped like a Buddhist chedi. One of their most popular scents, One Night In Bangkok, does not refer to seedy, neon-lit misadventures that come to mind at the mention of the name, but rather, the enchantment of Pak Klong Talad flower market. Featuring the main note of tuberoses with a dash of black pepper, the perfume captures this bustling Bangkok moment when tuberoses are delivered to their flower stalls during the night.
Panpuri's 20th anniversary.
The CEO's graduate studies in luxury goods management at SDA Bocconi Milan was what instilled in him the value of looking back at one's own culture. Panpuri's products are packaged in sleek, minimal white boxes suited to universal tastes, but there is also an underlying philosophical intellect beneath the gloss.
"I was reading dhamma books for seven days before I could finally come up with the brand's name," Vorravit laughs. Meant to represent the experience the brand delivers, the first part pan is derived from panya, which means wisdom, while puri refers to a sacred Indian city and site of pilgrimage, as well as the word purity. Coincidentally, Vorravit also grew up seeing King Narai's statue right next to his childhood home in Lop Buri -- all of which influenced him to pore over palm scriptures detailing ointments and treatments from the 17th-century Kingdom of Ayutthaya.
Although the concept of holistic well-being only gained traction a few years ago, the brand has always emphasised the importance of caring for body, mind and soul.
"People did not recognise that these three junctures are connected -- that there cannot be any beauty outside if there is no inner beauty," says the founder. "This is even more relevant now after Covid. If you look at ancient Thai and Eastern wellness traditions, this practice has always been there. It's been interesting to finally see beauty and wellness intersect, that they are indistinguishable from each other."
In the future, Vorravit is hopeful that Thai brands will be the ones leading the market.
The Panpuri store at CentralWorld.
"Decades ago, European brands from France and Switzerland were prominent, before Japan came along with technology-driven products," he says. "Korean beauty only boomed 10 years ago, with their surgeries and fast beauty. I think holistic beauty from Thailand and Asia could lead the curve next. More facets to wellness are to come and the definition of beauty will expand. I'm keen to see how we can meet future wellness needs and to keep on innovating."
As he continues to perfect his perfumes, spas and retail wonderlands, Vorravit has connected the dots regarding what it takes for Thai wellness and spas to become a global soft power.
"Beauty and health don't stand alone -- they come with cultural relevance. It's an ecosystem where everything is connected. Like in Korea, pop culture or beauty didn't become big alone, it all comes together as a package. Whether it's our country's image, tourism or food, we need to develop and gain power as a whole. Having expertise is something accumulated over a long time and is not something you can attain overnight. All this is born from having a lot of passion with what you do and it's this pursuit of excellence that finally leads to power."
Panpuri's 20th anniversary products.
