Thai Airways selling 10 properties to raise capital

[Thaiger]

With deepening debt and the Covid-19 pandemic dragging on and flattening the tourism and travel industry, Thai Airways International is looking to sell off some large assets like buildings and properties to stabilise the struggling airline. The airline has been in the throes of bankruptcy and debt rehabilitation for months now after failing to secure a bailout from the government. The corporation announced that it is trying to sell off 10 buildings and properties spread throughout Thailand to bolster some cash flow amidst financial woes. A source within Thai Airways confirmed the plan to find buyers for the properties to […]

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[Dedinbed]

14 minutes ago, Thaiger said:

A source within Thai Airways confirmed the plan to find buyers for the properties

Buyers market and will remain so for a while so it'll come down to how reasonable they are priced at .. off the reality scale and they'll sit as mausoleums to T A's inefficiency and freeloading .. a more reasonable clawback in line with market realities will cause an epic loss of face somewhere down the line .. 

 

[ozz1]

goodluck trying to sell at the moment with whats going on they should really restructure from the top down but they wont

Edited August 4, 2021 by ozz1

[Guevara]

The customer service was evident before the Covid  global crisis. I used to fly regularly with them until nearly 3 years ago. Everything about the company was going down the pan. As for selling properties, it's a buyers market and very few have monies just sloshing around. With the stock they currently have a good percentage is leased and they may well lose them and have to downsize. It's in danger of becoming Titanic Airways.

[gummy]

45 minutes ago, ozz1 said:

goodluck trying to sell at the moment with whats going on they should really restructure from the top down but they wont

Not allowed to of course by "the boss"

[Guest]

Such a shame if we lose the Thai Airways ticketing office on Silom Road! 

[HolyCowCm]

I use the one in CM and the one on Silom as that area is where I stay when out on meetings. Now they are just becoming nothing special for me. I wonder why they are really selling and who wants or requests a cash injection? Oh well, have to stop there. 

[gummy]

6 minutes ago, DonJaiDee said:

Such a shame if we lose the Thai Airways ticketing office on Silom Road! 

I havn't been into Bangkok for a very long time but that office used to look a total disgrace both inside and out.

[HolyCowCm]

7 minutes ago, DonJaiDee said:

Such a shame if we lose the Thai Airways ticketing office on Silom Road! 

So agree. I loved going there. So convenient. 

[Benroon]

1 hour ago, Guevara said:

The customer service was evident before the Covid  global crisis. I used to fly regularly with them until nearly 3 years ago. Everything about the company was going down the pan. As for selling properties, it's a buyers market and very few have monies just sloshing around. With the stock they currently have a good percentage is leased and they may well lose them and have to downsize. It's in danger of becoming Titanic Airways.

Don’t be fooled - there is a limitless supply of Chinese money. 

[King Cotton]

25 minutes ago, DonJaiDee said:

Such a shame if we lose the Thai Airways ticketing office on Silom Road! 

Assuming you're taking the super-optimistic view that any of their offices will be selling tickets again . . . for flights, that is . . . not snack food.

[Soidog]

Part of my work is to improve operating efficiencies of companies. I would simply love to do the same with Thai airways. I’d be prepared not to take a salary, simply take 1% of any Operational cost savings made. You could lose about 1 in 4 jobs and slash their real estate by around 60%. Restructuring of the management team would save millions and renegotiating employment contracts would save even more. So much low hanging fruit to cut out of a business like Thai. At the same time you would do a full end to end customer service review and return the company back to its fundamentals. I know why they haven’t achieved any of this this far. It’s simply because they keep bringing in teams who suffer with the same mindset. That’ll never work. 

[Samesame]

Watch the Chinese come sniffing. They will own Asia, lock stock & barrell. Their work will be complete.

[Martin]

1 hour ago, Soidog said:

Part of my work is to improve operating efficiencies of companies. I would simply love to do the same with Thai airways. I’d be prepared not to take a salary, simply take 1% of any Operational cost savings made. You could lose about 1 in 4 jobs and slash their real estate by around 60%. Restructuring of the management team would save millions and renegotiating employment contracts would save even more. So much low hanging fruit to cut out of a business like Thai. At the same time you would do a full end to end customer service review and return the company back to its fundamentals. I know why they haven’t achieved any of this this far. It’s simply because they keep bringing in teams who suffer with the same mindset. That’ll never work. 

Totally agree with your comment. It would be perfectly possible to turn THAI around, make it profitable, and a showcase for Thailand itself. It's in prime position as the national airline of a top destination (at least pre covid). But the current dire situation won't last forever and people will return to travelling. 

But you'd have to be ruthless in removing the bloat. And there's no sign of that happening, just more of the same from dinosaurs with seemingly no desire to turn it around. 

[AussieBob]

4 hours ago, Soidog said:

Part of my work is to improve operating efficiencies of companies. I would simply love to do the same with Thai airways. I’d be prepared not to take a salary, simply take 1% of any Operational cost savings made. You could lose about 1 in 4 jobs and slash their real estate by around 60%. Restructuring of the management team would save millions and renegotiating employment contracts would save even more. So much low hanging fruit to cut out of a business like Thai. At the same time you would do a full end to end customer service review and return the company back to its fundamentals. I know why they haven’t achieved any of this this far. It’s simply because they keep bringing in teams who suffer with the same mindset. That’ll never work. 

Over a year ago, I did a straight analytical numbers comparison between Thai Airways and both Qantas and Singapore airlines.  I cannot remember the numbers but both Qantas and Singapore airlines had a similar per employee revenues and costs numbers, and their revenue to assets was also very similar.  Thai Airways was way off the chart - massively over staffed and under capitalised. You are wrong about reducing numbers by 25% @Soidog - to get within a cooee of Qantas or Singapore, Thai Airways would have to reduce their staff by 60+% .  That was at the 2018/19 revenue numbers - and those numbers aint coming back for a long time.  I didn't have the time or care to do a staff structure analysis, but based on a quick look it was apparent that Thai Airways was just like the Thai military - unnecessarily full of senior management who do little more than PR work for a large salary.  Their Chiefs to Indians ratio is way way way over the top. 

I also believe that the only reason they are doing this is because the bankruptcy deal included selling off assets to increase capital and reduce debt ratios. 

[Soidog]

31 minutes ago, AussieBob said:

Over a year ago, I did a straight analytical numbers comparison between Thai Airways and both Qantas and Singapore airlines.  I cannot remember the numbers but both Qantas and Singapore airlines had a similar per employee revenues and costs numbers, and their revenue to assets was also very similar.  Thai Airways was way off the chart - massively over staffed and under capitalised. You are wrong about reducing numbers by 25% @Soidog - to get within a cooee of Qantas or Singapore, Thai Airways would have to reduce their staff by 60+% .  That was at the 2018/19 revenue numbers - and those numbers aint coming back for a long time.  I didn't have the time or care to do a staff structure analysis, but based on a quick look it was apparent that Thai Airways was just like the Thai military - unnecessarily full of senior management who do little more than PR work for a large salary.  Their Chiefs to Indians ratio is way way way over the top. 

I also believe that the only reason they are doing this is because the bankruptcy deal included selling off assets to increase capital and reduce debt ratios. 

Yes I’m sure that’s right. The 25% in staff reduction was a finger in the air and knowing you could easily loose every fourth person without anything being noticed. I haven’t looked at the numbers at all, but if Thai is like any other large establishment in Thailand, then they will have many more than needed. Im not sure if Thai would even know what the productivity and utilisation of their staff is? 
 

Whatever the numbers, I don’t think I’ll get anywhere near having them chance to do this work, but it would be a pleasure to do so and fun to fantasise. 1% bonus payment in savings made would set me up for life. 

[AussieBob]

17 minutes ago, Soidog said:

Yes I’m sure that’s right. The 25% in staff reduction was a finger in the air and knowing you could easily loose every fourth person without anything being noticed. I haven’t looked at the numbers at all, but if Thai is like any other large establishment in Thailand, then they will have many more than needed. Im not sure if Thai would even know what the productivity and utilisation of their staff is? 
 

Whatever the numbers, I don’t think I’ll get anywhere near having them chance to do this work, but it would be a pleasure to do so and fun to fantasise. 1% bonus payment in savings made would set me up for life. 

I think we can do it together - 0.5%  each - both set up for life.

Then I dont have to stay here and wait for pension. But I must admit, I rather that the wife and I are here for a little while longer.  But then again - 0.5% and I could buy one of the islands near Phuket

[KaptainRob]

49 minutes ago, AussieBob said:

I think we can do it together - 0.5%  each - both set up for life.

 

Oi, that'll be .33% each now

I love a challenge and took on a company turn-around in the late 90's.  It was a boat hire business and the absentee owner had a succession of managers run it into the ground ... the waterfront site was actually worth more than the business including stock.

With the business well in the red I took over on provision of an open cheque-book partnership, his money backing my actions.  I had it back in the black within 6 months just by culling expenses and deadwood staff.  I then built a website and mailing database, embarked on fleet upgrades and new purchasing to build profit slowly over the balance of 12 months.

TG should have been closed down, all management and staff let go, then it could have been revived under a new board made up of aviation and tourism industry experts, Thai and farang, with someone like a Tony Fernandes as CEO.

IMO the current process was doomed to fail even before covid's delta wave took hold.  Selling aircraft and property assets will barely meet outgoings, if anything sells.

[AussieBob]

21 minutes ago, KaptainRob said:

Oi, that'll be .33% each now

I love a challenge and took on a company turn-around in the late 90's.  It was a boat hire business and the absentee owner had a succession of managers run it into the ground ... the waterfront site was actually worth more than the business including stock.

With the business well in the red I took over on provision of an open cheque-book partnership, his money backing my actions.  I had it back in the black within 6 months just by culling expenses and deadwood staff.  I then built a website and mailing database, embarked on fleet upgrades and new purchasing to build profit slowly over the balance of 12 months.

TG should have been closed down, all management and staff let go, then it could have been revived under a new board made up of aviation and tourism industry experts, Thai and farang, with someone like a Tony Fernandes as CEO.

IMO the current process was doomed to fail even before covid's delta wave took hold.  Selling aircraft and property assets will barely meet outgoings, if anything sells.

Ok OK - 0.33% - I will settle for a smaller island 

That boating business sounds like a few I have gotten involved with over the decades - it never ceases to amaze me how incompetent some people are at starting and running a business. 

[KaptainRob]

20 minutes ago, AussieBob said:

Ok OK - 0.33% - I will settle for a smaller island 

That boating business sounds like a few I have gotten involved with over the decades - it never ceases to amaze me how incompetent some people are at starting and running a business. 

The funny thing was the owner actually purchased the business from me, as Yacht Broker, many years earlier.  I'd known him for years an watched as he built up another business empire, now Australia-wide, and gobbled up the competition which left no time for overseeing the boat hire.

[AussieBob]

31 minutes ago, KaptainRob said:

The funny thing was the owner actually purchased the business from me, as Yacht Broker, many years earlier.  I'd known him for years an watched as he built up another business empire, now Australia-wide, and gobbled up the competition which left no time for overseeing the boat hire.

Seems he could have hired better managers - but obviously he was too focussed elsewhere and did not give a rats rear.

[BuffaloWhisperer]

Just take it behind the barn and put it out of its misery already.

 

But if they want to keep it running, then until they figure out how to get a website that doesn't crash halfway through a payment transaction, they need all the brick-and-mortar offices they can have. 

[KaptainRob]

42 minutes ago, BuffaloWhisperer said:

But if they want to keep it running, then until they figure out how to get a website that doesn't crash halfway through a payment transaction, they need all the brick-and-mortar offices they can have. 

TG's website had many 'faults'.  One was an algorithm which bumped the fare each time you revisited, and I'm talking within minutes.  ie: find Economy fare BKK > SYD; check equivalent on say SIA; return to TG and same fare increased!

Also, their Specials were only ever old-style "winter escape for 2" type packages.  That sort of marketing went out the door 20 years ago.

[Soidog]

6 hours ago, KaptainRob said:

TG should have been closed down, all management and staff let go, then it could have been revived under a new board made up of aviation and tourism industry experts, Thai and farang, with someone like a Tony Fernandes as CEO.

I think you have hit the nail on the head here with Thai Airways and all Thai companies. They never look to hire the best available person, just the best available Thai who also has the right family connections, wealthy enough or from the right military rank. All of those filters in the selection process means it’s likely to fail in selecting the best.  
 

Its fair to say that most national airlines tend to be patriotic in the recruitment of their CEO’s with only 1 in 5 having a foreigner running the show (U.K. and U.A.E. leading the pack. However, many others then have senior executives on their board and senior management positions from across the world. Thai Airways of course will have Thais in every position of management from boardroom to team leaders. This again simply doesn’t help with fresh ideas and introducing a new culture. 
 

One thing is for sure, even if I was to be offered the hypothetical opportunity to assess the company and make proposals to turn it around, they would take my recommendations, smile and wai me and  then throw the report in the bin. I mean, what the hell would a foreigner know about running a Thai airline!