BUILDING on the success of the Expat Entrepreneur Awards 2014, the BigChilli is joining forces with the British Chamber of Commerce
Thailand (BCCT) to launch a new initiative aimed at recognising Thailand’s most successful and dynamic businesses and entrepreneurs.
Awards exist in order to acknowledge excellence in performance, process and creativity, to compare against peers,
to highlight best practice and to reward supporting staff.
By participating in TIBA you will raise your profile, grow your networks and develop new commercial opportunities.
A team of independent judges will review the nominations and select the winners in each of the categories.
All nationalities of company and individual are welcome to enter whether they are nominated or self-nominated.
Nominations are open to any company registered in Thailand regardless of size or affiliations. For more information see:
www.thebigchilli.com
 Karma Sound Studios Chris Craker, Founder AWARD-WINNING musician and producer Cris Craker climbed to the top of the British music industry before picking the sleepy fishing village of Bang Saray to build his world class music studio. The unlikely Mecca for some of the biggest names in the music industry has a a growing list of talented young musicians and a solid track record for producing high quality and marketable recordings. www.karmasoundstudios.com  Absolute Hotel Services Group (AHS) Jonathan Wigley, Founder IN just eight years, UK-born Jonathan Wigley has gone from a junior hotelier to a major player in the highly competitive international hotel industry. In 2008 Jonathon founded Absolute Hotel Services Group (AHS), which has already become one of the fastest growing hospitality management/ branding companies in Asia. Through its brands - which include U Hotels & Resorts, Eastin Grand Hotels, Eastin Hotels & Residences, and Eastin Easy – AHS controls more than 7,500 keys in almost 70 hotels worldwide. www.absolutehotelservices.com  Maeping Mango Riverside Resort David Armstrong, Founder AFTER eight years and lots of hurdles, former Bangkok Post Managing Director David Armstrong and wife, Nichapa opened Maeping Mango Riverside Resort in Kamphaeng Phet. The resort, which was architecturally inspired by the blending of Thai and European styles characteristic of the reigns of Kings Rama V and Rama VI, is the materialisation of Nichadaís dream. David now spends his days in Kamphaeng Phet, having breakfast on the veranda, watching the river flow by and the sun rise over the tree tops. www.maepingmangoriverside.com  CoffeeWORKS Dale Lee, Founder IF you’ve ever enjoyed a cup of coffee in Bangkok, there’s a good chance the beans that make it so delicious come from a company owned by an American from Michigan called CoffeeWORKS. Operating since 1995, CoffeeWORKS is today one of the top three suppliers of coffee and related equipment in Thailand. Its 800-plus customers include a long list of major corporations with coffee-thirsty staff, many of the country’s best known hotels as well as specialist coffee shops, cafés and chain outlets. Among them are Dean & Deluca, W Hotel, McCafe outlets at McDonald’s Thailand, and Bluecup Coffee by S&P. www.coffeeworks.co.th  Civil Master International (CMI) Matthew Harrison, Co-founder and Managing Director ■ AFTER 16 years at the helm of the Bangkok-based company Civil Master International (CMI), Matthew Harrison couldn’t be happier with his professional and private life in Thailand. His architectural contracting company specialises in virtually anything that involves the exterior of major buildings, including facade renovation, repainting, and repairs. Thanks to a combination of factors, it’s clearly ticking all the boxes. www.civilmastergroup.com  Fine Food &Two Chefs Erwin Eberharter, Founder AFTER 20 years of running the kitchens of top hotels in Bangkok and around the world, Austrian-born Erwin Eberharter decided two years ago to go it alone and launch Thailand’s first ready-to-eat range of fine dining meals under his own brand, Chef Erwin. Fresh and Delicious. Erwin and his team combine imported ingredients and raw products with their refined cooking process and creativity to produce chilled, rather than frozen, fine-dining quality meals that are ready to eat in your home in just minutes. www.finefood-twochefs.com  The London Pie Steve Mines Founder and Managing Director YORKSHIREMAN Steve Mines and his wife set about building The London Pie from the ashes of The British Pie shop. Day one of The London Pie saw them with one table, one baking bowl, the household oven from their house in Phuket, and a burning desire to show a band of ex-investors what could be done with Yorkshire grit, Thai grit, something to prove, and a chip on his shoulder large enough to be seen from space on a good day. Rising from the ashes Steve’s pies are now available in various outlets, stores and restuarants in Bangkok and Pattaya. www.londonpiebangkok.com  Shrimp Asia Patrick Gauvain, Founder and Mangaing Director HE’S been called a hedonist, eccentric and even ñ at least in his younger days ñ a playboy, but since his arrival in Thailand in 1968, artist and photographer Patrick Gauvain can also rightly claim to be one of this countryís most durable and successful entrepreneurs. Called Shrimp because of his diminutive size, it was his skill behind the lens that led to the amazingly popular Shrimp Calendar featuring a bevy of scantily-clad Thai beauties. Today he runs Thailand’s longest established branding, design and communications firm, focusing on brand engineering. www.shrimp-asia.com  Caviar House Alexey Tyutin, Co-founder IN 2011, 43-year-old Russia-born Alexey Tyutin went into business with Thai national Noppadon Khamsia to raise the sturgeon that produce black caviar on a farm near Hua Hin. In 2015, together with Noppadon, he co-founded Caviar House Co., Ltd. to bring black caviar – a product usually reserved for the elite – to the local Thai and expat community at affordable prices. www.caviarhouse.co.th  VIVIN - The Fine Food Specialist Nicolas Vivin, Co-founder AFTER two years of hard work the husband and wife team behind VIVIN – The Fine Foods Specialist, finally have their products on the shelves of high-end supermarkets in Bangkok, including: whole duck foie gras terrine; dried duck magret in a variety of flavours; condiments and spices; and some amazing goat cheese from Chonburi. The dynamic duo also opened their own sales corner in the Central Chidlom Food Hall where shoppers can now sample VIVIN’s wares and learn the story behind each handmade product. www.vivinmaison.com  Huddy’s Detailing Hudson Walsh, Founder and Manging Director AT the age of 21, most luk-krung (mixed Thai-Western) kids are striving along an academic path toward a bright future. For Hudson Walsh, the owner of Huddy’s Detailing, it’s been quite a different road. He can be found almost every day in a garage in Thonburi detailing some of the most exotic and expensive vehicles in Thailand with a dream to someday work on his own supercar. www.huddysdetailing/wixsite.com  Elizabeth Romhild ELIZABETH Romhild – a Danish-born painter, sculptor and designer – has lived and worked in Bangkok since 1988 – displaying her extensive portfolio of distinctive and colourful paintings, sculptures, and porcelain. www.elizabethromhild.com |  Food Glorious Food Bob Coombs, Founder IN his 40 years in Thailand Bob Coombs has built a successful company in an industry known for fierce rivalries and shady dealings. The straight-talking founder of Choice Foods was the first to bring chilled beef and oysters from Australia, salmon from Scotland, and a number of other delicacies to Bangkok and was the first food supplier to operate refrigerated vehicles, other than ice cream vans, in Thailand. Food Glorious Food is the retail arm of Choice Foods and is now considered as the leading retailer of premium meats and gourmet delicacies. www.foodglorious-food.com  NYC - Thai BD Benjamin Leiner, Founder FROM exporting clothes to importing ice cream, Benjamin Leiner is living proof that Thailand is the land of opportunity for willing entrepreneurs. Serial entrepreneur Benjamin Leiner decided to bring his favourite American ice-cream – Emack and Bolio’s – to Thailand. After two years of work getting 22 flavours approved by the Thai FDA, Bemjamin opened his first Emack and Bolio’s store in 2014. He now has 34 flavours and six stores located across Bangkok including CentralWorld, Central Westgate, Central Ladprao, Siam Centre, EmQuartier and Nichada Thani.” www.emackandboliosthai.com  Tuk Tuk Factory Dennis Harte, Founder AFTER unveiling a successful prototype in 2009, 35-year-old Dutch engineer Dennis Harte is taking Thailand’s ubiquitous three-wheeler to the next phase with his silent and emissions-free electric models. Tuk Tuk Factory (TTF) currently assembles four models of electric tuk-tuks of its own design in Thailand and exports them to countries around the globe, including the Netherlands, Germany, Australia, Iceland, the USA and France to name but a few. Thanks to a change in Thai regulations TTF will begin selling their eco-friendly tuk tuks in Thailand in early 2017. www.tuktukfactory.com  Sloane’s Artisan Joe Sloane, Founder THE five-storey shop-house that is Slaone’s Artisan meat factory off Sanphawut Road is filled with the aroma of hand-made sausages, cured meats, terrines and pates, and local cheese and dairy products. Founded by London-born Joe Sloane, Sloane’s Artisan is one of the leading producers of meat and dairy products in the country with clients including wholesalers, restaurants, hotels, Gourmet Market outlets, Villa Market branches in Bangkok, Pattaya, Hua Hin and soon in Udon Thani, as well as Rimping Supermarkets in Chiang Mai. The secret to his success, he says, is simply supplying better quality products and working with ethical farms. www.sloanes.co.th  BOUNCEinc Thailand Mark Jobling, Managing Director MARK Jobling enjoyed great financial success with investments in the power generation industry, but it wasn’t until he became involved with BOUNCEinc and founded a new home for the innovative trampolining recreational enterprise in Thailand that his dreams finally came together. The first BOUNCE in Thailand and the largest in Asia opened at The Street on Ratchadaphisek in December 2015 and Mark recently presided over the opening the second BOUNCE at EmQuartier. www.bounceinc.co.th  Equator Pure Nature Co., Ltd. Peter Wainman, Founder Natural cleaning products were all but non-existent in Thailand when Peter Wainman suffered a severe allergic reaction to a harsh chemical cleaner in 2010, he and his wife decided to make natural products themselves. PiPPER STANDARD Laundry Detergent and Fabric Softener was founded in 2010, since 2016, sales have grown exponentially; Pipper products now sell in 10 Asian markets, including Taiwan, Singapore, China, Hong Kong, and Vietnam. Pipper Standard is the result of six years of research and development and Wainman’s drive to create natural, healthy, effective alternatives to chemical cleaning products. The basis of Pipper products is fermentation technology. In 2016, Wainman received U.S. patents covering this technology and additionally has multiple global patents pending covering 70% of world’s GDP. www.equatorpurenature.com  Tea & Fruits Co., Ltd. Ido Berger, Founder TRYING to pigeonhole Ido Berger is a difficult proposition, but the description entrepreneur with a strong creative flair works pretty well as a starting point. His resume includes forays into acting, journalism, education, and the food and beverage industry. The latter led to the idea to market mixtures of fruits with selected varieties of tea. And thus, Tea & Fruits Co., Ltd. was founded in 2013 with the motto: ‘Tea and dessert – in the same cup’. www.teaandfruits.com  The Soda Company Ltd Florian Preuss, Founder and Managing Director AFTER 18 years in the airline industry, German-born Florian Preuss felt he had reached a point in his life where he needed new horizons and, perhaps more importantly, control over his future. The upshot is a small company importing quality wines from South Africa into Thailand which has already added a new dimension to Bangkok’s burgeoning wine culture. sodaco.wixsite.com/sodaco  Gateway Equipment Limited Roy Barrett, Co-founder JUST seven years ago, Roy Barrett and his two eldest children, Lisa and Philip, formed Gateway Equipment Limited. Today the company is the major supplier of equipment to golf courses in Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam, employing over 60 staff with the head office in Bangkok and a branch office in Nakorn Ratchasima and a subsidiary in Vietnam. Providing quality equipment such as turf maintenance equipment, irrigation systems and golf cars to nearly 300 golf courses in Thailand alone. www.gatewayequipment.co.th  CWL Lighting Ian Potter, Founder IN the 20 years since he founded CWL Lighting, Ian Potter has seen the enterprise go from a design and equipment supply company in Phuket to a Bangkok studio providing lighting design services to the hospitality sector across Asia Pacific. With clients including the Hilton Group, Intercontinental, Indigo and Holiday Inn brands from IHG, together with properties from the Dusit and Accor portfolios, we can certainly say the future is looking bright for Ian. www.cwl-lighting.com  X-treme Sports Gear Eddie Evans, Founder BEFORE coming to Thailand, Canadian-born Eddie Evans made his mark as an international rugby player from which he made his living. When Eddie set up X-treme Sports Gear company in 2002, he didn’t envision how extremely successful the enterprise would be 14 years later. The company offices, factory and Eddie’s residence are all under one roof in an eight-storey building near Rama IX Road in Din Daeng district of Bangkok and is having a very successful run with X-treme Sports Gear supplying a wide variety of sports clothing and accessories. www.x-tremerugbywear.com  Andragogy Kate Jackson, Founder and Managing Director BASED on the principles of adult learning for the long-life learning sector, Kate Jackson founded Andragogy to offer tailor made communications training in business English, customer service, as well as leadership communication and presentation coaching for businesses of all shapes and sizes and learners ranging from C-suite executives to low-level staff. Over the years, Kateís passion and bespoke training programs have caught the attention of several international companies and has worked for the likes of KPMG Thailand, Pfizer and Centara Hotels & Resorts before gaining clients such as Colgate Palmolive, Jaymart, Srichand, David Yurman, Tesco Credit Card Services, and Airbus Asia-Pacific. www.andragogy-learning.com  DCM Solutions Julian Olds, Founder JULIAN Olds started his construction company DCM Solutions in 2000 with just a one million baht investment. Today the company has a turnover of around 750 million baht and employs thousands. And it all started with a detour to Bangkok on the way to Hong Kong, with the eventual goal to get back to England to resume a professional rugby career. www.dcm-solutions.com |  Smiling Albino Daniel Fraser, Adventurer-in-Chief SMILING Albino is a luxury adventure and tour company founded in Thailand by Daniel Fraser, an entrepreneur and television host whose Tourism Authority of Thailand video went viral and helped Daniel win MThai media Most Talked about media personality in 2014. Smiling Albino is a team of travel enthusiasts in Southeast Asia and Nepal who host socially conscious travellers including billionaires and celebrities who seek an authentic, original experience through community-based tourism and industry-leading ethical touring standards. www.smilingalbino.com  Fred Tibbitts & Associates, Inc. Fred Tibbitts, Founder and CEO FROM studying and practicing clinical psychology in the early 60s, to obtaining a degree in economics, to becoming a highly respected international wine supplier, to converting to Buddhism and living in a monastery for 18 months, to giving away most of his possessions and eventually turning his own company into a social enterprise which gives all of its money to charity, well, there aren’t many people as humble and caring as Fred Tibbitts. From New York to Delhi and from Bangkok to Hong Kong, Fred’s annual dinners bring together the worldís leading hoteliers for a night of wining and dining and inspiring conversation. The message: ìLet go of what you have and help those less fortunate. www.fredtibbitts.com  Jo’s Artisan Cheese Jo Stevens, Founder BRITISH entrpreneur Jo Stevens was first introduced to cheese making while visiting a friend in Ooty in southern India. A woman had established a small dairy farm and over a period of just two weeks happily passed on her tricks of the trade to Jo. Two and half years’ experimentation later, she now makes a variety of cheeses under the label ‘Jo’s Artisan Cheese’. Working alone from her Sukhumvit home, she currently produces 32kg of cheese a month. Buyers are split more or less equally between Thais and foreigners, and in addition to a legion of friends, Jo’s customers also include many of Bangkok’s restaurants and hotels. www.facebook.com/joartisancheese50  Trepax Innovation Company (TIC) Paul Greenhalgh, Co-founder COMING to Thailand in his mid-20s by way of Dubai, Paul Greenhalgh says that adjusting his personal philosophy and attitudes allowed him to adapt to a country that at first overwhelmed him. Paul and his Thai partners at Trepax Innovation Company (TIC) in Samut Prakan – which he describes as a specialist contracting company that works on the principle of selling solutions – have watched the enterprise grow from a struggling local operation to a global player. www.trepax.co.th  Risk Protection (Thailand) Graham Murrell, Founder and CEO MAKING Thailand a safer place to live and do business is 54-year-old British entrepreneur Graham Murrell. His compnay, Risk Portection (Thailand), provides well-trained guards and sophisticated equipment for a wide range of clients, from embassies to jewelry. www.risk-pro.com  Les Walsh Entrepreneur LES Walsh is an entrepreneurial executive from Canada who has made Asia his home for more than three decades and with his wife Kulthilda has raised two sons in Thailand. Although Les has enjoyed success in a diverse array of industries including trade and investment, retirement communities, product development, event management, marketing and music, he’s probably best known for organising some of this country’s leading golf tournaments.  BÙ Interiors Patricia Frost, Founder NOT content to follow her husband’s career from country to country, Patricia Frost decided to invent her own. As husband Richard followed professional opportunities from Malaysia to Hong Kong to Singapore to Thailand, Patricia also found opportunities everywhere she landed, leading to the establishment of her interior design company, BÙ Interiors, which she describes as a niche business that creates personalised homes with Western décor styles that can be infused with Asian influence. www.bo-interiors.com  The Beaumont Partnership Tim Beaumont, Founder and Managing Director TIM Beaumont has run the Bangkok architectural firm The Beaumont Partnership for almost a quarter of a century with remarkable success. But if his eyesight were a little better, the naturalised Thai born in Norfolk, England, 65 years ago would likely have spent those years roaming the high seas. www.thebeaumontpartnership.com  eatigo Michael Cluzel, Co-founder and Group CEO MICHAEL Cluzel is a pivotal member of a group of foreign and Thai entrepreneurs behind the innovative new dining concept known as eatigo. Via website or moblie applications, eatigo makes a business of connecting empty stomachs to empty tables, serving up daily time-based discounts of up to 50% for all participating restaurants including over 100 of the most popular dining places in Bangkok. www.eatigo.com  VaVa Pipe Carsten Fischer, Founder AFTER a sharp decline in in the early 1960s, pipe smoking is again seen as a sign of hipness and intelligence. Carsten Fischer, Thailand’s only full-time pipe-maker, is riding the resurging wave of popularity by making beautiful hand-crafted products in a tiny but efficient workshop he built himself. His pipes are in demand around the world and in Thailand they are prized by architects and army officers among others. www.vava-pipe.com  T.I.N. Trading Company Limited Tony Taylor, Founder and Managing Director WHEN Tony Taylor started his business in Thailand in 1998, he had just one imported product for sale: a container-load of potato crisps from the UK. To his delight and surprise this most humble of snacks caught on, especially among homesick Brits. He quickly realised that Brits living here pined for all kinds of other foodstuffs from the UK. Tony was ready and able to fill the gaping hole in the local food market and today the energised Londoner controls T.I.N. Trading, the country’s leading importer of English and Australian dried food items, condiments, and beer. www.tintrading.com  Cornerstone Richard Bell, Founder and Managing Director IN the space of just 12 years, Cornerstone has grown from a one man start-up into one of Thailandís top construction management companies, with a portfolio of high-profile clients behind some of this countryís best known buildings. Owned and operated by British expatriate Richard Bell, Cornerstone is a totally independent BOI-supported organisation whose key services include project management, construction management, quantity surveying, project auditing and property appraisals. www.cornerstonemgmt.com |
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