Central shopping mall coming to Hua Hin?

[PeteC]

We're going to see lot more of them as Thailand progresses. Thai middle class and upper class have an insatiable desire for imported products. I like the convenience when you need something specific as now you only spend a half day of your time getting to someplace and getting what you want. Before it was a full day of searching, or just put it on the list for the next trip to Bangkok and forget about it until then. They also prove the point that no matter what race a woman is, they love to shop or window shop for hours on end. The soles of their shoes will disintegrate beneath them and they will soldier on barefoot until they collapse into a heap of shopping bags while still maintaining a smile on their faces. Pete

[hhfarang]

And I can't see how indistinguishable shopping malls can be compared?

I'm with GLCQ on this one. Market Village is a completely different animal to Central Shopping malls. MV has 2 anchor stores, Tesco and HomePro and then a bunch of small shops and restaurants. Central Malls are anchored by the biggest department store in Thailand, which Hua Hin does not have at all (a department store). An all inclusive department store from housewares to clothing to restaurants usually with a Tops market on the ground floor or in a basement is nothing like MV. Imo Hua Hin could use and would use a department store like Central or even Robinsons. The problem with Nabpob is that it is just another collection of small shops, like MV, but with no anchor store to bring in the customers. That's why it's failing.

[fft100]

for someone with a family and kids, then somewhere like Central would make life easier and save a lot of time. Perhaps no big difference for the older, retired or single people who have more time and seem to populate this forum, but for the rest of us, it would be very handy.

Not that the rest should close. Market Village is different and if they sort out the parking problems will survive and be ok. old Shopping Mall could have problems as traffic gets worse and it gets harder to get to. another 500,000 cars on the road in the next year wont help !

[moja]

As an 'older retired' person I cannot wait for a Central to open in Hua Hin!

[Piesat42]

Me too!I can use my "Spot" card in the food bit

[sateeb]

Sateeb said...

GLC you are too small to be on a high horse....you know nothing about KKC and the big money Thais who live there...stick to teaching you're no economist expert!!!!!

What's ya problem muppet? The thread is about a shopping mall.... yes, a shopping mall and you're getting all confrontational. GEEZ you must lead a miserable, pathetic life. Well.... you have my condolances.... you probably aint got much of it left.

Anyone who has been in Thailand for a couple of minutes knows that the Central Shopping Malls knock the spots off of most of the competition.

GLCQ.......You call me a muppet huh?.........Well, after serving my country for 26 years I was able to retire at aged 46 with a full index linked Civil Service Pension which enables me to choose what I do,when I want to do it. My miserable, pathetic life consists of bike riding,golf,fishing,dining on fine cuisine,swimming in my pool etc etc etc.

Now I'm guessing that at age 28 you are teaching for a living and hanging out in "teacher type" bars "bitching" about class sizes etc etc. I'm also guessing that you have not paid much National Insurance contributions to qualify for any type of State Pension so you will probably have to work till you drop,unless of course you have a rich mummy and daddy to sponge off.

As Orson Welles said"Yup,life can be finger lickin' good or ass wipin' baaad........who's the MUPPET?????????????????

[buksida]

Less of the bickering and mudslinging children.

[Woody]

"Dining on fine cuisine" lolololo...... That actually did tickle me. Yup - who needs Paris or London when you fancy Steamed Cornish mussels with parsley and garlic in a West Country cider sauce when you can have a great chicken satay and warm chang beer half way up a random soi in Hua Hin?

Fine dining. Hua Hin. Lol.

[Woody]

Anyway in my opinion, the poster who refered to MV having an anchor store is spot on. Nadprob is completley crap and is just full of small shops that sell tourist crap. I nip in there for an Indian take out sometimes and got chatting to the Indian fella who worked for the now closed shop that sold designer glasses and sun glasses. I asked him why the owner didnt give it a longer shot and he said that in 3 months they did not sell one single item.

Imagine that..... 3 months and nothing going through the till. Not one single baht. He said it would not be unusual not to see one single browser come through the door for days at a time.

Its crap and it wont last long in my opinion. Couple of years from now it will be a hotel.

[hhfarang]

Should have left it the way it was, the open Saturkurn Square... suited Hua Hin's main corner imo.

[dtaai-maai]

[sateeb]

"Dining on fine cuisine" lolololo...... That actually did tickle me. Yup - who needs Paris or London when you fancy Steamed Cornish mussels with parsley and garlic in a West Country cider sauce when you can have a great chicken satay and warm chang beer half way up a random soi in Hua Hin?

Fine dining. Hua Hin. Lol.

Woody...You should get out more mate....Try Palm Bistro or La Grappa...In fact if we ever have that elusive game of squash...loser pays

[Woody]

Seriously? I genuinely didnt know there was more up market places in Hua Hin. Ive been to Intercontinental and Hilton etc etc for a bit of grub and figured they would make more of an effort - but I just though it was the same as a local Thai place.

Ok, fair enough. Ill check out Palm Bistro sometime as its not far from me anyway.

Totaly off topic but I once treated a mate of mine to dinner at State Tower in Bangkok. I cant remember the name of the place but it was the place that apparently has a michelin starred chef. Apart from the fact that we looked like a couple of raving screamers, the meal was naff. It was honestly just the same as going to a local Thai joint. And it was like, 9000 Baht for the two of us.

[sateeb]

Also near you Woody is Naab Thong Restaurant Soi 88 just past the Muay Thai camp.....not for fine expensive cuisine but good bloody value for money and some very tasty cocktails!!

[STEVE G]

Should have left it the way it was, the open Saturkurn Square... suited Hua Hin's main corner imo.

I couldn't agree more, I walked through that mall a couple of months ago and it was completely deserted whereas before those open restaurants always seemed to be quite busy.
I've no real use for shopping malls but they're alright as long as they're not built at the expense of destroying the character of the town.
A good place for this sort of thing would be out by the new junction with the by-pass where you could build a mall with plenty of road access and parking.