So you’re a Westerner who wants to open a large business in Thailand. You don’t really know the lay of the land, but you find that things keep getting in the way. Could be bureaucratic red tape, “tea money,” or even worse, you’re stalled and you don’t know why. Could you have run afoul of a large family? In most Western countries, something like that wouldn’t matter. But in Thailand, it means everything. And as a non-Thai, you won’t even know who most of these families are, what they own and control, and who comprises them. 

Unlike most Western countries, in which corporations have boards of directors that can hire and fire upper management, Thai corporations are run by families. Generations of families. Westerners reading Thai newspapers see these family names all the time, but can’t tie it all together. But Vichai Suwanban, in his Big Business in Thailand: Profiles of Prominent Thai Business Groups (New Edition, 2003, ISBN 974-91973-5-6) go a long way to explaining in detail who these families are, and what they own and control. 

And control is everything. Here, Vichai describes the histories of 30 of the most prominent business families in Thailand, provides family lineages, successions, and strategic marriages. He tells what they own, describes business squabbles, and uncovers so much important material that we’re surprised it even got published. Which is perhaps the reason it’s currently out of distribution (look around in Bangkok’s used bookstores — you may find one). 

In the opinion of us here at WoWasis, this is one of the most important books on Thai business ever written. Read between the lines, and fascinating stories are unveiled. We’ll end our review by listing the families described in the book, along with several of the well-known companies they own outright, or in which they hold a 50% or better stake. 

Asavabhokin
Assakul
Bencharongkul
Bhirombhakdi (Boonrawd Brewery — Singha Beer)
Bulsuk
Chaiyawan
Chiaravanont (TAC –Telecom Asia Corp.; C.P. Seven Eleven Stores)
Chirathivat (Central Pattana, Central Retail, Central Plaza, Robinson’s, World TradeCentre, Silom Galleria))
Chokwatana
Dannernchanvanich
Darakanonda
Karnasut (Bangkok Post, Oriental Hotel)
Lamsam (Loxley)
Malinonda
Osathanukroh (M-150 energy drink)
Phornprapha
Poolwaralak
Ratanarak
Sabsakhon
Shinawatra (Shinawatra Silk, Shin Communications, AIS telecom, Politics)
Sirivadhanabhakdi (Chang Beer, Mekong Whisky, Beer Lao, Panthip Plaza)
Sophonpanich  (Bangkok Bank)
Srivikorn (Gaysorn Plaza shopping center)
Taepaisitpongse
Umpush (Siam Paragon, The Mall Company, The Emporium)
Wanglee
Wattanavekin (Amarin Plaza, Ploenchit Centre, Erawan Hotel)
Wiriyaprapaikit
Wongkusolkit (Amarin Plaza, Erawan Hotel)
Yoowithya (Red Bull energy drink)