Transcription
I went to Thailand to show you what the real life of a billionaire looks like. Meet Bill Hineiki. Born in the US and raised in Bangkok, he started his first business at 17. Nobody trusted him, so he grew a beard, got married, and eventually built one of the largest hospitality empires in the world with close to 100,000 employees.
I borrowed $1,200. It was a loan from a friend. That's really how the company started. His company operates hotels in 60 plus countries under luxury brands like Canantara and franchises global food chains such as Burger King and Dairy Queen.
It's been a steady growth. I like to tell people that we're an overnight success that took 60 years.
I was invited to Bill's house in Phuket where we talked about how being in Thailand helped him build his multi-billion dollar business.
I gave up my US citizenship maybe 30 years ago to become a Thai. So I have only one passport that's a Thai passport.
What is the secret that allowed Bill to survive multiple crisis on his path to success? We went through difficult moments when we had the tsunami, 9/11, SARS, co.
And why does he see this century as Asia's time while many foreigners still believe the myths pushed by the media. I'm Max Chernov, your insider into billionaire's lives. Let's go.
You was American kid but bas technically born in America but living in Thailand. How did you I trying to understand how did it shape your identity like growing up here?
I think it's probably a very uh uh international identity. Uh you know I gave up my US citizenship uh maybe 30 years ago to become a Thai. So I have only one passport that's a Thai passport. Uh so I'd like to believe that I'm as committed to Thailand as any any Thai person. Uh I'll never be Thai because I was born in America and in that respect and I have both my parents were American. But but I think uh in my heart I guess I'm Thai.
You give up your passport in 1991. So it was not the thing to give up American passport. I guess back then.
That's right. I think in those days most people wanted an American passport and but for me it was all about being able to uh own land in Thailand was also about being able to do business in Vietnam in those days. Uh because in those days Americans couldn't do business in Vietnam.
It was then part of North Vietnam. And after the fall of of Vietnam, then uh Americans were not allowed to do business for many years. Today it's different. But in 19 in the 1990s, it was uh called dealing with the enemy.
So for me, it was very strange because although we're a Thai company, uh because I was an American uh managing director, we couldn't do business in Vietnam even we're a Thai company.
So So for me, it became a handicap at that time to be an American. So I gave up my American citizenship. This uh house is about I built this about seven seven or eight years ago.
Oh, it's pretty new.
And so it's still relatively new.
Okay.
We built this whole project uh at that time. They have three kitchens, you know, sort of a barbecue kitchen, a show kitchen if you like to cook, and then they also have an industrial kitchen for when you have 100 people around.
Yeah.
So everything's here. And this particular house has uh nine bedrooms.
And uh this is one of the bedrooms. Oh wow. The best part is the view. Yeah.
The views are in the morning. Every every bedroom looks out over the water. They're very comfortable to stay. So hence I spend a lot of time here.
Nice. It's very spacious.
Yeah. So.
Speaking of Thailand, what's the biggest misconceptions about the country in the world? What people don't get don't understand about the country?
I think they don't understand that uh Thailand has a very rich history. uh you know it America is a relatively new uh country when you think that it's only 250 years old.
Yeah.
Thailand has been around for thousands of years. Uh the monarchy, the uh the culture, the religion. So to me it's a very historic uh country and culture and that's uh probably not really understood by much of the west. Uh so uh I uh you know and also there's uh Thailand has also had a reputation of uh of bars, sex, sand and beach uh uh which it really isn't any different than any other country. Uh it's obviously there but it's there you know all over the world. So, uh I think of Thailand as uh you know being a uh very sophisticated uh and very rich uh culture and uh unfortunately many films uh have depicted Thailand wrongly uh you know films in the past like hangover and the beach and things like that. So people have a misconception very often about Thailand.
Which they only really uh can understand once they visited here or lived here.
Yeah. And the the recent movie, the recent BBC documentary like have you seen it? The dark side of Thailand is called.
Yes. I uh I haven't seen it but I'm aware of it and so yes. So those are the sort of things that I think uh you know certainly put Thailand in the wrong uh view viewshet. I've raised my family, two generations of my family, and now the third generation is coming. Uh, and I've always thought this is one of the best places in the world to raise a family.
Yeah. Why?
Yeah. Education is good. Uh, the climate is nice. Uh, the people are fantastic. Uh, I think the personal security is very good. I've I've never felt uh threatened or uh never worried about the security of myself or my children or my grandchildren.
Yeah. So that's uh one of the things that I think has uh made Thailand such a unique place. I worry much more about personal safety in London, Paris, Milan than I would ever land worry about it in Bangkok or Phuket.
So this is one of the greatest and safest countries I think in the world.
Maybe next to Dubai.
Yeah. Do you think it's a cultural thing? Why why people are like that?
I think uh it goes back to the religion. I think Buddhist religion is very uh cognizant of personal uh safety and and uh you know you very seldom see incidents happen you know uh here in Thailand that we often see common place in Europe and the United States.
Yeah.
So uh that doesn't say they don't happen sometimes but but basically they're very much more infrequent.
And I think uh uh the culture is more conservative you might say.
So you have house in here?
Here I have one in Bangkok. I have two in Samoi, one a couple in Bangkok and a and uh Huin.
Yeah.
So I uh I love Thailand. So I all my houses are in Thailand.
All in Thailand.
Yeah.
Do you invest anywhere else? Actually.
Uh not really. I keep my cars in England and my cars in uh the United States. So I keep garages but not houses.
So when you travel to London, so you have your car?
I have cars to use there and then I have cars in other places in the world. What's your favorite one? Favorite car?
Ferraris is probably I have a number of them.
How you describe yourself? Because you said you mentioned one of the in one of the interviews that you're not Thai to some full extent but you have Thai citizenship and then you lived in some places in Asia. Like how's your identity shape? Would you say like you are like I don't know 10% American, 60% Thai.
I'm a third country national. So I have uh influence both from uh the US and from Thailand. Uh but uh my children are almost third country because they're again they were born in Thailand. They were raised in Thailand but uh they think of themselves probably as a third a third nationality. They're not Thai. They're not American.
They're somewhere in between.
What traits of an American you still have? You think?
Probably my brashness. I'm uh uh I often speak my mind and uh tell people what I think and uh that's not very common in Thailand.
Yeah.
So people are much more sensitive in Thailand. So that's probably an American trait that has stayed with me.
Yeah. Do you need to like to be flexible I guess with like who you who you speak to?
Yes. No. No. You you know you have to be respectful and you have to be flexible but it's still a very accommodating country. Thailand is a very peopleoriented culture. You know, I think uh uh Thailand is a very sensitive country and uh and as a result, I think they they're they're more uh caring. Whether it's the religion or uh it's the people, I'm not sure, but uh it's certainly uh a country that is very uh sensitive towards people and their emotions and and their passions.
So, meaning you need to have like a good level of EQ like emotion.
Yes, I think so. And I think uh that's required for uh uh success in Thailand. This is uh the what I call the boys room.
How you spend time with friends? If like friends come along, what would you do?
Uh we will tend to drink good wine, talk and uh maybe go to the the clinic and work out or uh the gym and uh like together.
Uh yes. Uh, and there's a we have a a a spa and wellness.
Do you play like some specific game or like poker or something?
Uh, we uh we do play a lot of games, but they tend to be card games and uh a little bit of pool. The family all loves it. So, this is also the family hangout.
Yeah, pool is very Thai Thailand thing. Yeah, playing pool.
Yeah, absolutely. So, this is the American game.
You still like bullish on Thailand's development as a country? Like what's the what's the challenges for Thailand?
Well, Thailand has like America, like Europe, uh has many challenges, but uh but I think they have a history of having overcome those challenges.
Sometimes it takes a little longer than other times, but uh but you know, many people are concerned about always the political situation in Thailand, but for the last 60 years, we've never uh delayed uh a project or an investment in Thailand uh because we've always been confident of the long-term outlook for Thailand. So we continue our program uh through various uh changes in government and uh you know we don't allow that to interrupt our plan because we see Thailand as being a good long-term destination and investment.
Yeah. What are the other countries in the region that are on the rise you think?
I think Vietnam for sure is very much on the rise and uh and today uh may even be growing faster than Thailand which is uh a relatively new uh uh situation uh and we can certainly see uh China I think is again on the rise uh and becoming very much a superpower in this part of the world. India is another you know incredible economy that's also growing very rapidly today. uh the Indians are uh outnumber the Chinese coming to Thailand and uh okay yeah and certainly even Phuket is has got a good many of them so so uh so definitely uh the influence of uh you know we can see even the in the number of Russian and uh uh European uh nationalities that have come the Israelis that have come and it seems whenever there's turmoil anywhere in the world people flee to Thailand because it seems like a a relatively safe place in spite of the the few challenges that they often have on their borders. This is the the ladies room.
Oh, that's so cool. This is a cold dip, hot dip. Oh, ice me.
That's a cold bath.
Nice. Cold plunge.
Yeah, cold plunge. Uh so when I don't go to the wellness clinic, then there's uh there's always this one to hang out in. And that's got aroma therapy. So uh the the the smells all come through. What's your favorite recreational activity? Ice bath or.
I use a cryo chamber a lot more in the in the wellness clinic.
So that's my favorite uh go-to rather than the uh the cold dip. And uh but then we have the hyperaric chamber also.
Yeah.
So uh.
It's like stronger effect, minimum time stronger effect.
Yeah, exactly. And this is a a little bit of a spa room.
Nice. So you can see why I enjoy staying in Phuket.
Oh, for sure. Yeah.
What would you say about Asia development at the moment?
It's still growing. Uh, you know, I think uh uh Asia is still one of the most exciting places in the world. Thailand is uniquely positioned that within 6 hours of here you have half the world's population.
So it's an incredibly big market. Uh China is a huge market. Indonesia, India, these are the the up and cominging superpowers and the biggest economies. they will you know go past the American economy. So when when people say that 21st century is like Asian century, it's not it's not ex over exaggeration.
I think no, it's not an exaggeration. I think uh this is the the century of Asia and uh so I see great potential and I we're China is one of the the big markets for us that we're exploring. Uh India uh Indonesia as I mentioned these are huge markets. Would you say that like 19th century was the British century, 20th century, American century, 21st century is.
That's a good way to describe it. I think uh uh certainly uh uh those were the superpowers, Britain and America. Uh now I think it's Asia, the kids room, you might say.
Yeah.
So there's been I've had a couple of parts in small movies including Mother of the Bride, where I uh it was filmed here in the Anantara.
Uhhuh. Oh.
That's awesome.
And uh.
That's the beach. You not been in the beach?
I wasn't in the beach. I was in White Lotus.
Yeah. Yeah, I know that.
What are the big shifts you you think will be like in the world like globally within the next years like from your perspective?
The importance of Asia is going to be uh uh a a new trend. Uh you know, we can see China becoming very much more influential and strong economically and uh culturally. I would say also.
So uh and again I've mentioned again repeatedly that India and Indonesia are also not to be under underlooked. Uh Indonesia is growing very quickly now. India is already become a power.
What about Europe? Some people say like Europe is dying.
Uh I'm sure that any place is dying but it's certainly slowing down.
Slowing down.
Uh the economy is slower. I think maybe uh I would say that Asia is still in a position where it's prepared to work very hard to grow. Uh many countries that have had such significant economic success uh tend to be focused on slowing down, you know, working less, uh enjoying life more.
And uh so uh you know, we have many, you know, people that are on a 4-day work week in Europe. So, you know, that changes the whole mentality. You're suddenly working much less but uh wanting to spend more time enjoying the benefits. And uh that's very uh expensive for governments and for countries uh when that happens.
Yeah. But it's kind of inevitable cycle kind of.
Yeah, that's right. Uh so maybe AI will help those countries that work on a 4-day work week to be more effective.
And if they can adapt quickly enough. What's your takes on AI and like how AI will change the like the world in 10 years.
Let's I I think it's already changed the world and I think it's going to change it, you know, much more in the coming days and we're seeing it in our industry in hotels. We see it in, you know, chat bots. Uh we can now uh give people a much more personalized experience. We know more about them. We're able to react to them differently. Uh that wasn't possible before AI. So uh uh so this is really a very rapid uh change in uh the whole working environment.
Uh what we see.
Yeah but will it be okay the effectiveness like the productivity is is uh growing up but let's say will it be like some principal changes how people think how the world functions in 10 years or maybe in 20 years from now.
I think so because I think it will level the playing field you know there's so much knowledge today that we have in our telephones or in uh our computers that uh it's just a question of being able to grasp it you know there you know you don't need to learn a lot of the basics anymore or you can go straight to the top on serious questions and whatnot. You don't need to know the the the you know a lot of the basic uh mathematics uh that we used to have to learn in school and uh.
And so much of uh what we we can learn can be obtained outside of school. So there's no question that uh your education only begins with school but then it carries on with a through a lifetime of learning. Uh and I think that's the most critical thing. People have to remain open to learning new new things. The world is changing so rapidly now and AI is just the first part of that change.
Oh, first part. What what will be the the second part?
I don't know. I uh there's so many things I can't predict. You know, I have a hard enough time predicting uh what's happening in the business world. I never predicted COVID. I never predicted the tsunami. I never predicted so many things. And I'm for sure not going to be able to predict what is going to change the world in the age of digitization.
Yeah. And this is the gym with uh uh a few momentos like uh the Muhammad Ali glove.
Uh the real one.
The real one. Yeah.
Oh wow. How did you get it?
Yeah. And then the in the other room is the James Bond man with a golden gun.
Yeah.
Also the real one.
From the Yes. From the from the movie. How did you get the glove? You just bought it?
Bought it at auction. Yeah.
Yeah. How much was it?
Uh, I can't remember now. It wasn't cheap.
For sure.
Hey guys. Hi from beautiful Thailand. It's Chiang Mai. It's a north of Thailand. I just want to share something. You know, I've been doing YouTube for a few years and I talked to a lot of people like thousands literally. I met billionaires, politicians, celebrities and with some of them we became friends. Not with everyone of course with the ones with common interest. Some of these people became clients. I started this whole YouTube thing when I moved to Singapore completely from zero. Uh my English was not perfect. Uh still is not and uh I didn't have any like fancy MBA degree. I didn't have connections in Singapore. I'm originally from a second tier city in Russia. I just slowly learned how to talk to different people including very serious ones. I listened a lot, learned from them and gradually built relationships. And I realized one key thing. The most important conversations, decisions, deals never happen on camera. They happen behind closed doors, in private conversations, in small groups. And when I found myself in those situations, surrounded by people who played in a very different league, it always deeply inspired me and energized me. At some point I started thinking how to recreate these kind of environment and those conversations myself in a way where it naturally leads to people helping each other and where bigger things are born out of this connections and conversation and that's how I came up with the backstage circle. It's a close community for people who achieved a lot in life where we meet in different places and share very unique experiences together. And the first gathering will be in Hookat, one of my most favorite destinations. A key principle of this community that there will be no fake superficial networking. We won't be pitching each other projects or aggressively uh try to sell something. During these gatherings, we will have deep conversations and share very unique experiences that normally people don't have access to and that will organically lead to friendships and maybe like joint projects or businesses together. But it's not the main goal. It's a byproduct. That's why I personally curate their participants. So if it's something that resonates with you, I will leave a link to early birds list. There is a cure code on the screen and the link under this video. What about the Middle East? Like.
We we find the Middle East very exciting. Uh it's one of our fastest growing markets. We're involved in Saudi Arabia. We're involved in all of the Emirates. Uh we're also involved in places like Oman. Uh so it's a very rapidly growing uh market. It's uh they're very uh astute because they become the center of the world. Uh for Emirates, you can fly anywhere in the world non-stop from Dubai.
Yes. You know, whether it be Phuket or it be uh Brazil.
Oh, that's true. So, it's non-stop. So, so that makes uh uh Dubai and the Emirates uh and the Middle East really almost the center of the world now and that's because of the strength of their airlines.
So, you know, in the old days, Thailand was very strong with Thai International, which is now recovering from bankruptcy. Singapore used to be very strong with Singapore Airlines. I think they're still strong, but uh but obviously it's shifted a bit. Uh and uh there's no doubt that I think uh the Middle East uses the airlines almost as a tourism and political tool.
Yeah.
To make it the most convenient location. So your regional offices now I would see a huge shift from Singapore and Hong Kong to the Middle East now. And also because of security and other things you find a lot of your billionaires of the world uh now drifting towards uh the Middle East.
Yeah.
You know they feel very safe there very comfortable. It's close to Europe 6 hours from Europe 6 hours from Asia. So it's very centrally located.
But what what they done in Dubai actually with British Airways. So British Airways have to pay to land in each airport. And what Dubai did they actually start paying them to fly through Dubai.
Yeah. Exactly. Which is like a great idea.
Absolutely. So, you know, again, as I said, uh to me, uh tourism development is very much linked to transportation development.
So, uh today, uh the fastest some of the fastest growing destinations are in the Middle East because of the uh ability to connect so easily.
And do it all through the Middle East. Do you think it's because they technically they have like more money overall and they are more open to kind of spend this money?
No, no question. Uh they uh they link a lot of their development uh funds to what will be good and sustainable. So tourism is a very sustainable and uh strong industry for the Middle East.
So the airlines make that happen.
Yeah. And uh so there's no question that the huge investment that they've made in their airlines is giving them a competitive advantage over a place like Thailand or Singapore or uh other things where you know the scale of uh our airlines are nothing compared to the airlines of the Middle East. So because I keep a couple of cars I air condition the garage.
To keep my motorcycles and my uh cars.
Yeah.
But unfortunately the other cars are in Bangkok but they'll be back soon. Yeah. All right. So, you also ride motorcycles?
Yeah.
Which one?
My grandson.
Uhhuh.
Have a BMW and a Harley here. And then in front there's a couple of Skomadis which we manufacture.
Still still ride it to this day.
Yep. And uh that's why they're outside. I use them when I'm around the hotel.
Those are my granddaughters. And that's me in 1978 when I was the same age, 18 racing a Jaguar.
Oh wow.
In Malaysia. That's so cool. For you, it's like not too dangerous riding motorcycles still to this day.
I'm careful. I'm very careful.
Yeah. You think you be became more careful now? Um compared to you like 4 years ago?
Yes. But I've had a few accidents over the years. So when you've had an accident, then you tend to become more careful.
Yeah.
Especially in Thailand because you don't any you don't wear any gear.
That's right. Right.
Absolutely.
This one is beautiful. Absolutely stunning.
What year is it? This is 2006.
All right.
So, it's already an antique.
Yeah.
And these are the schmodis that I mentioned. These are what I use here. We manufacture these. This one is a EV and this one is a uh combustion engine.
M.
So, I use these around the resort and to go to 7-Eleven or something.
What's the best part of being a billionaire?
Probably that I'm not worried where my next meal is coming from or where I'm going to sleep tonight. I uh that's one of the things I would say that I'm uh very comfortable that I always have a place to sleep and I always have a meal to eat.
Yeah. But I guess you can when you are on a millionaire um threshold, you already can guarantee your next meal and where you sleep.
Maybe I can do it in 60 countries. So that's uh that's one of the advantages and uh and I enjoy as I've said you know many I have many pleasures boating flying cars.
And definitely uh my lifestyle allows me and my present position allows me to indulge in those things.
But you know to me uh uh inevitably they become a part of the business. Our private jet company is one of the largest uh we operate in Singapore in Thailand. Uh we have five jets. We charter them all over the world. were uh my car collection. Uh I buy and sell uh vintage cars.
Um uh so u I'm always growing the collection, but that means I always have to sell a few. I keep adding a few, but I sell a few, try to balance it out. And uh I can pursue passions like uh my uh EV scooters and uh my combustion engines. So I, you know, I love uh the fact that we have a brand called Skomati, which is uh uh again sold all over the world and uh it's a fantastic little brand that I enjoy. So you're able to also pursue sometimes passion projects that may not be that profitable.
But uh but allow uh a bit of enjoyment in your life too.
That's absolutely beautiful. Wow. All the villas has the the C view.
No, all of them all the houses have C. You never like tired of this view like you're still enjoying it.
I enjoy it. I never get tired of this view.
Forbes estimated your net worth as more than $1 billion, right? Do you remember that that time when you actually became a billionaire like that that moment?
No, I really don't to be candid with you. I I'm sure it was many years ago, but uh you know it hasn't moved a lot because of all these crisis. So uh uh but uh certainly as I said during co uh it was certainly uh much much less.
And so uh uh money isn't the reason for working it's never a good reason you know I I work for for my pleasure for my passion for my enjoyment for my cars for my the things that I enjoy. I don't really work for the money per se I'm not you know money may be a way of sort of keeping track of where you are but.
It's not really very a good ideal in life to stay focused on money. I think you got to stay focused on your passions and what you enjoy and what you love.
What's the biggest amount of money that you made in a single year?
I think uh from the company standpoint it was certainly uh uh I think this last year was a this year was a very good year for us and also the year just before co were the two big years.
For us.
And we expect next year to be bigger than this year.
Yeah. Can you say how much? Like.
Uh I think uh we've uh this year we'll probably report somewhere in the range of about uh three to $400 million in profits. Net profit.
And I think we'll do a bit more than that next year.
Yeah. Do you think you have to be born entrepreneur or you can become one?
Many schools today teach entrepreneurial uh skill and uh they have courses on entrepreneurial. To me it's not a uh it's something that just requires hard work. you know, I don't think there's any magic to the whole thing. It's hard work, it's commitment, it's passion, it's loving what you do.
And then, uh, then I think things come much easier, you know, uh, for me, uh, a lot of what we do is very much common sense.
You know.
That's something that you either maybe you have it or you don't have it.
But I guess like entrepreneurs take risks more in general than than average people.
Normal people.
I'm not so sure. I think uh, even normal people take risks. You know, I I often talk to people. They say, "Oh, you have to be a salesman to be an entrepreneur." And I'm saying, "Well, everybody knows how to sell."
And they will say, "No, I wasn't. I'm not a salesperson." And I say, "Well, if you've ever got a car loan or you ever got married or whatever, you had to sell someone."
And salesmanship is just about communication.
So, you know, probably the key to uh being a successful entrepreneur maybe communication.
Being able to communicate.
And it's the skill that can be developed again.
Yes. Absolutely. Personally, when you look back at your like career, do you remember the exact moment when you told yourself that, okay, I made it or I'm going to be successful?
I think uh there were many moments like that, but there were also many moments when uh it looked like all was lost. You know, we certainly went through serious moments in 1997 when we had the Tamy Kung crisis.
Mhm.
We went through difficult moments when we had the tsunami, 9/11, SARS, CO. So all of those things have a tendency to almost wipe you out.
But I think uh you know the other advice I give many entrepreneurs is you never give up.
And uh there's always a uh a ray of sunshine ready to break through the dark clouds.
So you have to never give up. you have to keep focused and uh keep your head down and and uh and I think hard work uh can often um tide you through those difficult times.
So certainly we've been able to rebuild ourselves many times from the point where we were in a difficult situation.
Yeah. And when you approach this like crisis moment what do you do? What are your set of actions?
I think you know for me I've always felt that during a crisis you have to move quickly.
So certainly we moved quickly during COVID. We increased capital. we uh sought out additional bank loans because we knew that it was going to be a difficult period. We didn't think it was going to be as difficult as it was, but fortunately we did and we move quickly and we move quickly in many instances. You know, I.
For me uh it's all about being able to survive crisis. And I don't worry today about crisis like CO. We've been through CO. We've been through a tsunami. We've been through uh 9/11. We've been through all of these crisis. What I worry about is the crisis that we haven't seen.
You know, before co uh we never had any idea what was uh co you know when we bought NH we never visualize that that could be a risk of a global uh pandemic. So uh so these are things uh the things that we've never experienced is what scares me the most because I don't know how yet to deal with them. I know how to deal with the things that we've been through. We've been through high interest rates, high oil prices. We've been through uh economic downturns. we've been through uh uh all of the crisis that I mentioned.
So how it works if you look back at like 60 years journey. So you test something and then you learn and then it's either mistake or the right choice and then you try to repeat the right choice if you can structurize what what you did through these years.
You know, I think what we did uh I often tell people is that it was very pedestrian for me because uh I looked at things that uh I had seen in in America or the rest of the world but was not yet in Thailand when I first was here.
M.
So we brought in a lot of uh uh fast food uh concepts and ideas uh from things like uh in the old days Pizza Hut and then we developed our own chain uh 25 years later called Pizza Company. We brought in uh things like uh Dairy Queen, Swenson's ice cream. Uh now we have other brands that we've created like uh Gaga steak is more uh uh you know we must have uh uh 25 food brands uh that we have created and uh plus the international brands that we've are responsible for in Thailand and many other countries.
Yeah.
So, uh, so certainly it was really finding an a void and then filling it, you know, finding a way to to tap into this, uh, incredible market that exists here in Thailand and now we found exists outside of Thailand and the rest of the world.
Yeah.
So, uh, uh, but there wasn't, it wasn't rocket science. It wasn't uh, you know, uh, high-tech. It was really more down to earth, finding out what customers wanted, what people wanted, and then delivering that to them. Delivering it to them at the right price with great service. Uh whether it's a hotel room or it's a pizza.
Very quick heads up, I have a telegram channel where I share my insights after the interviews with billionaires, celebrities, politicians also right there how I grow my YouTube channel. It's basically more raw and unfiltered opinions cuz I cannot share everything on YouTube due to their platform regulations. So if you want to follow me there, scan this QR code or click the link in description. What's like one habit that you can credit for most of your success?
I think I'm an optimist. I always look at the bright side of things. Uh you know, my glass is always half full, not half empty.
So uh so you know, I think it's very important to always look at the brighter side of things. Uh it's easy to fall into the trap of being depressed about what might be happening. Uh but uh but I think longer term there's always hope uh for better days, better times.
Yeah. Do you need as the positive oriented entrepreneur, do you need someone like more realistic next to you to like regulate it?
Uh yes, I think that happens. But you mustn't let them overwhelm you. Uh there it's very easy for the realistic people to say that things are very bad.
Yes.
Uh and sometimes they give up uh and uh and then for me I I feel that uh one can never give up.
I read that some like your partner said that you are very tough negotiator, tougher.
I I'm sure that uh because we also want a deal to work.
So unless it's a win-win for both sides, uh you know, it's not going to work and we'd rather be tough in the early stages than to be uh suffering in the later stages because we didn't understand each other.
So uh so for sure, uh I think uh we we make every deal is very important to us and every deal is important to get it right. And uh.
Yeah, can you give me some example maybe of like super tough negotiations and like how you manage it?
Well, you know, I think uh the most recent uh one which was just before co was the negotiations to acquire the NH hotel group in Europe and that was about a $3 billion purchase.
Yeah.
So uh so for sure it was a long challenge to slowly be acquiring the shares, negotiating to get control and then to recently we privatized the company.
Yeah.
So uh that that's uh it was a long and uh drawn out negotiation because then in the middle of uh of uh the acquisition then co came along.
Yeah.
So that then affected our performance for uh for several years. So.
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, I heard the story. So you you mentioned that you you lost 1 billion.
Yes. So for you it's like you bought it for 4 billion.
Yeah.
Yeah. Exactly. So uh so yeah, we uh we no longer say that it was a 3 billion purchase, it was a 4 billion purchase because of our losses during the year of co or the two years of co. Maybe you can recall some like um some meeting with someone who when you needed to negotiate a deal or need to sell like some something like your ideas and it was like really tough and the person was like very unusual negotiator.
For me. Uh when I started this company, I was uh 17. That's why the name minor came about because I was a minor at that time.
And of course, trying to get people to believe that uh at 17 you know what you're doing is very difficult. And then all the way through your life uh you're trying to uh get people to believe in uh what you what I believe in.
And so that's uh that's always a uh a challenge. Uh it's a little less of a challenge now because people tend to think that I've survived now for so many years so that I must know what I'm doing. Uh but in the beginning it was certainly much more difficult to get people to believe in a young man who just had an idea and started out in food and hospitality and and what have you.
And it's been a steady uh growth. I like to tell people that we're an overnight success that took 60 years. What was the the the the most challenging moment like personally not like company business- wise but personally?
Personally probably during those uh those economic challenges 1997 was a very very difficult time I would say for everyone in Thailand and all especially entrepreneurs.
Because the banking system was failing the currency was failing and uh fortunately today we have a strong currency and a uh a strong banking system in Thailand. So that's been one of the uh the real strengths of Thailand.
Can you recall like your emotions or like your thoughts when it was like that moment that particular moment when it was like super challenging?
For sure. It was very uh challenging and very depressing and uh you don't know what tomorrow will bring and you don't know whether you will survive. So definitely uh you know you're you're just focused on uh your day-to-day uh existence. you know, uh, when I started the company, I started this company with only $1,200. I borrowed $1,200, so it wasn't even my money. It was a a loan from uh from a friend and uh uh and and that's really how the company started. We started from a very small base. So, I guess we're lucky that we've uh never gone back to that uh that position again. Uh we have a bit more now, but then that makes you more conservative sometimes because there's more to lose. Now we're responsible for all of our 90,000 employees around the world. So we have to make sure that we are looking after them too.
If you adise like a young entrepreneur how to go through the business journey, what would be your.
First I would tell them that there's no easy way.
Uh you know I think uh we all have the same 24 hours in the day. It's a question of how many hours you want to spend working on your on your dream.
Yeah.
And I've always believed that if you spend 16 hours a day working that you're going to get there twice as quickly as the one who only wants to work 8 hours.
So like first advice is just work more. Spend more hours on building your dream.
What are like like the top three advice?
I think uh I always say work hard but play hard. You know, you have to balance your life if you're going to be able to start fresh every day and every uh so often. I think uh uh it's also about uh as I mentioned learning uh I think your your brain is your own personal computer and you need to stuff it full of uh as much knowledge as you can to minimize the chance of failure.
So uh uh certainly that's another uh aspect to it. So you know it's all about uh learning I think is the other uh key component to uh to being successful.
Yeah. What about number three component?
Uh you know I think number three is probably luck you know I think you everybody has to have a certain amount of luck in life uh it's hard to whether you make your luck or you uh you just have it by accident but it's uh certainly luck plays a part I think in everybody's life.
So when people say like someone oh he's just lucky it's like part of part of the equation.
Well that's right and I often say that the harder I work the luckier I get.
Do you think um EQ is more important than IQ or like academic degree.
I think uh since I don't have an academic uh degree. Yes, I would tend to say that EQ is definitely very important and you know what uh you learn when you're doing business yourself is many things that you don't learn in a classroom. So certainly uh for me uh my whole life has been about learning and I'm still learning. So you know for me if uh I think the day that I stop learning is the day I retire.
Do you don't believe in like work life balance or.
I do I I work and play hard. It's a second part, but the first part just work more hours. I mean, and then if you work 16 hours, then you have the rest for your family and sleep.
Exactly.
So that's it.
Um.
But then as you as you gain more uh uh success, you find that you can you can spend less time working and more time on your on your pleasures and uh enjoying life. So certainly I spend more time now doing things that I didn't have time to do when I was younger.
M okay. So gradually yeah.
What is the balance like when you want to be a successful entrepreneur you want to like really really work hard and maybe sleep less for some particular for for some time. What's the what's the balance?
We're discovering that you know good health uh is not something that you need to pay a lot of money for.
Uh good health is dependent really on good sleep which anybody can do. It's dependent on a good diet you know which again anyone can do. you can eat healthy. You know, it depends on exercise. Now, there's many things that you can do, the cold dips and the cryochambers and the hyperbaric chambers that will further help you. Uh but uh but just doing those three things uh you're already assured of some reasonable level of good health if you pay attention to your diet, you pay attention to exercise, and you pay attention to your sleep.
M okay. So all these new things is extra give you like another 10% but 90% you can do like on your own. on your own. Is it the the real cost of like build a multi like a billion dollar company like something that people don't realize? Maybe you sacrifice something on the way or.
I'm sure you know you hard work as we discussed uh you know means there's less time for family there's less time for uh some of the people that are important in your life and uh so you make sacrifices but hopefully you try to even.
them out. You know, uh, today I probably spend more time with my, uh, my, uh, great grandchildren than I spent with my grandchildren. So, uh, so I have more time now, so I can do it. I spent probably far less time with my own children because it was just there was so much to be done and so much work to go on.
Fortunately, I have a very understanding wife who spent a lot of time, uh, compensating for the things that I, I didn't do. Yeah.
What age were you when you had your kids? Uh, well, I got married at, uh, 18. My wife was 17. Uh, I don't think we had children until I was in my 20s. Uh, so, uh, I did everything very young, you know. I got married young. I started the company young. I, uh, grew a beard when I was young to look older. So, uh, you know, so everything was about trying to be more mature, look more mature. And it was, uh, uh, because it was very hard to have credibility when you're so young. Yeah.
So, uh, and, uh, and the only thing that I think people tended to respect was, uh, the fact that you were mature, you did things, you worked hard. Uh, so I think that's what kept the balance. Yeah.
Married at 18 is pretty early, I'd say. So, uh, so yes, I, I think certainly no one else in my family got married that young. Yeah.
Like you wanted to have family or why, why do you say it? Uh, I think it was, uh, they often say it's lonely at the top. Uh, you know, you don't have time for relationships. Uh, so, uh, I had met my wife when she was 14, 14, when I went to school. So it was a natural thing that, uh, when it came time and I was so busy working that, uh, I should focus on someone that I knew well and that I knew while I was growing up and, uh, and so we've been married now for about 57 years. Yeah.
It's a pretty unique case I would say. Well, many people have been married for 57 years, but not usually to the same woman. So, Exactly. So, but my, as I said, my wife has been very supportive, very understanding, and very good at raising a family. So, I'm very, uh, proud of what she's done and what she's contributed to, uh, to where I am and, and to the company.
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What's the like eventual goal of of doing business for you? It's a lifestyle. You, I enjoy my work. Therefore, it's not really work. It's part of my life, my daily life. If it's something that you don't like, I don't know, accounting, like, then I tend to hire someone that's very good at accounting and they do it. And, uh, I don't try to be a, a master of all trades. I, uh, like to think that I hire people much smarter than me to do the things that I'm not very good at or that I don't want to do. Yeah.
So what's the main like hats that that entrepreneur should carry or the owner of the business should carry? I think it's an overall, uh, direction and, uh, strategy that you have to do. And then, uh, as I said, I think you can always hire great people to do a lot of the things that you're not good at or that you don't have time for. Yeah.
So vision and hiring basically. Yes. Yeah. Not like management. Yeah. Management is there too because you still have to run a company successfully and profitably to, uh, to, uh, uh, ensure long-term success. So, uh, I, uh, I've always, uh, you know, tried to allocate a lot of a large part of my time not only to doing what's good for the business but often what's good for the community. You know, we're very much into sustainability. We're active here with the turtles. We're active in the north with elephants. So I think another part of, uh, success is, uh, giving back to society and I think today, uh, you know, when you're first starting a business, you don't have much time to think about other things, but as you get bigger and and become, uh, larger than you can now afford to give back. So I always explain to our, our staff and our team that it's very important that we're profitable because only if we're profitable as a company can we give back. If we were losing money, I don't think we would have anything that we could give back. We would be too busy trying to survive. So today, we've gone beyond survival and we're now very keen to try to help, uh, uh, everyone.
What have you understood about the world and how the world functions and how people think after you became like a super super big in your business? I think for me, it's people are very much the same all over the world, you know. Uh, there, there's more similarity than dissimilarity. For example, uh, you know, uh, music, almost all nationalities, all people of the world like similar music. They like similar movies. You know, the bestselling movie at one time was Titanic and, you know, but that was loved all over the world. Everybody could identify with that. Cosmetics, you know, uh, women love cosmetics and, you know, uh, Europe is always led in the area of cosmetics. You know, now Asia is becoming very strong, but it's more a question of how much money you have in your pocket perhaps that makes the difference between people, but the taste is very much the same, you know, whether in fashion, music, film, uh, the arts, uh, people are very similar. Uh, you know, even in communications and, you know, whether TikTok is one of the greatest mediums, it's a great medium for everybody. So, uh, so people are more similar than dissimilar. You know, and flavors. You know, uh, Burger King is big all over the world. Pizza is still a popular food in almost every country in the world. So, people are more similar. But what may make the difference is some people may not have enough money in their pocket to buy a pizza. So, uh, so I think money often makes a, uh, the difference in tastes and in, uh, development of people.
I'm sure you met so many like incredible people, uh, through the years. Who are the most like fascinating people that you met? Maybe you can recall someone. There's probably too many to mention, but Business people, politicians, celebrities, someone that really stick to your mind. I think certainly the, the, the King Rama the, the 9th was, uh, an extraordinary person. He was, uh, the longest reigning monarch in the world. Uh, and, uh, certainly he had a lot of influence on, uh, all, all of Thailand. And it was, he was almost like the father of Thailand. He'd been king for so many years. Yeah. You know, from the time that I came to Thailand, he was already king and he only passed a few years ago. Uh, so, uh, he was, uh, uh, the one, one of the very stabilizing factors of Thailand as it developed.
Can you describe his personality or how? He was very much, uh, focused on building the country, the people. Uh, he wasn't, uh, focused on, uh, on money or on travel. Uh, he was focused on making sure the crops would be healthy, that the water, uh, uh, was abundant in the farms, uh, that, uh, Thailand developed a very sustainable policy so that it could survive on its own. You know, we're very fortunate. We have gas in the Gulf. We have fish in the, in the water. We have rice on the, on land. So, we have a lot of things and we're blessed by good weather.
If you start from scratch right now, what like three steps that you would take? I'd look for a for a void and try to fill it with a product that will resonate with everybody. You know, uh, it's no different than what Mr. Musk did with the EVs. And, uh, so, you know, I think, uh, today it's all about finding that void, filling it with a product that everybody wants, uh, great service, uh, and, uh, and if you're, uh, uh, do that correctly, you're going to be rewarded well for your endeavors. And so, uh,
What, what are the niches that, uh, you, you think? I think wellness today is a big niche. I think people want to live longer. They want to live healthier. So wellness is certainly a niche. Uh, tourism is, is one of the biggest industries in the world. It's been around, forever and it will probably remain around forever whether we're talking about tourism in Asia or we're talking about tourism to the moon. So I think tourism is always going to be here. Food, people are always going to have to eat, you know. So I think, uh, food is another industry that's, uh, constantly evolving, constantly changing. New foods come along, new concepts come along. So the businesses that we're in are very basic and they're very low entry points. You don't need a lot of capital to start restaurants. People start them every day and some grow into big enterprises. Uh, and, uh, some remain small, but, but the opportunities are all there in wellness, tourism, food. Yeah.
Like very big markets, big, big, big niches. Yes, absolutely.
Do you believe in more I guess in the model of like bootstrapping like step by step growing be more stable and grow your wealth compared to investment model? Well, I think, you know, for me, bootstrapping also means not biting off more than you can chew. So, you know, when we did our first acquisition abroad, it was very small one in Australia for Oaks, uh, resorts and, uh, service apartments, and that was maybe $100 million. And then we did another bigger acquisition in, uh, Portugal, which was, uh, uh, the Tivoli hotels, which was maybe 300 million or 400 million, and then we did the big one, which was NH. So we did step by step. We started with one brand and one restaurant. And then today we have, you know, our pizza company, we have 500 pizza companies, you know, we've got 500, uh, Swensons and Dairy Queens, but it all started with one. So you've got to go step by step. I never had a big vision that this was, uh, that was going to be a, a big hotel year. No, we started with one hotel and then we went to the second hotel and then a third hotel and then, you know, when you make an acquisition, you jump, you know, 10 or 12 hotels, and it just kept growing, and but you have to go step by step. If you bite off more than you can chew or you try to grow faster than is, uh, possible or economical, then you can sometimes get into trouble, overextend yourself, over, uh, expose yourself to financial risk, and, uh, so, and you can even overexpose yourself to not have enough good people around you. You have to develop people. You have to, uh, that takes time to develop great teams and great support. Yeah.
So, uh, so you have to go step by step. But do you have to dream big at the at the same time? I think you have to dream step by step. Uh, you know, I always think of it sort of like building a, a wall, and you start with one brick and you keep building and adding bricks, and before you know it, you stand back and you have a big wall. But, if you try to visualize the wall first, sometimes it looks impossible. Look at the Great Wall of China. Could anybody envisionage that you could do that? But it all started with one brick. That's, not like some people, some people say it's you need to dream big from the beginning. You need to like aim for like billion dollar company from the beginning. You know, I, I do believe that you have to dream big. Uh, I always say that if you reach for the stars, you're not going to come up with a handful of mud. So you do have to dream big, but don't overdream. I think you can set expectations too high, and then even individuals have difficulty to reach it, and then, then you become, uh, depressed or, uh, you know, not able to keep your thing. But if you go step by step, then you're always able to achieve that step, and then the next step, and then the one after that. So, uh, and then suddenly you, you wake up and you realize that you built a, uh, a big organization or a big company.
What's the biggest principles in your life that you developed through the years? Maybe something that you pass to your children or to your grandchildren. I think the fact that nothing comes easy. I think you've got to work for things. You've got to constantly learn. We're all students of the world, you know. So, if you close your mind to learning, then you're, you're not going to be successful. So, uh, so it's a continuous learning experience. Life, you learn so much every day. So, uh, so I try to keep their minds open and stay humble. I think, uh, there's something about, uh, you know, uh, not taking, uh, everything for granted, and, uh, and, uh, enjoying the journey.
You are 76. Yes, I am. 76. How does it feel to be 76? Uh, I guess I would like to be 40 years younger with everything that I know today. But no, I, uh, I enjoy my life. I, uh, would like to believe I don't feel very different than I did, uh, 40 years ago. So, uh, I'm trying to enjoy my life. I'm trying to extend it as long as possible. And, uh, I'd like to make as big a contribution to the world as I can. Yeah.
If you could give up your wealth and become 40 years younger, would you do it? Yes, I probably would. I, I guess, uh, to me, uh, wealth can always be reaccumulated or, uh, found again, but, uh, uh, years and youth, uh, not so easy to get back. Yeah. Uh, money is, we've seen that come and go over the years many times. Yeah.
Do you have any regrets in life? No. None whatsoever. I've enjoyed my life, every part of it. The good and the bad. Yeah. And it's all about learning and, and developing.
What's the meaning of life for you? I think, uh, trying not to hurt people as you, uh, go through life. I think, uh, uh, try to help people, try to be leave the world a better place than when you entered it. So, uh, so those are some of the simple goals that you, you want to achieve, uh, no matter who you are and what you are.