On Wednesday evening September 16th, the “who’s who” of Thailand’s Real Estate sector joined together at the Plaza Athenee hotel in Bangkok for an exclusive Black-tie dinner celebrating the tenth anniversary of the Thailand Property Awards with purpose to crown the Kingdom’s best developers.
Marking its first decade as an institution that helped put Thai real estate on the radar, the Thailand Property Awards 2015 honoured the Winners and Highly Commended in 29 categories over three sections: Developer, Development and Design.
Three-time nominee SC Asset Corporation PLC claimed the biggest award of the evening for Best Developer, beating ‘MQDC’ Magnolia Quality Development Corporation Limited, which received a Highly Commended certificate in the same category and was also presented a Special Recognition in Corporate Social Responsibility.
Completing at least 50 successful projects in the last five years that are focused on creating sustainable and “lively neighbourhoods”, SC Asset was a shoo-in for the year’s top honour, as well as for the Best Housing Development (Bangkok) award, which was given to its Granada Pinklao project that features practical design and friendly amenities. The Chatuchak-based developer also became a Highly Commended winner in the Best Affordable Condo Development (Bangkok) for its Centric Tiwanon Station project.
Another three-time nominee Absolute World Group emerged victorious, this time in the Best Boutique Developer category. Considered one of the current leaders of the vacation club ownership industry in Thailand, the company is also known and respected for building an impressive boutique collection of forward-thinking resorts with an environmentally-conscious approach. The firm also bagged two Highly Commended honours for current developments on Phuket and Samui.
In a departure from the various award categories, the evening held a moment to honour Minor International’s founder, CEO and chairman, WIlliam “Bill” E. Heinecke, who was presented the Real Estate Personality of the Decade award by the editors of Property Report, Ensign Media’s industry-leading publication, for being a shining example of a true leader in Thai luxury real estate. It was the only award not selected by the independent panel of judges.
“It is a great honour to have been chosen to receive the ‘Real Estate Personality of the Decade’ award and I think this recognition showcases Minor Hotel Group’s position as a pioneer in overseeing luxury property developments in Thailand,” said the 66-year-old luxury hotel magnate.
In Hua Hin, the winner of the Best Residential Development Award went to Ideas 1606 Company for their Veyla Cha-Am Beach side Residences, a green low density beachfront development offering outstanding villas and condominiums. Hua Hin’s Highly Commended Awards went to two of Hua Hin’s most popular developments, Orchid Palm Homes and Red Mountain. Also receiving a highly commended was first time entry Smart House.
Attended by more than 500 real estate VIPs and top industry leaders – including Dr. Supachai Tantikom, Advisor to Governor of Bangkok, who gave an insightful opening keynote speech on behalf of Governor MR Sukhumbhand Paribatra – the event, organised by Ensign Media, was the culmination of the fair and transparent nomination and judging process spanning the last six months.
“For 10 years the Thailand Property Awards, and the entire Asia Property Awards programme as a whole, have demonstrated that excellence and adherence to quality never go out of style,” said Terry Blackburn, CEO of Ensign Media. “The high quality of developments in Thailand has allowed the industry to transform itself from being an emerging market in 2006, to becoming one of the stars of Southeast Asian real estate today, despite certain economic or socio-political challenges.”
“Real estate is too vital for the future of the Kingdom, and the Asia Property Awards wouldn’t exist without Thailand,” he added.
Presented by Property Report magazine, the Thailand Property Awards 2015 was supervised by BDO, one of the largest accountancy networks in the world, and assessed by a highly respected central judge’s panel, headed by Chairman Sunchai Nuengsit, managing director of BuilderSmart.
Acknowledging the efforts of Thai developers in the past ten years, Nuengsit commented: “The developers have more experience and continually improve their projects. They understand the need of the customers and adapt themselves very well despite many obstacles such as instability caused by the political situation in Thailand”.
To ensure the credibility of the Awards, Ensign Media had assembled a central judge’s panel consisting of the who’s who in the Thai real estate, architecture and design sectors, which also included the biggest number of female judges in any of the Asia Property Awards events. The central panel judges were: Bill Barnett, managing Director, C9 Hotelworks Company Limited; Teresa Biesty, managing director, Access Property Limited; Sokoun Chanpreda, managing director, HMD Asia Co. Ltd.; Mark D. Remijan, partner and CFO, Khiri Travel Group; Anchalika Kijkanakorn, managing director, AHMS; Suphin Mechuchep, managing director, Jones Lang LaSalle (Thailand) Ltd.; Dr. Theerathon Tharachai, CFO, Project Planning Service Public Co. Ltd.; and Amanda Ng, technical manager, Langdon & Leah (Thailand) Ltd.
Meanwhile, the regional panel heads were: Keith Humphreys, managing director, Keith Humphreys & Associates (for Chiang Mai); Clayton Wade, managing director, Premier Homes Real Estate (for Eastern Seaboard); Russ Downing, managing director, HOT Hua Hin Co. Ltd. (for Hua Hin); Robert Kuprica, senior partner, Huges Kuprica (for Phuket); and Robert Pestello, director of sales, Beach Republic (for Samui).