At a recent meeting attended by Commerce Vice-Minister Veerasak Jinarat, local retailers and wholesalers lambasted the expansion of international retail outlets around the island.

The meeting, held at the Royal Phuket City Hotel, was called to make small local shop owners aware of changes to be made to Thailand?s retail outlet legislation. The changes mooted include level of investment capital, location, opening and closing times and a new organization of types of stores.

Vice-Minister Veerasak also announced that there will be a fund established to help small local retailers develop their businesses. ?The past [5] seminars have been well attended and people are interested to learn about the changes,? he said.

However, international retailers came under fire from both local representatives and national bodies. Locally, retailers called for stronger legislation to stop the expansion of international retailers around the island.

Somchai Pornrattanacharoen, director of the Thailand Wholesale and Retail Association, explained: ?International investors brought modern trade to Thailand. Shopping malls have strategies to persuade consumers to buy from them because they cannot find what they want in local grocery stores. This quickly reduces the circulation of trade in local stores and makes our country lose trading power and control.?

Phuket Chamber of Commerce Vice President, Chawana Kiatchawanasewe was equally concerned qabout the impact of international traders on local trade. ?Ministry of commerce has to set up regulation to control the international traders, otherwise our local grocery shops will be abandoned.

?I?m not against international trade or big shopping malls, but their arrival must take into account the survival of local shops. The big traders have spread in to every corner of Phuket and the government did nothing about it. The big traders claim they pay tax to help maintain our city and the environment, but it?s the big traders that have created plastic bag problem on the island.?

Atthaporn Na Takuatung, logistic manager for of local supermarket, Super Cheap, said: ?Every local shop whether big or small is influenced by the growth of modern trade in Phuket. The proposed law is not going to come in soon, so is not going to be so helpful for Phuket. What has to be done now is halting international traders expanding branches into local areas.?