Presiding over the ceremony was HRH Prince Andrew, the Duke of York, who is in Thailand as a representative of Queen Elizabeth II for the 60th anniversary celebration of His Majesty the King's accession to the throne.

Prior to his arrival at Boots, the Duke of York went to Chon Buri to open a new Triumph Motorcycles plant before coming back to Bangkok to visit KPMG's offices to view the "Living Exhibition" organised by the Prince of Wales International Business Leaders Forum, and to meet existing and potential sponsors of the forum.

After visiting Boots, he went on to Tesco Lotus Rama I, where the company's top executives gave him a tour of the building, claimed to be the largest energy-saving building in Thailand.

"It was fantastic for people and the company to have British royal family members with us today," said Ian Hunter, managing director of Boots Retail (Thailand).

Calling Boots "a world-class retailer", Prince Andrew congratulated the company for its expanding presence in Thailand. "Boots' 100th outlet is a particularly brilliant achievement," he said during his brief remarks.

During his visit to the store, Prince Andrew asked numerous questions about the pharmaceutical business in Thailand, said Hunter. "He was very interested in how medicines are sold here because you need a prescription

in the UK, whereas in Thailand, you can just buy at the counter," he said.

Hunter added that the drug-store chain aimed to open 20 more Thai stores by the end of the year.

"We bring our expertise to Thailand and will increase our presence here," he said.

Besides the branch expansion, Boots also has 300 new products to be released in the Thai market in the next few months, said Hunter, adding, "We encourage Thai people to live a healthy lifestyle."

The managing director said he saw great potential in the local market. Of the three Asian destinations where Boots has planted its feet, Thailand is its biggest market in terms of sales.

Sopaporn Kurz

The Nation