Naphaporn Bodirat-nangkura, 26, seems to have enjoyed lucky stars since returning to Bangkok from her overseas studies in 2003.

The granddaughter of Thanpuying Lersak Sombatsiri, owner of the Nai Lert Park Bangkok Hotel, Naphaporn has been honing her skills as a hotelier for the past three years.

"I'm a member of the third generation of our extended family in the hotel business," she says. "This hotel, which is now 23 years old, has been run by my grandmother, my mother and my aunt for the past two decades."

"Then, one day [in 2003] my mother called me while I was still studying fashion design in New York and asked if I would like to come back and manage the hotel. At that time the 20-year management contract with the Hilton group was about to expire," she recalls.

"By the way, my grandma is now 87. She is still healthy, but hopes I will take care of this hotel one day," says Naphaporn, nicknamed Lek.

Prior to going to New York, she had already completed a bachelor's degree in hotel management at Surrey University in the UK, where she has spent altogether 10 years as a student.

"I could say the hotel business is sort of in my bloodline. A few years back, I realised my grandma, mother and aunt would like to see if I was really serious about running the hotel as they got older and older.

"Their test came three years ago when we spent Bt600 million renovating the entire 338-room hotel and I got the opportunity to put in my own ideas for some parts of the renovation programme.

"I would say the outcome is a new interior design with contemporary, modern as well as classical elements, but no minimalism. Unlike in the West, I think the minimalist approach might not work here," she says.

"I'm especially happy with the Syn lobby bar that I was personally involved in creating. My grandma's also happy that we put in ceiling-high crystal clear glass sheets in the main lobby to let visitors see through to the greenery in the park.

"Nai Lert Park Hotel is now a member of the Swissotel chain. Either you're a chain hotel, or you're a very good boutique hotel. More and more discerning guests today prefer a personalised hotel service with greater privacy, so there are many successful boutique hotels in several countries," Naphaporn says.

"I'm especially impressed by the Bulgari Hotel in Milan, which I'd say is truly luxurious because of the impeccable service, the atmosphere, the people, the staff uniforms and all those little things. Besides the Bulgari, there are also the Armani and Ames hotels.

"I guess high fashion and hospitality are fusing, even though lots of other gimmicks are also at play in the industry. For instance, the Ritz Carlton in the UK has very comfortable beds and pillows. I was personally impressed," she says.

At the Nai Lert Park Hotel, about 40 per cent of the guests are corporate executives and the rest leisure travellers. Most of the guests are foreigners, mostly from Japan, Europe, the US and Hong Kong.

Naphaporn says the hotel is considering diversifying into upscale serviced apartments by adding up to 30 suites next door.

The hotel is situated on an 8-rai plot of land on Wireless Road, near Bangkok's Central Business District, and part of a family-owned 20-rai plot.

"In the old days, this whole tract of land on Wireless Road was owned by my great grandfather. Later, he sold part of it to the British Embassy, which is currently situated close to the hotel and my grandma's compound.

"When the embassy wanted to sell its frontage to raise funds, my grandma was approached, but she declined the offer. She said she did not have the money," Naphaporn says.

The British Embassy later sold the nearly 10 rai, or 4,000 square wah, of its frontage area for commercial development to the Central Group at a price of Bt950,000 per square wah, or a total of nearly Bt4 billion.

Naphaporn's great grandfather sold the land to the embassy about five decades ago reportedly for a price of just Bt17 million.

Nophakhun Limsamarnphun

nop1122@yahoo.com