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Published on March 14, 2008

 Opportunities are always there but thorough research must be done to figure out the factors that could affect the direction one chooses to take.

Since Land & Houses' core competency lies in developing residential projects - detached houses, townhouses and condominiums - its main challenge is meeting customer preferences while staying profitable.

A company must also be smart enough to know how to turn crises to opportunities, which is what proved necessary for Land & Houses.

In 1997, when the baht was devalued, most property firms suspended construction but Land & Houses managed to keep under-construction residential projects going and deliver on schedule.

Backed by data and confidence in our core competency, we believed that though some of our customers, having lost their jobs, could not make payments, we could resell the reserved units to others who could afford the properties.

Then, we learnt there was demand in the market despite the crisis. To strengthen our business, we just needed to adjust the products to fit customer preferences. It was then that the management decided to launch completely built houses. Many companies criticised us for doing so, as that changed the business norm. Before that, we sold only papers.  Clients had to make the down payment and wait for 10 to 12 payment periods to see the house, which might not even be completed as per the agreement. 

But with the change we brought in, clients could see the completed house and make a decision.  We even provided moving services to our clients.     The change was risky for us. So, we first did a statistical analysis and studied consumer behaviour to make sure that we knew our target customer.

Whenever we consider investing in non-core businesses, we think about  the long-term potential of a project. 

This was especially true when we invested in Kasemrad Hospital. We studied the potential impact of the Bt30 universal health scheme on the business.

We became a hospital member of the scheme after discovering that patients usually became loyal to their doctors and hospitals.

The hospital quickly expanded to eight branches nationwide after starting out with two.

Just as it is important to know what non-core business to invest in, it is equally important to know when to exit it.

First of all, one must exit in the event of losses, the way we did with our investment in Indonesia.

Second, we must get out when we understand that we are incapable of boosting business growth further. This understanding helped us sell our stake in Asset Plus Securities and Asian Property Development.

Both are doing fine but we did not have the experience necessary to spur their expansion.

Equally important is keeping the sale price reasonable so that new investors stay interested.

Property companies have to expand.

This is what we have committed to stakeholders.

Yet, risks must be taken into account.

The Nation