Rome venture yet to pay dividends

Vigrom Pensiri, managing director of the restaurant, said monthly sales reach only ¤30,000 (Bt1.5 million) while he shoulders high expenses of more than ¤20,000.

"I have not hit the break-even period yet but I continue operating because I love to be in the restaurant business," he said, adding that the shop's total sales needed to reach ¤60,000 per month to ensure smooth operations and profit.

Vigrom saw problems from the start. The shop was completely furnished in 2004 but could not open until a year later as the Labour Ministry took longer than expected to issue work permits for the Thai chefs. During that year, he had to pay rent for nothing. Due to the delay, the chefs he had already approached turned to new employers. Then, as work permits were issued for particular persons, Vigrom had to work on changes.

The restaurant employs two Thai chefs, one other Thai staff member and two foreign waiters.

The owner was undeterred. He struggled till he had everything in place.

After graduating in hotel management in Italy, Vigrom worked with many food shops and restaurants. Finally, he worked as the manager in an Italian restaurant for two to three years before set out to own a restaurant.

There are four Thai restaurants in Rome including Thai-In, Phuket Island, Sala Thai and the latest to open, Sukhothai. Among these, Thai-In is owned by Malaysian investors, Phuket Island by Chinese investors, while Sala Thai and Sukhothai are Thai-owned restaurants.

"I started the business because Rome didn't have a Thai restaurant and I thought it would be a good business at the time," he said.

Vigrom invested a total of ¤600,000 to open the shop by renovating a previous Chinese restaurant to achieve a real Thai-style ambience. All decorative items and ingredients have been imported from Thailand.

He said that having a restaurant business in Italy is not easy. Investors are supposed to be licensed by health agencies and it requires at least ¤10,000 in registered capital. The restaurant owner also has to shoulder high social insurance premiums for both Thai and Italian staff.

Vigrom added that Thai chefs should be able to speak Italian as the Labour Ministry can inspect and interview them at any time.

Moreover, Thai ingredients in Rome are not easy to find as importers have to order in big lots. As there are very few Thai restaurants in Italy, this does not create attractive profits for importers.

"Sala Thai has to import ingredients from Thailand by having our relatives or friends carry them in directly," he said.

Chinese shops in Rome have imported Thai ingredients but the price is quite high, for instance, three to four lemon-grass pieces cost ¤2.

Thai restaurants have to compete with Chinese shops, which also offer Thai dishes at prices 20 per cent cheaper. In addition, one Chinese owner operates many Chinese restaurants so that creates cheaper production costs for that owner.

Due to these problems, Thai investors are reluctant to open restaurant businesses in Rome. In addition, Italian foods are one of the world's most popular and many people prefer to eat them.

The restaurant targets medium- to high-end customers. However, it often has to close the shop to them during the day for special reservations of Thai tour groups of 30 to 50 people.