The King Power International Group ( Thai : กลุ่มบริษัท คิง เพาเวอร์ อินเตอร์เนชันแนล ) is a Thai travel retail group, based in Bangkok. The chair and CEO was Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha until his death in October 2018. He was succeeded as chair by his son, Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha. King Power ‘s “ … cash cow is the proprietary concession of Thailand ‘s duty-free occupation. ” [ 2 ] The party is the largest duty-free retailer in Thailand. Its duty free shopping plaza in Bangkok ‘s central business district covers over 12,000 square metres ( 130,000 sq foot ) [ 3 ] and it has branches at Suvarnabhumi Airport and Thailand ‘s other major airports. In 2015, King Power launched an on-line locate selling duty-free and duty-paid items. [ 4 ]
history [edit ]
King Power began in 1989, with a license granted for Thailand ‘s beginning downtown duty-free patronize at Mahatun Plaza. [ 5 ] In 1995, King Power won the sole concession to operate duty-free shops at Don Mueang Airport, then Bangkok ‘s main airport. In 1997, the government of Prime Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh granted the company the sole right to manage duty-free commercial enterprise at the World Trade Centre in downtown Bangkok for 10 years. The business had previously been managed by the Tourism Authority of Thailand. Some questioned whether it was contrary to Prime Minister ‘s Office regulations regarding partnership with private occupation. [ 6 ]
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In 2004, the government of Thaksin Shinawatra granted King Power the right to operate duty-free shops at Suvarnabhumi, Bangkok ‘s new main airport, for 10 years. concisely thereafter, the company won the concession to operate duty-free shops at four major peasant airports until 2015. There was no bid for the concessions. [ 6 ] As of 2016 King Power operated branches at Suvarnabhumi, Don Mueang, Phuket, Chiang Mai, and Hat Yai airports. Its abridge at Suvarnabhumi expires in 2020 and at Don Mueang [ 7 ] in 2022. [ 8 ] King Power ‘s monopoly status stands in sharply contrast to the commit at other comparable international airports. For exemplar, Incheon International Airport has twelve duty-free concessions competing for trade. [ 9 ] King Power received the royal justify from the King of Thailand in December 2009. [ 10 ] The garuda statue in front of its headquarters symbolizes that privilege. [ 11 ]
In August 2010, following agreement on a three-year shirt sponsorship deal with King Power, Milan Mandarić sold the English football clubhouse Leicester City F.C. to a Thai-led consortium called asian football Investments ( AFI ), owned by King Power Group ‘s Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha. [ 12 ] On 16 May 2017, Belgian First Division B team Oud-Heverlee Leuven announced that they had accepted an crack from King Power to buy the club. [ 13 ] In June 2016 King Power purchased a US $ 226 million stake in Thai AirAsia, the nation ‘s largest budget airline. The leverage of 39 percentage of holding company Asia Aviation makes King Power the second largest stockholder in Thai AirAsia. [ 14 ] On 27 October 2018, the chair and CEO of King Power, Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha died in a helicopter crash, soon after leaving King Power Stadium, home of Leicester City FC. An probe into the crash by the United Kingdom ‘s Air Accident Investigation Branch found that it was caused by mechanical failure. [ 15 ]
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Stores [edit ]
The King Power MahaNakhon skyscraper in Bangkok King Power has outlets at nine Thai airports and stores in major tourist venues. [ 16 ]
allegation of wrongdoing [edit ]
In 2017, King Power was accused of failing to pay the Thai state 14 billion baht ( £327 million ) from the operation of their airport duty-free shop monopoly. The original agreement, signed in 2006, requires that 15 percentage of duty-free shop income be paid to the Thai government. The lawsuit alleges that King Power colluded with airport employees to pay the government only a three percentage slice of duty free takings. The lawsuit was filed by a deputy president of a government anti-corruption subcommittee. Two other King Power group companies owned by the Srivaddhanaprabha family were besides accused of corruptness in the legal military action, along with a aged King Power executive. fourteen officials working for Airports of Thailand PCL ( AOT ) have besides been named in the courtship. [ 17 ] King Power immediately dismissed allegations of corruption relating to its contract with state-owned AOT. [ 18 ] The allegations were described as “ absolutely out of true ” by Dr. Nitinai Sirismatthakarn, President of AoT, who explained the allegations were based on a misconstrue of abridge modifications negotiated by AoT. In effect, fee percentage was effectively reduced, but there is a lack of understanding of this modification in the contracts as rate does not apply to the lapp calculation structure. alternatively of charging 15 percentage of net income, AoT receives three percentage of turnover, resulting in increase fees received by AoT ( seven times previous fees ). “ This absolutely can not be considered as price to the submit ”, Dr. Nitinai said. [ 19 ] The Central Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Cases in Bangkok accepted the case in November 2017, and said it would begin to hear witnesses on 12 February 2018. [ 20 ] In August 2018, the woo said it would extend a learn into accusations of bribery against AOT and King Power, delaying a decision on whether to take up the case. The court will hold another hearing on 4 September 2018, summoning the AOT president to clarify the AOT ‘s duties, revenues, and regulations governing commercial bodily process. [ 21 ] The Central Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Cases dismissed the case on 18 September 2018, ruling that the plaintiff “ was not an affect party, therefore he can not sue in this font. ” [ 22 ]
close up ties to assorted Thai governments [edit ]
King Power ‘s “ cash cow ” is its duty-free business which operates as a government-sanctioned monopoly. [ 2 ] Over the years, King Power has been identical close up to the Thaksin, Abhisit, and Yingluck governments. It has besides been a garter of post-coup governments of Sonthi Boonyaratglin and more recently, Prayut Chan-o-cha. In January 2019, it was revealed that King Power was among the donors at the pro-junta Phalang Pracharat Party ‘s 600 million baht dinner fundraiser. [ 23 ]
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philanthropy [edit ]
- 100 football pitch & 1 million footballs
King Power ‘s aims to promote Thai youth ‘s football potential in a comprehensive manner ranging from donate 1 million footballs to youth across Thailand, to installing an international-standard artificial grass football pitch for 100 schools and communities across Thailand within 5 years. The area ‘s lead duty-free retailer has launched a countrywide campaign called “ Sport Power ” that aims to develop football skills of the children. [ 24 ]
- Fox Hunt project
King Power has been endlessly contributing to Thai football with the Fox Hunt project, which gives scholarships to talented youngsters who are trained at the Leicester Football Academy in England. other King Power football programmes include Leicester City Football Clinic and King Power Cup. [ 25 ]
- Muak Lek National training centre
In November 2019, Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha have agreed to fund a newfangled trail center for The Football Association of Thailand. King Power will cover 100 per penny of the building costs, estimated at 500 million baht. The train kernel will be built on a 192,000 square-metre locate in the Muak Lek District of Thailand ‘s Saraburi province. The plans are share of the country ‘s 20-year football development ‘ passkey design ‘ of The Football Association of Thailand. [ 26 ] The 20-year chief design of FA Thailand are built National training centres across every region of Thailand ( southerly Region, Northern Region, Northeastern Region, Central Region, Eastern Region and Western Region ). [ 27 ]