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Here she talks with Phuket.Com about what makes Rising
Sun Residence different, and special.
Farewell to nursing
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| Rising Sun Residence
lobby/reception |
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After years of moving around with her parents, Wipa Tanmanatragul
did manage to settle down for a while, in Australia, where she trained
as a nurse, after which she spent 10 years working in hospitals.
But then she met Methee Tanmanatragul, a well-know Thai hotelier
and businessman with more than 30 years’ experience in the
hotel industry. They married and she stopped work as a nurse and
has never gone back to it.
Khun Methee managed a succession of hotels in Bangkok and Phuket.
He was an early GM of the Phuket Arcadia Resort, now the Hilton
Phuket Arcadia Resort & Spa. He also served with many reputable
industry organizations such as the Phuket Tourism Association and
Skal International Phuket. “I find that being a nurse and hotel
staff are similar in a way, because you have to have a service mind
to do either one well,” Khun Wipa says. “So for me to
run Rising Sun Residence was not a totally new thing.”
She also grew up in a family who liked to entertain people. When
she was young, her parents often had guests over for dinner and
she always helped her mother in the kitchen. “I learned the
art of entertaining people from that and also from my host family
in Australia,” she says.
Out and about
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| PIWC scholarship
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Khun Wipa is not and never has been a full-time housewife. She
has always found herself doing things either for friends or charity.
She used to be a guest lecturer on hotels and tourism at a local
university. At one time, she was president of the Phuket International
Women’s Club (PIWC) and she is still an active member. The
PIWC was founded in 1989 and raises funds for grants to Phuket students
who cannot afford school tuition fees and such.
“I have a daughter who is studying in university in Bangkok.
Now the 20 or so staff [at Rising Sun Residence] are like family
to me. Some of them have been here since we first opened. We have
been through a lot together.”
Some of them had previous hotel experience, but many did not. “When
I interview potential staff, I always look for attitude first. If
the person has the right attitude but does not have industry knowledge,
it really doesn’t matter. We hire them anyway and fill them
with the knowledge later. It’s always better that way.”
says Khun Wipa.
Hard times
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| Rising Sun Residences
flowers |
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Originally, 10 years ago, the villas at Rising Sun Residence were
built for sale. But things did not go according to plan. At that
time the demand was all for homes on the west coast of the island.
Rising Sun Residence, as its name suggests, faces the other way.
So Khun Methee and Khun Wipa switched to Plan B – rentals rather
than sales. The first guests checked in in November 2004. A month
later the business was hit again, this time by the disastrous Boxing
Day tsunami.
“We did not give up. My husband has been in the industry for
long time. He has seen a lot of ups and downs. He has knowledge
and also vision. When we started the holiday villa concept, we had
set a goal and we pursued it without losing the focus. It keeps
us running toward the direction we always wanted, I guess.”
Business was flat until March 2005, when it started to pick up again,
though slowly. During the hard times Khun Wipa and her team spent
time coming up with new marketing ideas and plans, including an
introductory promotion package. They also worked on improving Rising
Sun Residence’s website. “We never stopped. We just kept
on working,” she says.
Hands-on owners
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| Tom Yam Koung -
Thai spicy shrimp soup |
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Khun Wipa and Khun Methee want their guests to get the best possible
value for money. They ensure that every guest is met on arrival
by one of them or by or the estate manager. They also check guests’
need every day, and make sure the whole team knows about these needs
and meets them.
“The way we work here is very flexible,” Khun Wipa explains.
“Everyone in the team has to be able to do two jobs or more.
Our housekeepers also cook breakfast for the guests in their villas
every morning. Our head chef also helps me teach our Thai cooking
classes. I think what we are doing here is new. We are trying to
offer something at a much more personal level than one can get staying
in a hotel.”
Unique personal touch
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| Ingredients selection
- Khun Wipa & guests |
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“I set up a cooking class for guests who want to learn how
to cook Thai food. It is called ‘Wipa’s Thai Cuisine’.
Part of the class involves going shopping at a nearby morning market
for fresh ingredients to use in the class. After they learn to cook
the dishes, the guest can enjoy the food they have made,” Khun
Wipa smiles.
There are no Western dishes on the Rising Sun Residence menu. Khun
Wipa explains that this is because her guests prefer to eat Thai
food; they do not want to eat the same dishes they can get at home.
“During their stay, if they feel like eating something other
than Thai food, we simply organize a booking for them at the restaurant
of their choice. Phuket has such a wide variety of good restaurants.
With our car service, guest are not stuck in one place for the whole
holiday.”
To the limit
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| Villa living room
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“We are doing what we can – sometimes we even go beyond
guests’ requests. But there are certain things that we cannot
do and we have to be fair and tell customers about these before
they make a booking with us. For example, we cannot supply a maid
to stay in a guest’s villa around the clock. If we can not
meet a requirement, we do at the very least offer advice. On the
maid issue, we would suggest that they bring a maid with them. We
can prepare a proper room – the space is already there in each
villa. That’s is not a problem; we just need to set up a bedroom.
But at the moment we just cannot produce a maid who speaks good
English and can be on call 24 hours a day. Not just yet,” says
Khun Wipa.
An easy sell
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| Villas one bedroom
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Khun Methee’s long experience in the hotel industry is paying
off for the couple. He has good connections everywhere, and introducing
Rising Sun Residence to the holiday villas market has not been difficult
for him. “We have guests from everywhere,” Khun Wipa says.
“We have many Singaporeans staying with us, along with expatriates
living and working in Singapore. At the moment, we seem to be getting
more and more honeymooners from South Korea. Our estate is a place
where family and friends get together. We have many successful young
executives who came to relax and have a good time with their friends.
“Soon some customers from Denmark will be arriving – this
will be their fourth stay with us and they will celebrate the anniversary
of their long and happy marriage here. This time they have booked
more villas for friends and family too. These are the kind of guests
we are getting.
“I think we are probably the only holiday villa estate in Phuket
that is run with such dedication by the owners. As I said, this
has created a more personal holiday for guests.”
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