In 2017, ahead of the usual stream of boat shows and yachting events scheduled around the Kingdom, and before the current worldwide pandemic, I was asked if there was room for

three boat shows in Thailand each year.
My answer (you may have seen the arti-

cle) was yes. But with several caveats. First the geography. I suggested the

current concentration around Phuket is not sus- tainable in the long run. My original opinion has not changed. Phuket can only accommodate one boat show due to the size of the yachting industry, both in terms of yacht sales and yacht charter. Therefore, if three shows were planned, it would make more sense to widen the geographic spread of the boat shows to include one show in Bang- kok, one show in Pattaya, and one on Phuket.

My second concern was that the compe- tition between the boat shows is not sustainable. Although all three boat shows organised in Thai- land had unique selling points, they ultimately competed for the same sponsors, partners, exhib- itors. And, in the case of the Phuket Rendezvous (formerly PIMEX, the Phuket International Boat Show) and the Thailand Yacht Show, the same visitors. Therefore shows were struggling to deliver the required ROI (return on investment) and ROO (return on objective) to sponsors, partners and exhibitors.

Other issues I raised then and have done

since centre around the lack of collaboration. The format for previous shows has been to orga- nise, market, sell and host in isolation of other shows. But, as I’ve said previously, boat shows are commercial enterprises, a fact that poses challenges to collaboration.

However, I believe there is something to be learnt from mass participation sports events such as marathons or triathlons held in the Kingdom. Many of those competitive events work collaboratively by allowing similar events to promote their own races within. This kind of approach creates value for participants, spon- sors, partners, exhibitors, spectators and the wider community and helps grow and improve their industry. The boat shows and yachting events can learn from this.

My final concern was the misconception about sponsorship. The success or failure of a particular event often depends on the spon- sorship deals it manages to secure. Each year, millions of baht were paid in sponsorship to yachting events. Yet we saw a significant portion of custodians who viewed sponsorship as free money or a charitable donation. As a result, they failed to provide the ROI and ROO the sponsors expected and deserved. This left un- satisfied sponsors and inadequately organised events: and failure to realise the true potential of a ‘property’.