From screen to showroom

Actor Dom Hetrakul sees a starring role in his life for high-end motorcycle business

Pitsinee Jitpleecheep

Actor Dom Hetrakul is preparing to scale back his activity in front of the camera, saying he now intends to devote up to 60% of his time to his passion for business Mr Dom is the main shareholder in Britbike Co, an official distributor of high-end Triumph motorcycles from the United Kingdom, in the Thai market. He and his friends set up the company with initial registered capital of four million baht.

The 30-year-old TV star and scion of the family that owns the Daily News is following a well-worn path taken by other entertainers into businesses such as food, fashion, beauty, jewellery and spas.

Methinee ''Look Kate'' Kingpayom, for example, sells her own line of lingerie. Young actress Ann Thongprasom runs a kindergarten and Pattarapol ''Paul'' Silapajan has a health and fitness centre.

''I've been in show business for 12 years. Though I still find some excitement in entertainment, the Hetrakuls are not a showbiz family but a business family,'' Mr Dom said.

In addition to turning his passion for high-performance bikes into a business, the actor also has an event-organising venture that he aims to turn into a fully fledged creative house in the near future.

Before setting up his own company to market Triumph motorcycles, Mr Dom held a small stake in the local distributor of Ducati, another storied European motorbike name. He said that demand for high-end motorcycles had been rising steadily in Thailand for the last decade and he wanted to have a major part in an international business.

Still, he acknowledges that his celebrity status is a good selling point.

''I'm not quitting showbiz at the moment because it helps us with our reputation and our connections,'' he says.

Britbike will officially open its first Triumph showroom on Royal City Avenue, off Rama IX Road, on April 9. Three more will be added in Chiang Mai, Phuket and Pattaya by the end of this year.

The company will offer a dozen Triumph bikes including the popular Rocket III Daytona 675, along with Triumph parts, clothing and accessories. The motorcycles cost between 500,000 and 1.2 million baht, prices that Mr Dom says are 20-50% cheaper than rival brands. Triumph is competing locally against Harley Davidson, BMW and Ducati.

Mr Dom said that in the first two years, the company would focus on the affordable ''modern classic'' line of Triumph bikes and later provide high-performance models to keen enthusiasts.

''We expect Triumph will be a new alternative for customers who are considering a city car as a second vehicle, or for somebody who has never owned a motorcycle before,'' he said.

''We've received good feedback from local style and speed lovers with 14 motorcycles sold in the three months since our opening. Suprisingly, up to 75% of the customers who visit our showroom are newcomers.

In its first year, Britbike aims to sell about 70 bikes and earn 50 million baht.

''There are more than 1,000 big bikes on the road and the market is still in its early stage,'' said Mr Dom.

Bangkok Post

Saturday March 31, 2007