Over the past two years, the COVID-19 situation has posed numerous challenges and lessons for everyone around the world, regardless of their industry. While many organizations have narrowly navigated through the crisis, we must remember that we will continue to face turbulence, economic fluctuations, social changes, and altered lifestyles that cannot return to the way they were.

Even more daunting than the crisis is the Ripple Effect, which will extend the recovery period for many years.

To survive these phenomena, we must be ready to adapt to change and continuously learn to adjust, as we do not know how long the Ripple Effect will last.

As Anupong Assavapokin, CEO of AP Thailand, has stated, this is a crucial driving force for the organization to achieve its goals: “We must continue to face new challenges arising from the world-changing crisis and be prepared to adapt to the ever-changing global rules to survive and grow sustainably.”

Success Strategies Amidst the Lockdown Crisis

Despite facing significant economic instability throughout the past year due to lockdowns, AP Thailand, one of Thailand's top 5 real estate firms that has remained stable for three decades, has clearly maintained outstanding operational results, not just surviving but growing robustly. The debt-to-equity ratio as of Q3 2021 was only 0.56, compared to 0.71 in 2020.

In 2021, AP launched a total of 24 new projects valued at approximately 27.55 billion baht, including 22 horizontal projects worth about 19.65 billion baht and 2 condominium projects valued at around 7.9 billion baht. Combined with other projects currently for sale, AP now has 120 projects spread across the country, with a total value of over 196 billion baht.

As of December 15, AP Thailand achieved property sales of up to 35.8 billion baht and expects to close the year 2021 with a turnover of 40 billion baht.

These successes stem from AP's strong commitment to its mission of ‘EMPOWER LIVING’, delivering a quality of life that customers can choose, with two key management principles:

  • 1. Team readiness
  • 2. Management of a diverse portfolio of available products to create opportunities and competitive advantages.

Awarded with Pride but Not Trapped by Being Number 1

Above all, beyond numerical success, is the belief that ‘we must never stop developing ourselves’, as Anupong Assavapokin often emphasizes.

“I am happy and proud to be number 1, but we cannot rest on our laurels. We must not stop developing because whenever we do, we take a step back. Everything changes if AP does not work with a Go Beyond mindset; we will not be able to find the Next Normal that will provide a business advantage.”

This statement reflects the vision of the leader, shaped by a passion for work combined with extensive experience in the business world, guiding AP through numerous obstacles, including this crisis. Not only has AP achieved sales success, but it has also received positive feedback from customers, partners, and the media, evidenced by various prestigious awards, including:

  • Hall of Fame Award for the most trusted real estate brand in Thailand, marking AP as the first in the real estate sector to receive this award for three consecutive years, and Thailand’s Most Admired Company award for the most trusted real estate company from BrandAge, a leading marketing media in Thailand.
  • 2021 Thailand Real Estate Personality of the Year award, given to an individual in the real estate industry based on their actions, achievements, and support during the pandemic, making them the first Thai executive to receive this award twice.

Deep Understanding of Changing Living Trends and Behaviors

When constant change meets long-term experience in residential development, AP recognizes the changing living behaviors in this volatile era, leading to the development of housing models, services, and modern technology to enhance the quality of life for residents without being confined to traditional frameworks, including:

  • Understanding the new lifestyle trend called HOMEBODY or the homebound trend: This trend has become a norm today, where ‘home’ is elevated to be more than just a residence; it must serve all purposes for every family member, including workspaces, online classrooms, fitness areas, live streaming rooms, or even music studios. This homebound trend has significantly increased demand for single-family homes, with AP achieving over 60% sales from this segment, driven by two key strategies:
  • 1. The best home model designed from real insights to meet residents' needs, such as wide-front house plans that incorporate Work from Home or online learning areas with natural light.
  • 2. Innovations that understand life by integrating technology with the design of private and communal spaces within homes.
  • Decoding the changing behaviors and decision-making processes in real estate purchases: In 2021, over 85% of AP's condo customers inquired about project visits through various digital platforms, leading to the development of ONE CLICK NEW HOME, a new solution for purchasing AP properties, providing a virtual experience that feels like visiting the actual project. This platform allows customers to feel safe and convenient when visiting projects, aligning with the New Normal lifestyle.
  • Providing customers with accessible innovations: AP's challenge is not just to present new features but to create innovations based on customer needs that are easily accessible across generations, leading to the development of SMART WORLD, which has over 80,000 users and an average of 48,000 active users per month, marking it as a standout property management innovation within AP.

Empowering Society: AP Will Not Leave Anyone Behind During This Crisis

In addition to enhancing the living experience for residents in terms of quality and service, AP also aims to empower and inspire Thai society to overcome COVID together. AP understands that amidst the severe pandemic, the impact on people's livelihoods across all sectors is significant. While many organizations have come together to help, there are still many groups that may be overlooked.

From the SAVE Doctors SAVE Thailand campaign in 2020 to the 2021 campaign SAVE LIVES, PROTECT PEOPLE - AP that aims to ensure ‘AP will not leave anyone behind during this crisis’, AP has undertaken various missions to provide assistance to overlooked groups, such as caring for nearly 1,000 monks in 10 high-risk areas and supporting Thai SMEs by purchasing fresh food, vegetables, fruits, eggs, and meat to deliver to temple kitchens.

Additionally, AP has contributed to saving the lives of COVID-19 patients by providing high-flow oxygen therapy machines to state hospitals in high-risk areas and caring for over 10,000 workers during the construction camp lockdown by delivering rice, dry food, and clean drinking water to workers and their families, as well as helping alleviate their utility costs during the camp closure.

The Next Direction: WORK FROM ANYWHERE is No Longer Just a Trend

As we understand, the way of life will never return to the way it was. AP's next step will continue to reach and respond to the lifestyles of future generations, referencing data from Morgan Stanley, which states that in the next seven years, half of the workforce in the U.S. will be freelancers.

This aligns with Pieter Levels, a Dutch startup programmer and designer, founder of nomadlist.com, who predicts that by 2035, the number of people identifying as Digital Nomads will increase to one billion, up from 25 million in 2019.

This data indicates a trend among the younger generation that the behavior of working from anywhere will become the new norm for future life, even after the pandemic subsides.

This leads AP to see that Work from Anywhere will not just be a trend, thus, smart space design will become a new attraction for the Next Generation striving for success in both work and personal life.

As seen with the launch of LIFE Rama 4-Asoke, a newly designed condominium that integrates the concept of space design for the new lifestyle, accommodating private living while highlighting the project's unique features with CHOOSE LIFE CHOOSE EVERYTHING, especially the 5-story common area of over 8,635 square meters or 5.39 rai, designed to be a paradise for the new urban generation, supporting all lifestyle forms: WORK – PLAY – CHILL – PEACE, or the townhome brand, Baan Klang Muang, or Pleno, which emphasizes design both inside and outside under the concept of “redefining vertical living.”

This marks a significant step in AP Thailand's drive throughout 2021, ready to pass on great energy under EMPOWER LIVING to deliver a better quality of life into the coming years, no matter what obstacles may arise...