Pattaya police in (catering) business
It is estimated that there must be more than a thousand beer bars in Pattaya. You may have some doubts about whether they all have a reasonable existence. It is not for nothing that many pubs regularly change owners.
A high percentage is jointly owned by a foreigner in cooperation with a Thai partner, which is a legal requirement.
Lots of foreigners coming in Thailand think they have found their beloved, see the bar business as one of the few opportunities to earn some income. Filling a glass is a simple task and covering the bar with a few lovely ladies will bring the business. Yes, many people think that in their wildest dreams.
If you give your eyes and ears a good living, also in Pattaya, you really don't have to be a catering expert to come to the conclusion that a lot of bars are in abject poverty. And that does not only concern the income, but also the decoration of those small drinking places. Desolate and often very unsociable.
Law enforcement
If you have to believe the rumours, the police also play an important role in the nightlife scene. Many operators will have to support uncle agent financially in one way or another. What about the movable bars that make their appearance on the streets in the tourist centers in the evenings. Toleration policy. At least insofar as the operator fills the outstretched hand of the police.
On the Beach Road in Pattaya you can find a bar with the name 'We are the World' between Soi 7 and 8. A long bar where you can sit around and where an orchestra plays every evening. A whole arsenal of ladies willingly carry the ordered drinks inside and outside the bar.
A nice extra is that the 'Happy hour' is not taken too literally here and lasts until late in the evening. The bar is also known for its low price level. The police have been the owner of this bar for years.
A few meters further than this 'world bar' is the Lucky Star Beer Bar. It seems as if they have copied the neighboring brother. Bar, ladies and yes, also an orchestra. Insiders claim that this bar is also owned by ? Yes.
Well, working for the Thai police is not that bad despite the low basic salary. With a little creativity, the various emoluments will supplement the salary.
Possibly the bar fine yields more than the converted drink or is a welcome addition to it.
That whole series of Hillary beer bars on soi Nana in Bangkok appears to be owned by a police officer's wife.
I find it indigestible that there is still so much corruption in the Thai police. Sometimes you read about internal performances, but this is only a small part that is addressed. When will this ever stop. Certainly in the prostitution and bar industry there is a lot to be gained and this is also being achieved in a systematic manner. We all know the examples. I think most of the protection money goes to the top police, because they have to know about it and allow this and the rest takes part of it and does the heavy lifting. Thailand at its best. Whatever is at issue, we see that reflected everywhere and that is the fact that you can set up a small company almost anywhere. The small self-employed, whether they are bar owners or other businesses, buy or rent a property and yes, a bar or a shop or so on. It is not checked whether the site is suitable or whether permit requirements, if any, are met. One just does something. You will have just bought a house and there will be a beer bar next to it. Then you can pack the bags or there are those who like it, because then they don't have to walk far. To each his own, but for me this would be a drama. Yes, it is possible in Thailand, but indeed the industry is often only given a short life and it is not that difficult to find out why this is. It's as transparent as I don't know what.
Jacques you live in the Far East. People here are easier and not as stubborn in their views as the average Dutchman.
Dear Theo, I am aware of this and see it happening around me every day. It's not really a country for me either, but my love is here and she doesn't want to go to the Netherlands anymore. She lived there for 20 years and now of age she no longer wants to fly. I'll have to make do with it, much to my dismay and as for stubbornness, I'd describe it as tenacity with an option to change if I'm convinced it's better. If you look at the massive prostitution and its negative effect on Thai society, the large number of unsafe drivers resulting in many accidents, the fact that many just do something without thinking about it, but it is really annoying or even doing their thing worse, the abundant corruption and so on, then I really can't have a positive word about it. I must admit that I do not belong to the chameleon group, the people who blow with all the winds and are therefore completely unpredictable. What you see with me is what it is and it will always be that way, unless one has good arguments, which is rare, I can share with you.
Dear Jacques, it's not too bad, and of all the "questionable" things you mention, not one is directly related to you: what do you have to do with mass prostitution, with all the traffic accidents and the many traffic victims, and when were you caught by a corrupt official or hindered in your behavior because a beer bar was planted next to your house? It seems that you do not live well in Thailand. But you comply because your wife/girlfriend does not want to return to the Netherlands. Why would she? She is Thai after all. And did she have so many comments in the same way in the Netherlands? I do not think so! It would be good if you accept Thailand a little more as Thailand is, and its people are. There is no point in listing all the imperfections of Thailand, getting annoyed by them, and pretending that they ruin your life. Don't be a chameleon yourself, but keep to yourself and try to be just someone who tries to enjoy the many other wonderful Thai things in their old age. My Thai wife always says that it is easier for a farang in Thailand to comply because it was his own choice and decision to live in Thailand. Success.
Only the landlords earn money, a lot of money, in addition to the rent they collect, there is also an annual key money to be paid, in many cases this is more than what is paid in rent throughout the year. In soi 7, the rent was 32000 per month at the time, and the key money was 400.000 per year. Keymoney is nothing more than paying an amount to get a new year's contract. The owners of the land become very rich, and the bar owners don't earn a penny. The bar fine, which is said to save the bar owner, is in most cases shared with the lady, from the 300 baht bar fine she gets at least 100 baht. Even if your bar is running well and you have many customers, then if you don't earn a cent, the costs will simply go up. Often the electricity and water must also be paid to the landlord, who of course sets up a percentage there. In soi 7 it was also the case at the time that you were obliged to also do your shopping with the landlord or his helpers, so he also earns a lot from that. It will therefore come as no surprise to anyone that the landlord who collects those millions a year is a policeman who has a high position in BKK. The helpers, if you can call them that, are the only ones you will see, you will not see the gtote boss !!!
If you've had a bar in Pattaya once, and you know what's going on, you'll never do it a second time!!!!!If you do the math, you'll see that I paid 1 baht a year at the time, plus electricity , water, salaries, purchasing and some smaller costs such as paying for cleaning the toilets, police and new furniture. You have to sell a lot of beers for that, especially with all those farangs who think everything is too expensive and complain. Those same people who complain that the beer is too expensive and the music is too loud, are a few hours later in some disco in Walking street where the music is much louder and the beer is 784,000 times as expensive, then complain they don't!!!!
It is not for nothing that you have to “buy in” on the profession of a police officer. The whole family contributes to the bribe, and then Somchai becomes the new addition to the police force…. Suitable or unsuitable???
Anyway, that's how it goes in the entire Asian and Arab world.
There is still a long way to go, people are not all trying to flee to the scarce democracies for nothing….