Matching pedigrees?

INTERVIEW NANDHAMALEE BHIROMBHAKDI

Matching pedigrees? With a well-heeled local joint venture now in the saddle, Italy's 'prancing horse' seems well positioned to service its customer base here Writer: ALFRED THA HLA Published: 14/08/2009 at 12:00 AM Newspaper section: Motoring

What do you do with small change of 100 million baht doled out in equal portions by a beer-brewing entrepreneur and the maker of the world's best-selling energy drink?

Easy. Start flogging Ferraris.

A recent meeting with the new official face of Ferrari in Thailand starts off badly when this writer's MP3 recorder decides not to cooperate right at the start of the interview. Then things get even more awkward after I make the gaffe of implying that Nandhamalee Bhirombhakdi is a housewife (just because she's the mother of three-year old twins). If looks could kill ...

(Let it be noted for the record that long before she became managing director of Cavallino Motors Nandhamalee had carved out a successful career for herself in banking.)

"You could say it was by luck that we ended up with this project [the Ferrari distributorship]. It was a dinner meeting between my husband [Voravudh Bhirombhakdi] and Khun Chalerm of Krating Daeng [maker of the Red Bull energy drink] who happened to be among the first to receive a letter of invitation from Ferrari SpA to pitch for the licence."

Cavallino Motors - the firm's name comes from Ferrari's prancing horse (cavallino rampante) logo - has Vudha Bhirombhakdi and Chalerm Yoovidhya as chairman and president, respectively, of the board of directors.

Females are few and far between when it comes to heading up car operations in this part of the world; and this is also a first for Ferrari in Thailand. So how does she view this challenge and what does she have to offer?

"I was raised abroad for over half of my life and have been with Citibank for eight years which gives me an edge on professionalism. The way I work, the way I deal with international brands won the trust of the management team [Vudha and Chalerm] in addition to the approval of Ferrari SpA despite this being a male-dominated business."

Yet I find it difficult to believe that the bona fide socialite sitting here in front of me is capable of getting passionate about Ferraris, let alone tag along with her hubby to Formula One races (where Ferrari fans are referred to as tifosi).

"I share my husband's passion for the brand," Nandhamalee protests. "I began dating him when I was 16. And for the past 20 years, be it at F1 races or when he's fixing his father's cars, I'm always listening to him talk about the allure of Ferrari and why each car is distinctively different.

"Ferrari is the top supercar; it's the most perfect. I drove a 430 and a 599 on the race track and that gives me an edge."

Given the frequency with which Ferrari licence-holders change here, they're practically a dime a dozen. The quest for a legitimate distributor has been a long one but Cavallino Motors would seem to fit the bill given that it is a joint venture between two highly respected local business empires who appear to view their investment as long term and who, in addition to the aforementioned dosh, have earmarked a three-rai plot on New Phetchaburi Road for an integrated showroom and service centre. And there are surely back-office synergies to be gained from Singha and Red Bull, both long-established brands.

"Ferrari has an Asia-Pacific presence in Shanghai, which contributes to our ability to work as the same family. From the outlook of the investment in training, it definitely is a long-term business but the most important element is passion!"

A Motoring source once described the local Ferrari distributorship as "a carcass with vultures hovering". There certainly were many takers for what was seen as a prestigious prize but most soon realised the difficulty of making ends meet due to the limited number of Ferraris sold here.

Nandhamalee concedes that sales alone won't generate sufficient revenue and notes, "servicing with a commitment to world-class standards of the roughly 350 Ferraris [new and classic models] in Thailand is how to view this business.

"Service will be our strength since high import taxes place natural limitations on the number of Ferraris sold. But we still hope to grow our business."

She won't disclose Cavallino's sales target but reveals that a temporary showroom will be built next month at 2124 New Phetchaburi Road and that the number of work-bays will be expanded from the initial two to seven by the end of the first quarter of 2010.

Relate Search: Khun Chalerm of Krating Daeng, Vudha Bhirombhakdi and Chalerm Yoovidhya