CI T Y O N T H E MOVE Katarina Osterman, General Manager for Santa Fes Thailand business Bangkok is an evergrowing and changing city... an assault on the senses... the sights, sounds, smells, and energy are second to none Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP,) which has had its headquarters in Thailand since 1949. We have a multi-year contract for moving/storing their office compound buildings during their seismic retrofit, says Ware. Meanwhile, ATs commercial division has grown with a focus on hotel and retail refit/storage needs. The pandemic created a state of flux that left even the most experienced heads floundering. It dealt JVK International Movers a severe blow in 2020 when shipments to and from Thailand plummeted as global corporates and embassies put moves on hold. But then came the big bounce back. Last year, these same companies and embassies not only relocated postponed moves from 2020, they went ahead with their 2021 scheduled moves, says Ronald Kiser, JVKs Senior Director of Global Partnerships. We were swamped, and yet the pandemic was still a huge concern as the delta variant raged across Asia and spread to the rest of the world. Trying to keep staff and customers safe, while meeting this increase in demand, was extremely challenging. Add the difficulties of getting space from the airlines and steamship lines, and an exponential increase in freight rates we can see why so many staff have more grey hair! Santa Fe is sharing in the revival. Plans have become active again everything is awakening; everyone is thinking of relocating, says Osterman. But its not all plain sailing with Thailand, which, like everywhere else, is hostage to the astronomical rise in ocean freight prices. Some [prices] have quadrupled, though recently decreased a little bit. But it meant an increase in storage costs and a lot of clients are postponing moves, she says. The difficulties in obtaining space to move Some of the JVK Moving team Storage prices are among the increased prices in Thailand shipments and weekly price changes have been a universal headache. It was exhausting trying to do something that should have been so ordinary and routine, says Kiser. But space in 2022 has been more available and freight rates are coming down this part of our operation is almost back to normal. Ware says cash allowance customers those given a lump sum by employers to arrange their own moves have been presented with freight rates many times higher than they may have experienced in the past. Delays and additional charges at destination ports really made people think twice about what to ship. Our office staff deserve medals for dealing with these challenges as customers vented their frustrations. Finding and retaining staff is a problem for FIDI members globally. For Santa Fe in Thailand, the picture is mixed. We dont have an issue finding blue collar workers but in the office environment its more difficult to find the right balance, says Osterman. Hybrid working, including working from home, has become standard but here (as a rule) we come to the office every day. However, we are still open to the flexibility of working from home. Ware finds that the traditional base of operational staff is harder to come by. Moving remains a very manual business, and these days Generation Zs prefer to do things in the digital space, he says. Motorcycle taxis have been a way of life in Bangkok for years, and theres increased e-commerce/food delivery services by motorcycle, too. Younger riders can download an app to their phone and work 48 FF308 Dec-Jan 23 pp44-51 City on the move Bangkok.indd 48 05/12/2022 17:04