ข่าวแจ้งสื่อมวลชน

AIM Group, the freehold trust management, has shown off the potentials of three prominent lifestyle malls - "UD Town Udon Thani", the biggest lifestyle mall in Udon Thani; "Porto Chino", Samut Sakorn's No. 1 lifestyle mall located on the main highway to the South; and, "72 Courtyard Thonglor", the individualistic lifestyle mall on Bangkok's prime location, through the new AIMCG trust that is now ready to make initial investment in the real estate rental rights while introducing attractive rental rates and the management that will guarantee steady revenue from the rent.

Mr. Amorn Chulaluksananukul, Chief Executive Officer of the freehold trust AIM Group, revealed that the firm is now in the process of establishing the AIM Commercial Growth Freehold and Leasehold Real Estate Investment Trust (AIMCG), which is a trust belonging to the AIM Group which is independent from, and not a subsidiary of, the owners of the assets. This is done to provide a choice for investors who are interested in real estate for rent through a trust.

AIMCG has a policy to invest in commercial real estate properties with good potential of various types, such as shopping centers, lifestyle malls, office buildings, convention centers, etc. For its first investment in such a field, three notable lifestyle malls with high potentials were chosen for their good locations, such as in an economically booming city, the main highway to the South with a large population and in the center of Bangkok. These are: 1. UD Town Udon Thani" project in Udon Thani; 2. "Porto Chino" project in Samut Sakhon; and, 3. "72 Courtyard" project in the heart of Thonglor in Bangkok. Each of these properties has its own potential and selling points with high rental rates and are appealing to well-known tenants that in turn can attract large customer groups and can generate steady income for the trust over the long term.

Mr. Tanakorn Weerachatyanukul, Chief Executive Officer of Udon Plaza Company Limited, the developer of UD Town Udon Thani, said the UD Town project is a lifestyle mall located in the heart of Udon Thani provincial town that is the biggest such project in the Province and is highly popular. This is due to its individualistic format that resonates with the local way of life in Udon Thani, namely, its varied tenant base and facilities, such as leading restaurant, supermarket, banks, beauty clinics, weekend market, walking street and venues for activities and concerts. Therefore, the property can fully fulfill the lifestyle demands of the people in Udon Thani, neighboring provinces as well as tourists from Lao PDR who love to travel to Thailand to shop and see the sights. This is because Udon Thani town is located only 50 kilometers from the border with Lao PDR. This has made the UD Town project into a city landmark for shopping, entertainment and relaxation with up to 20,000 to 50,000 visitors per day.

Furthermore, Udon Thani is also the upper Northeast's commercial and aviation hub that is growing rapidly with its gross provincial product (GPP) and GPP per capital being the highest among the provinces in the upper northeastern region. This has helped to accelerate the province's economic growth. In addition, a large and increasing number of foreign tourists from Lao PDR, the United States and Germany have been flocking to Udon Thani with an average tourism growth of 9.4 percent from 2013 to 2017.

Mr. Suthep Panyasakorn, Managing Director of D-Land Property Company Limited, the developer of the Porto Chino, Samut Sakhon's largest lifestyle mall project, said the Porto Chino project is located on the outward-bound direction of Rama 2 Highway which is the main conduit of land traffic to southern provinces. It is considered to be Samut Sakhon's first lifestyle project and a natural rest stop popular among travelers to the West and South as well as being an important food oasis for the people in Mahachai area. The perfect location right on Rama 2 Highway in Samut Sakhon considered to be one of the busiest roads in a zone not far from Bangkok, along with top tenants that have become the anchors for the property, namely, McDonald's and Foodland, and Thailand's first Starbucks drive-thru, have made it into a lifestyle mall immensely popular among people in Samut Sakhon and nearby provinces, and a meeting point for south-bound travelers.

This year's new concept of being a "neighborhood mall' will concentrate more on local clientele with the renovation the Food Port and additional spaces for 100 additional shops for various types of merchandise on the 1^st floor while the 2^nd floor will be made into the Seafood Zone where famous seafood restaurants will be housed on a 1,000-square-meter area. The landscaping will also be improved along with the construction of a large children's playground so that the entire families can relax and enjoy themselves at the same time.

D-Land Property Co., Ltd. has a vast experience in housing subdivision development in Samut Sakhon Province, so it has deep understanding of the consumer behavior in the area. Samut Sakhon is a province with the sixth highest GPP and GPP per capita in Thailand and has the second highest growth rate after Bangkok due to its large manufacturing, fishery and seafood processing industries that have been a boon to the economic growth. In the near future, the Red Line suburban commuter train project will also reach Mahachai Sub-District.

Ms. Waleewan Rojjanapakdee, General Manager of Membership Company Limited, the developer of the 72 Courtyard Thonglor project, said the 72 Courtyard lifestyle mall project with its distinctive location at the center of Soi Thonglor is considered to be the center for restaurants and evening bar scene that has become increasing popular among Bangkokians and tourists. The restaurants and drinking places in the project perfectly fulfill the lifestyle demand of the new generation and the target customer in Soi Thonglor area which has become the meeting point and hangout destination for the customer group with high purchasing power.

The project is located in Sukhumvit Soi 55 (Soi Thonglor) across from Thonglor Soi 15. At present, 72 Courtyard project hosts tenants who run a variety of restaurants, pubs and bars that are distinctive and varied in styles. Its location in Soi Thonglor, which is considered to be one of Bangkok's important CBDs, is surrounded by several condominiums, hotels, serviced apartments and medium-size office buildings. Therefore, this is where the customer base with high purchasing power congregate throughout the day. The access to the area is also excellent with the BTS line and its Thonglor Station close by.

Mr. Charasrit A.Voravudhi, Managing Director of AIM Group, said AIMCG trust will invest for the first time in the leasehold rights to three lifestyle mall real estate projects, namely:

1. UD Town project - The trust will invest in the rights to the lease and sub-lease of the land, buildings and related systems on a 48,000-square-meter usable area for a period of 21 years. The UD Town project has a previous three-year rental record of about 97 percent
2. Porto Chino project - The trust will invest in the rights to the lease of land, buildings and related systems for a period of 30 years on a 43,000-square-meter usable area. Porto Chino project has a previous three-year rental record of about 84 percent
3. And, 72 Courtyard project - The trust will invest in the rights to the lease of land, buildings and related systems for a period of approximately 13 years on a 5,000-square-meter usable area. 72 Courtyard project has a previous three-year rental record of full 100 percent

As at present, the trust has filed for the permission to offer assets for sale and the list of information on trust unit sale offer to the Security Exchange Commission (SEC) which are now under consideration, with the Bank of Ayudyha Plc. and Discover Management Co., Ltd. as financial advisors.