Wiluck Lohtong's daily routine since being a toddler until his junior high years consisted of school and the editorial office of Thai Rath newspaper, where he'd wait for his father to put the sports pages to bed before heading home, which was around 2am if not later.
"He still works till 2am," said Wiluck of his father Ravi, Thailand's pioneering sports media tycoon and former sports editor of Thai Rath, who sidelined in sports publishing for extra income with the blessings of the founder of the nation's largest daily, the late Kamphol Vacharaphol. The publisher, Siam Sport Syndicate Plc, employs a staff of about 2,500 today.
The 38-year-old scion of the Lohtong family wears several hats at the the office: President of Siam Sport Syndicate, CEO of Inspire Entertainment, chairman of Cournot & Nash, secretary-general of the Magazine Association of Thailand, and also the CEO of SCG Muang Thong United FC.
Wiluck, the eldest son of Ravi, is now very much his own man, having stepped out of his father's shadow with the establishment of Inspire Entertainment, which today holds licences to publish the Thai editions of 13 leading magazines in the UK, Japan and Italy. Over a period stretching back nine years Wiluck skilfully employed segmentation strategy to penetrate niche readership segments in men's lifestyle, automobile, women and entertainment magazines.
The magazines in the arsenal of Inspire Entertainment, which claims annual revenues of about 500-600 million baht, include FHM, Zoo, Stuff, Car, Option, Thai Driver, Best Car, Women & Home, Grazia, Vivi, Ray, Scawaii, Popteen, Casa Viva and Siam Banterng. These magazines boast an average monthly circulation of 100,000-150,000, with the exception of Siam Banterng where it is even higher _ 300,000.
With a "sexy" content, FHM was the first licensed magazine of Inspire Entertainment and it catered to male readers, Wiluck's "magazine strategy" did appear a tad radical initially to the conservative management of its parent company Siam Sports Syndicate, led by his father.
"But I convinced CEO Pongsakdi Polanant [then managing director] and we approached my father together. The rest is history," smiled Wiluck, who studied retail management at the UK's Loughborough University.
He also earned master's degrees from the London School of Economics and Sasin Graduate Institute of Business, Chulalongkorn University.
Asked to comment if print media was being "bullied" into extinction by digital multimedia, he said: "When I negotiated our magazine licenses, we talked about branded content which means that the FHM magazine will appear on every format [online, television or tablet]. You can access FHM on your iPhone.
"I look at it as a branded content. Even newspapers will survive for a while. People still like the physical aspect of holding a newspaper but quality content is what determines readership," he added.
Shifting gears to his latest project _ Thailand's first aftermarket parts and racing car show _ the "Bangkok International Auto Salon & D1 Grand Prix Thailand Series" scheduled for June 21-July 1 at Impact Arena, Muang Thong Thani, Wiluck said it is based on the Tokyo Auto Salon which is the biggest of its kind.
"Our Thai-language Option magazine is licensed from Option Japan which organises the Tokyo Auto Salon, so it was only a matter of time before we brought it to Thailand," he said, adding, "Option Japan is a subsidiary of San-eishobu, a major magazine publisher in Japan boasting about 50 publications [with over 30 devoted only to cars and motorcycles].
On the subject of his career path, Wiluck said: "I never thought about doing anything else. I literally grew up on piles of magazines. I trained at Siam Sport during my summer vacations; if I didn't, I had no pocket money. My father offered airfare, a roof over my head and food but no pocket money. I had to earn it [300 baht per day]. I did everything from scratch, advertisement sales, photography and chores, you name it."
10 QUESTIONS
- What is your favourite car?
I liked the BMW 3-series but now it's the MPV due to my work.
- Favourite watch?
Breitling.
- Favourite destination in Thailand?
Phuket. I like the sea.
- Favourite dish?
I eat everything.
- Favourite human being?
My father is my role model.
- Favourite athlete?
Eric Cantona; French international footballer and former Manchester United forward.
- What are you reading now?
I am re-reading a fiction novel about Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of unified China in 221 BC.
- Favourite movie?
I am a Trekky so it has to be Star Trek. I also like Star Wars.
- Greatest achievement?
Inspire Entertainment
- If in charge of national automotive policy, what would you do?
Thailand's product champions, the one-tonne pickup and the Ecocar, are successful in their own right, but Thailand has earned a reputation as one of the best in quality manufacturing. We can be a top-notch parts-maker with our own brand and maybe branch out into engine manufacturing and the national car.
