Chatuchak to reclaim title of the world's biggest outdoor market

BANGKOK, April 9 (TNA) -- A series of improvement projects at the Chatuchak Market will be rolle out to help it reclaim the title as the biggest outdoor market in the world. Free wi-fi, mobile shopping app, free concerts, e-commerce service for vendors, and the clock tower's renovation are among the projects planned to bring back fame and popularity of this unique weekend market. Mr Siripong Pluetthipant, director of the real estate development project, State Railway of Thailand (SRT) who operated Chatuchak weekend market said the market used to be the world's largest outdoor market which brought popularity of the market from tourists across the world. Today, the market is visited by about 200,000 visitors a day, of which 70 percent are foreigners. There are over 10,000 shops inside offering a variety of products from local handicrafts to earthwares, ceramics, clothes, furniture, home decorative items, collectibles, pets, plants, and food. One of the notable improvement projects is the renovation of the clock tower inside the market to be a new landmark of Bangkok. When finished, the tower will serve as a cultural venue for local artists and singers from leading music companies, like GMM Grammy, to perform free concerts. The market management will also provide e-commerce support to vendors to help them expand their sales globally. More than half of the vendors at the Chatuchak Market are currently selling their products on line, said Mr Siripong, adding sales increases are expected after the project starts to be implemented. (TNA)