HOUSE OF THE WEEK

An abundance of space at FMI City

CERTAINLY, space is not a problem in this house – once you get there. Over the Hlaing River, 45 minutes from downtown, there is a large one-storey house in a big compound waiting for someone ready to trade time for space. ...more

Yangon Weather Forecast, Burma

Country Club greeted with enthusiasm

IT’S a bold move to propose, and then open, an exclusive country club in the throes of the biggest financial crisis since the Great Depression. But that is exactly what the management at Pun Hlaing Golf Estate have just done.

And so far it’s working, says Mark Tippetts, the company’s director.

As The Myanmar Times went to print, 73 people had signed up as “principle” lifetime members at the club, part of the Pun Hlaing Golf Estate in Hlaing Tharyar township. Mr Tippetts added that in total 181 members, including family and corporate additions, had joined so far.

Those “principle” members have paid either K650,000 as new signups, or K550,000 for those who already own homes at Pun Hlaing. Of those who have joined the club, it’s perhaps not surprising to find that more than half are homeowners at the estate, Mr Tippetts said.

For that fee, and a monthly fee of about K40,000, club members have access to a large swimming pool, two lawn tennis courts, a spa and massage facility, with a gymnasium, squash/badminton courts, restaurant and bar, and the leisure facilities in the new multi-story Club House.

Those monthly dues cover the club’s operating expenses but some of the trimmings don’t come for free. For instance, you can play tennis on the lawn courts as a member at no cost but if you want to have a coach to improve your game, you’ll be paying for his time.

Mr Tippetts said great care had been taken in setting the pricing, with a number of competitors, mainly the large hotels, in mind.

“We’ve priced member-ships very interestingly. We did our market research on all the clubs and leisure centres in Yangon and what they charge. We based our initial figures on that, but then my chairman said, ‘You’re all crazy, you don’t want to compete with them’. Instead, we give a lifetime membership for less than the cost of an annual fee with our competitors.

“Then we worked out what could be provided free and the areas where we needed to generate income to manage our 5.5 acres of land here,” he said, adding that members also receive a 20-40 percent discount on whatever services they choose to pay for, and a 15pc discount on all food and beverages.

The aim being to avoid direct comparison – and competition – with the hotels, all of which are much closer to downtown and most workplaces.

The drive to Pun Hlaing for anyone living and working around Yangon is hardly arduous nor overly lengthy, but it is unlikely that someone living downtown would make it everyday just to use the gym. However, that same person might well head to Traders Hotel before or after work to sweat it out on the treadmill, or visit one of the city’s many spas.

The club does hold another ace up its sleeve – its 18-hole golf course just next door, a fact that has not escaped Mr Tippetts’ attention.

“Many of those who have signed up to the club are keen golfers,” he said.
Indeed, Mr Tippetts said he and the club’s management had identified three major selling points other than the pricing structure – prestige, facilities and children.

“Prestige is a great selling point of gated communities, and we’re hoping to endow the country club with that as well. We aim to show people, especially non-homeowners that they cannot afford not to be members,” he said.

In terms of facilities, Mr Tippetts said the club’s management wanted to cover as many bases as possible but had identified the spa and massage centre as a key point.

“All the homeowners want a proper spa and massage on the estate because they’ve been going to Traders, Summit Parkview, the Sedona, the Parkroyal or other centres and they want one here.

“They’ve seen it here for some time and they know it’s coming, now it’s come and by March they will have it operating,” he said.

The final point was children. “We’ll be tailoring our operations over the coming months to children because that’s where Asia is going. We see that there is a community here with money that they are not spending on themselves but they do want to spend money on education and enjoyment for their children,” he said.

“We can provide a sort of second home for families where perhaps the father is out playing golf on the course, or the family just wants to come here for a weekend to swim and relax,” he said.

Mr Tippetts said the club was built for 2000 members but with numbers capped to 1500 initially.
“We will, of course, reopen it later but with the rates somewhat higher,” he said, without disclosing what that price would be. Each member can also sign up a spouse and children, for much lower rates, while corporate members can bring along four colleagues at K550,000 each.

“If people want to wait until all the facilities are finished before joining, they are welcome to do so. But there will be a higher cost for this,” he said.

Mr Tippetts said memberships can be transferred for a K150,000 fee, as long as the new person is accepted by the committee. Mr Tippetts emphasised the importance of the country club to Pun Hlaing. “This is our prime development for the 2010 year.”