Vision Makers

Creating a quintessential new luxury address for Bangkok requires extensive planning, lengthy discussion, and an endless supply of inspiration. Such a challenge has regularly called on the talents of five experienced Thai architects and interior designers who together form Country Group Development’s in-house Development team.

As the guardians of Country Group Development’s mission to create a truly world-class luxury waterfront masterpiece on the shores of Bangkok’s River of Kings, the core design and development team must live and breathe the company’s DNA. Every member focuses on bringing meaningful luxury to all the elements of Chao Phraya Estate, creating tangible and beneficial value that will ultimately help owners and guests get more out of their waterfront experience.

The team comprises Ms. Jaruwan Chalulaksananon, Mr. Pongpakorn Sarampakul, Ms. Chattaporn Thunglaohavichien and Mr. Phakorn Nilwong, with each person holding the position of Assistant Director within CGD’s Development Division. They work alongside each other as equals, in close consultation with Executive Director Varakorn Techamontrikul.

The multi-talented team is in charge of orchestrating a selection of world-renowned consultants and some of the biggest names in the world of design. With Varakorn leading the team, his approach to development stems from an understanding of the many layers of luxury design as well as a developer’s rationale. “The development team at CGD all hold key responsibilities to bridge the gap between the developer’s vision for the project, and accurately translate that vision to a team of consultants in order to best represent our customers from the very start of the project’s inception”, says Varakorn.

“Our team embodies a belief that you don’t need to be a huge corporation to create something incredible, as long as you have the right people and bring together the right talents,” says Varakorn. “We are each individually responsible for each of the development’s three key components on a day-to-day basis, but we are also interchangeable. If a particular area needs attention then we can ‘plug and play’ our skills into every part of the development, whether that means engaging in on-going discussions with our most senior design consultants, or taking on practical tasks such as cost analysis and procurement. This breadth and versatility has enabled us to achieve the results required at this level.”

RESIDENTIAL REFINEMENT

Waterfront living has become a benchmark for luxury lifestyles in many of the world’s greatest cities and the challenge was not only to emulate, but also to improve on the experiences offered in other destinations by delivering waterfront living at its finest to every owner at Four Season Private Residences Bangkok.

Layering in Thai hospitality with world-renowned Four Seasons service in a low density urban resort made the concept a compelling proposition, while at the same time adding significant value for investors. The development team worked closely with some of the best international master planners, designers and consultants in the world, supporting and challenging them to ensure that the final outcome oozes quality and sophistication, delivered with unique flair. “This is a one-of-a-kind luxury mixed-use scheme that comprises exclusively luxury residential and hospitality components without any office or large scale retail space distractions. The purity of the development scheme is what will ensure long-term value and appreciation for our residential customers in years to come”, says Jaruwan, who is involved with looking after the ultra-luxury, 73-storey Private Residences.

“We considered each and every element of the architecture and interiors not only as designers, but also as developers,” she adds. “Decisions such as placing the residences between the two low-rise hotel properties, for example, meant we were able to guarantee unparalleled and unobstructed views from every unit that will last forever”.

Country Group Development decided early in the project to make it a requirement that every unit at Four Seasons Private Residences was a corner unit. After months of consultation with the in-house design team, Hamiltons International delivered a beautifully simple, yet innovative and highly effective, one-of-a-kind geometric design – essentially making all 355 units, a corner unit, offering owners a unique combination of panoramic river and city views. “This innovative approach to architectural design allowed us to create extremely generous living spaces. To make the most of these additional volumes, BAMO, our interior design consultants from San Francisco, chose to stay away from conventional cultural influences, and create a sense of place with elements of classical timelessness throughout the interior design. This also involved collaboration with other key international consultants, a process we were called upon to help facilitate at every stage,” says Chattaporn.

EXCEPTIONAL HOSPITALITY

Aside from the challenges presented by Four Seasons Private Residences, creating two outstanding new luxury hotels in a highly competitive market is no small undertaking either. According to Varakorn, the team knew from the start that the only way to make a significant impact in the world’s most visited city, not to mention a country listed among the world’s top tourist destinations, was to aim high.

Pongpakorn explains further, “Four Seasons Hotel Bangkok at Chao Phraya River is another first for the Thai capital; a low-rise urban resort spread over nine acres of prime waterfront land. We wanted to set a new benchmark for Thai hospitality while bringing to life the iconic Four Seasons brand and our acclaimed international consultants all had very strong views on how to achieve this. The brand itself is also very strong, so our team had to build close relationships with and between everyone to rise to the challenge.”

Frequent and long creative sessions, backed up by regular conference calls were needed to reach a consensus on the final design of Four Seasons Hotel, but the team knew this was absolutely essential if they were to achieve the results expected.

Pongpakorn who was tasked to manage Four Seasons Hotel Bangkok at Chao Phraya River explains “The term “urban resort” is one of the most causally used phrases in real estate, but our development vision was to create a luxury urban resort in the truest sense. Personally for me, the challenge was both daunting and incredibly gratifying. We were fortunate to bring on board legendary designer Jean-Michel Gathy, whose name is synonymous with some of the most iconic hotels and resorts around the world. We challenged Mr. Gathy, and seized the opportunity to elevate this notion of the “urban resort; I’m truly excited and cannot wait till’ Four Seasons Hotel Bangkok opens its’ doors to the world”.

For Capella Bangkok, part of the challenge was to accurately capture the vibrancy and cultural significance of the River of Kings as well as its’ surrounding heritage, which is amongst the richest in the world - given the property’s amazing location. It was essential for the team to translate all of this into a sophisticated residence, as well as to befit an all-suite luxury hotel of this scale.

“If you look closely at the geography and culture of the locale, you will find a mixture and layering of history and culture along the Chao Phraya River. We wanted to capture that diversity in the experience at Capella, where each design of the 101 suites and villas is created to reflect the capital’s urbane cityscape and rich tapestry of Thai heritage. This was very challenging but also a very interesting task…working with top international experts has enabled us to achieve something truly original and meaningful”, explains Phakorn who is in charge of the development of Capella Bangkok.

Chao Phraya Estate features three totally distinctive but fundamentally cohesive elements all sharing the same breath-taking location along 350 metres of unrivalled urban waterfront land.

Bringing together such a unique combination of assets called for a lengthy and extremely detailed master planning process, followed by rigorous monitoring and continuous evaluation to ensure the estate is perceived and constructed as a whole and that it truly represents the sum of its outstanding component parts.

“We are just a small part of a large team who all share the same vision for the Chaophraya Estate, a promise of meaningful luxury to our residents and hotel guests… our approach reflects our company’s DNA and each milestone we reach is a proud moment for all of us. We’ve truly enjoyed the opportunity to work with some of the best professionals in their respective fields and it’s incredibly rewarding to see all the love and effort that’s been put into this project, blossom into a beautiful reality”, says Varakorn. As each component of Chao Phraya Estate progresses towards becoming one of Asia’s most notable developments, the pioneering talents behind Country Group Development’s development division will stand proudly alongside the staggering iconic property, as they aspire to help lead the company on their next big venture.