A shopper buys rice at a small retail outlet participating in the 'Thais Help Thais Plus' campaign.
A member of the Thai Wholesale and Retail Trade Association has urged the government to implement measures supporting small retailers, particularly on accounting and tax-related issues.Somchai Pornrattanacharoen, honorary advisor to the Thai Wholesale and Retail Trade Association, said the government is focusing on allocating funding for co-payment schemes, but lacks long-term programmes to improve the skills of small retailers.
He said the government should encourage small retailers to formalise their operations.
Possible initiatives include providing training courses on basic accounting practices and value-added tax (VAT) registration. Incentives such as a grace period for newly registered operators could help increase participation.
Mr Somchai highlighted challenges faced by small retailers, including high gross-profit fees imposed by e-commerce platforms, as well as high rental costs and revenue-sharing agreements for physical store operators.
