TCDC Phuket launched to support local creators and heritage
The new Thailand Creative & Design Center: TCDC Phuket will serve as a hub for learning, innovation, business development and creative networking.
The Creative Economy Agency (CEA) and the Phuket Provincial Administrative Organisation have launched the Thailand Creative & Design Center: TCDC Phuket to support local creators, entrepreneurs, young people and the public.
The centre is intended to expand Phuket’s creative network and act as a hub for learning, innovation, business development and networking. The CEA said about 30 organisations had applied to launch local TCDC branches, with 10 selected.
The agency said TCDC Phuket’s creative lab would function as a tourism lab built around the island’s unique identity and help transform local stories into creative designs and new service models.
TCDC Phuket is housed in Chartered Bank House, a historic building constructed in 1907 during the reign of King Rama V in the British colonial architectural style. A recent restoration preserved the original structure, including an English bathroom on the second floor.
The building hosts two main exhibitions, “From Chartered House To TCDC Phuket” and “Jab Hoy” (Mom-and-pop Stores). The first exhibition was scheduled to remain open until 30 August, while “Jab Hoy” had ended the previous week.
“From Chartered House To TCDC Phuket” traces Phuket’s development before it became a busy trading port and highlights the island’s links with sea-gypsy communities including the Moken, Moklen and Urak Lawoi. It also examines how the growth of tin mining attracted diverse groups and contributed to Phuket’s Sino-Portuguese architecture, including commercial shophouses and western-style mansions.
The exhibition says Phuket’s tin industry led international banks, including Chartered Bank, to establish operations on the island. After World War II, the tin market declined and Phuket shifted towards tourism in the 1960s.
A product display at the centre features established and emerging local brands. Long-standing brands include Rod Yon Soy Sauce, Leng Tae boiled sugarcane juice and Khun Mae Jue, known for peanut candy, pepper cookies and tao sor, a traditional Phuket pastry. Newer brands include Phuket Cacao, Torry Ice Cream and Araya Naturals essential oil.
