MARCH 10, 2009

How F1 can help your business?

Singapore enterpreneur Ong Beng Seng has a large business empire. He owns hotels all around the world while also controlling a number of important franchises in Asia, notably in the fashion world, the restaurant business and in the automobile trade.

Singapore enterpreneur Ong Beng Seng has a large business empire. He owns hotels all around the world while also controlling a number of important franchises in Asia, notably in the fashion world, the restaurant business and in the automobile trade. It was his money that helped to convince the Singapore government that it would run a race on the streets of the city. This was a great success, although the hotel prices were hiked to such an extent that some of the bigger hotels could not find clients willing to pay. This year there will be more reasonable rates and no doubt everyone will be happier. Beng Seng will be pulling in large amounts of cash from the crowds that flock to the city and spend in his various emporia and F1 will rejoice in what is a great event, which has done F1 a great deal of good in Asia.

There are added bonuses. The rumour in Singapore is that Beng Seng's automobile business is about to be named as the official Ferrari dealer in Singapore. At the recent Geneva Motor Show Ferrari chief executive Amedeo Felisa said that the company will have sales in Asia at around the same level as the United States. This is in the region of 25% of the firm's business. Singapore will have an important share of the 1500 or so Ferraris that will be sold in Asia - and will make a nice tidy profit as a result.

Who says that F1 cannot make you money?