It feels like just yesterday, though it was nearly 60 years ago, that I was working alongside my elder brother, Samrit Chirathivat, managing the Central Department Store. We were incredibly proud to be among the first retailers introducing exciting new international brands to Thailand. And because we were trying to reach a sophisticated audience of Thai and foreign consumers, we needed the right channel to tell our story and market those products.

The usual mass media of the day, like radio and television, simply didn’t feel like the right fit for reaching our specific audience. I believed that the Bangkok Post was — and is — the ideal medium to reflect our brand’s image. That realisation sparked what would become an ongoing advertising partnership.

As the years passed and our relationship with the paper deepened, the foreign owners approached my brother, Khun Samrit, with an invitation to become a partner and shareholder. He immediately recognised the newspaper’s potential and chose to invest. Eventually, I inherited that incredible responsibility from him, and I have proudly continued to increase my stake in the Bangkok Post right up to the present day.

Over these many decades, I have stood with the paper through the media industry’s most soaring triumphs and its most daunting challenges. Through it all, I’ve learned that a newspaper is so much more than a business — it is a vital institution that shapes our society, drives our economy, and heavily influences how the international community views our nation.

For 80 years, the Bangkok Post has chronicled Thailand’s story, recording our periods of profound political, economic, and social transformation. We have always strived to be a platform for diverse opinions, anchored by an unwavering commitment to accuracy, credibility, independence, and public responsibility.

From its humble beginnings as a four-page black-and-white newspaper in 1946, the Bangkok Post has grown into Thailand’s oldest and leading English-language news organisation. Today, it is recognised both at home and abroad as an authoritative source of news, analysis and insight into Thailand’s political, economic, business, social and cultural life. In many ways, it has become a voice for Thailand to the international community.

Over the decades, Bangkok Post has also evolved far beyond its origins as a single-newspaper company. While the Bangkok Post remains at the heart of our organisation, we have continually adapted to changing times, expanding into magazines, commercial printing, digital platforms and other media businesses. This spirit of innovation and resilience has enabled us to serve readers across generations and through multiple technological transformations.

I know deeply that none of this would have been possible without the immense dedication of our people. To the generations of hard-working staff, both past and present — from the editorial and production floors to our advertising, circulation, and administrative teams — and to our valued business partners and advertisers: thank you. And above all, my deepest gratitude belongs to our readers. Your trust and support are the very lifeblood that has sustained us across the decades.

We find ourselves today in a rapidly shifting media landscape, where digital technology and artificial intelligence are fundamentally changing how the world consumes information. Yet, no matter how the platforms evolve, my belief in the core values of journalism remains absolute: we must always possess credibility, integrity, and the courage to present the facts truthfully and responsibly.

Our mission at the Bangkok Post goes beyond merely adapting to survive in this digital era; the real challenge is fiercely protecting the gold standard of quality journalism in a world where information is abundant, but true trust is increasingly difficult to earn.

For eight decades, the Bangkok Post has been so much more than just Thailand’s first English-language newspaper. We have been a vital bridge connecting Thailand with the international community and a window for the world to better understand our country in a thoughtful, balanced, and responsible manner.

On the occasion of this remarkable 80th anniversary, I want to personally express my most sincere gratitude to our readers, advertisers, business partners, and everyone who has stood by the Bangkok Post throughout the years. As we look to the future, we remain fiercely committed to the principles that earned the trust of generations, ready to adapt, innovate, and continue our proud responsibility as a quality news organisation serving Thailand for many years to come.

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Suthikiati Chirathivat is the honorary chairman of the Central Group and the chairman of the executive committee for the Bangkok Post.