Eric Pichon

Pirate of the Gulf of Thailand

These days, when people speak of piracy, they are most often referring to the illegal copying or distribution of copyrighted material via the Internet. This is definitely not the case with Eric Pichon, a French national and long-term resident of Thailand who has made Hua Hin his home and a significant part of his business livelihood since October 2020. A gentleman in his early 50s, Eric would not attract more than a simple glance in one of the local shopping malls. Yet stand him alongside one of his teak boats, wearing an eyepatch, a tricorn hat, a chunky necklace and knee length breeches, brandishing a cutlass, and Eric is sure to catch your eye and possibly even surprise or scare you a little. Donning this theatrical costume, Eric definitely wants to make his customers catch their breath, hoping to provide them with the adventure discovery experience of their lives.  When patrons confide that though they have travelled a lot, he has given them the best boating excursion ever, Eric can’t help but return their smiles.  Aargh, shiver me timbers and walk the plank, matey!

Eric prides himself on his adventurous nature and his ability to live his life without the restrictions society would like to impose.  He is a caring and somewhat crazy man who has taken the spirit of Thailand into his heart and soul.  Although he was born into what, for all intents and purposes, was a normal Parisian family, long ago Eric abandoned much of his French connection. He still speaks with an easily identifiable French accent, has an elder sister still residing in France and holds a French passport, but otherwise displays characteristics which mark him as deeply Thai in attitude. Indeed, each of Eric’s four trips back to France since he made Thailand his home in 2008 has made him feel “a foreigner in my own country”.

Eric’s parents, his French-born father and his second wife, Eric’s Thai stepmother, with whom he is exceptionally close, live in Bangkok, one of the reasons that Eric has decided to transfer his business base from Koh Samui to the more serene Hua Hin. Eric has a great affinity with Thai people and finds the local Thai community more natural and less swept up in the tourist world than in the confines of Koh Samui, which flourishes only on the back of the tourist trade. Another benefit of living in Hua Hin for Eric is its proximity to the lights of Bangkok, which still have a certain allure for a brief visit, yet definitely not for residence.

At the age of only 22, Eric established his first business, a real estate company which he ran for three and a half years, while taking care of his grandmother.  It was at this time that Eric met the woman who was to become his first wife, also in the real estate business.  After Eric’s grandmother died at the age of 90, Eric closed the business and undertook further study in the more manual areas of plumbing and electrical installation, including air conditioning. Eric’s second company, offering these same services, was established in Toulon, a significant port on the Mediterranean coast, but still a relatively small city. Other skills that Eric learnt as a young man were carpentry and mechanics. As a child, Eric had watched his father and his uncle work on engines so often that their functioning was no secret to him. This second business grew and thrived over five years before Eric determined to leave France altogether in June 2007, largely motivated by France’s “crazy tax system”.

This was a pivotal point in Eric’s life, most likely inspired by Eric’s father, an electronic engineer by trade, who moved into commercial sales, becoming a senior marketing manager for the Asia region for his company.  Although fluent in four European languages, Eric’s father had been drawn to Thailand, and had taken a Thai as his second wife, and the fascination with Thai people and culture definitely rubbed off onto Eric, who looked to Thailand as he distanced himself from France.  Eric will hear nothing about how “lucky” he is to be living his current lifestyle: no luck was involved, rather it was strategic decision making.  Unlike many foreigners searching for business opportunities in Thailand, Eric was not interested in running a bar, a restaurant or a guest house.  Taking stock of his interests and skills, Eric decided to pursue a business in boating, and the tourist island of Koh Samui, with its large and well-established marina and yachting culture seemed the ideal place, given its large and regular influx of Western tourists with money to spend.

Eric’s first boat, the Chantara, a 65-year-old teak junk boat originally from Myanmar, was purchased in 2009 on the island of Koh Samui and Eric began his new business, day cruising and tours around the island and the Koh Phangan archipelago, a business that now employs ten Thai staff members.  Eric was inspired to acquire the Chantara, as it was something uniquely Asian, something different to the fibreglass hulled boats you can find moored in any marina worldwide. Talking with a friend who was looking to live aboard a chartered boat in the Caribbean, Eric realised that the Chantara could provide him with a way to live in Thailand and bring his dream of a life on the sea into reality. Acquaintances were originally sceptical about the business plan, telling Eric he would have difficulty obtaining appropriate staff and then retaining them.  This has never been an issue at all for Eric, who has a real affinity with Thai culture and people.  He likes the Thai approach to life, where people focus on themselves and their families and choose not to involve themselves in other people’s business.  Eric is proud that he has become a surrogate family member to many of his staff, and has watched and helped them raise happy children over more than a decade now.

Working relentlessly eventually led to a situation of burnout. At the end of 2014, as he needed a break with business in Koh Samui, Eric purchased a second teak junk, the Siamtara, and throughout 2015 worked to completely renovate the boat.  It is large enough to accommodate 40 people on a day cruise but is also suitable for overnight charter with two double cabins with private toilet and shower as well as a salon, bar and kitchen.  The restoration work required the disassembling and then reassembling of the interior timbers, with 90 percent of the original wood being reused. The Siamtara, which was built as a river cargo ship to transport stone and sand for construction work, also required modification for stability at sea along with a new rudder, shaft bearing and transmission, and Eric was able to put his many areas of manual expertise to good use.  One of Eric’s many strengths as a team leader is that he takes a hands-on approach, leading by example and not shying away from the dirtier or heavier tasks. 

Eric is not one to remain idle and always has plans and projects on the go. He found himself becoming disenchanted by life on the tourist isle of Koh Samui, and more attracted to the relative normalcy of life in Hua Hin, where there is a large contingent of resident expats as well as Thai and Western tourists in high season.  Hua Hin seemed like an ideal location to take the Siamtara, free from what Eric labels the “boat mafia” that exists in other better-known places such as Phuket and Pattaya. Eric moved the Siamtara to Racer Marina in Paknampran in October 2020, taking advantage of the hiatus imposed by Covid to establish a second arm of his boating business in Hua Hin. After Covid, Eric returned to Samui to set up his capable team to be able to leave them in charge of the Koh Samui operations. Eric sees the transition to Hua Hin as one of his greatest achievements so far, now having a staff of five here in Hua Hin as well as the ten in Koh Samui. The establishment of dual, parallel ventures is a testament to Eric’s other strength, adaptability.  Eric is not perturbed by change, seeing it as opportunity rather than something to be feared. If you wish to see what Eric and the Siamtara have to offer, a quick look at huahinboat.com would be a good idea.

Having already chosen to march to the beat of his own drum, Eric doesn’t have many items on his bucket list. He would like to take Thai language lessons to improve his facility with the language when he has time, and with a particular soft-spot for Asia, would like to visit Japan to experience the culture and the cherry blossoms. Eric wants to continue enjoying the area to the south of Hua Hin, Pranburi to Khao Kalok being an area particularly dear to his heart.

Life has not always been smooth sailing for Eric.  At one point he nearly lost one of his boats, close to having to break it down to sell for parts. Eric and his business did manage to survive the pandemic lockout, Eric learning to appreciate that making less money actually comes with fewer responsibilities.  These days, Eric is stressing less, much less than his friends still living in France.  He has time to share a pastis or a whiskey with his team, to indulge his passion for cooking, whether it be French food, Thai food or a fusion dish and to enjoy a cuddle with Kimchi, his lovely four-year-old cat who enjoys travelling with Eric and discovering new places.

For Eric, the pirate garb he wears aboard the boat is a perfect match for the buccaneer spirit that inhabits his soul. Who has never dreamed of being like the legendary Jack Sparrow, even if only for a single day? Eric lives a life full of passion and adventure.  He has followed both his heart and his gut, and dares to be an individual. The best decision of Eric’s life has been to leave France for Thailand as it has brought him much happiness. Eric is the epitome of every young person’s fantasy - “Always be yourself, unless you can be a pirate. Then always be a pirate”.