I didn’t have a Thai upbringing. My parents sent me to live with my relatives in Toronto, Canada, when I was 12.

My English was so bad but I was young enough to adapt and live there fine. There were no other Thais in my neighborhood so English was the only way to communicate.

I didn’t have big dreams. I planned to open a Thai restaurant in Canada after graduating with a business degree because I was used to working in one and they are always in demand.

Everything changed when my grandmother got really sick. She’s so important to me so I had to come back to be by her side. My life in Thailand began again at the age of 27.

I got a PR job with [London nightclub-cum-record label] Ministry of Sound (MOS) when they came to Bangkok in 2000. I had no idea what they were all about and had to ask a friend before starting work.

I can’t even sing karaoke in tune. I had no prior experience in the electronic music scene. I thought it was a genre of world music.

I’m like a psychologist when dealing with people of different cultures. I’ve had Western bosses and Thai staff, all of whom have different work traits. I really wanted them to take lessons on cultural etiquette.

Working from scratch is so much fun. My MOS colleagues and I just followed our intuition, but it became the most popular club in town.

A club’s lifespan is short. People get bored so easily in the nightlife scene. MOS closed down after just two years due to financial problems.

I did so many jobs afterwards like opening a restaurant and a pub, and being an organizer for the MTV Asia Music Awards in 2005 which taught me lots of skills to work on music events.

Working too hard took its toll. I fell ill and had to have an operation to remove a tumor just days before the awards night. But I still went along in a wheelchair!

My boyfriend [Café Democ owner Apichart “Tui” Chaikaew] and I decided to launch Club Culture because we wanted an underground club like they have in Europe.

Thais love partying. That’s why electronic music is growing here, as proven by Culture One’s bigger crowds every year.

Our music scene is so boring. Everyone just follows the same trends. This is also obvious in our street fashion—everyone wears the same stuff.

Our business sector lacks guts. They only sponsor things that are guaranteed to sell, which is why our music scene lacks creativity.

Art, music and fashion must go together. When you dress up, where can you show off other than at a party? Many people don’t understand this and try to keep them separate.

Today’s youth don’t have many places to explore the things they love. They are 18 and want to express themselves but parks close at 6pm and clubs won’t let them in. That’s why there are so many dek waen on our streets—they don’t have anywhere else to go.

The music scene suffers because the authorities are too afraid of letting teenagers in. In many Western societies, teenagers are only barred from buying alcohol but not from clubs. Here, they have to wait until they are 20 to get into a bar and experience the world of music.

It’s too late for them to build a musical identity by then as most clubs just play the same old pop or covers.

Education is better than restrictions. Our society is too scared to teach children about sex and drugs at school. But no matter what, they’re going to find out about it anyway. So isn’t it better if they learn it the right way from their teachers?

Being a perfectionist can be disheartening. I used to get upset every time my staff couldn’t do some task I assigned them. Then I realized you can’t expect the same standards from others. I started teaching them and now I’m much happier!

You can’t control bad luck. Club Culture’s grand opening was set for the same day that the Red Shirts clashed with soldiers. Later, I was really stressed out when our club ran out of money as we didn’t have clubbers for six months. We have a huge debt.

You can’t make money if you don’t move forward. I’ve started everything from scratch, so why can’t I do it again? I’m still young enough, and I’m also lucky to have people who will support the things I choose to do.

There’s no 1+1 = 2 in this industry. It’s more complicated. You need to be creative to put on the best parties.

I’m happy that I am now closer to my mom than I’ve ever been before. My mom is young at heart. She even plans to join me at the Culture One event.

I dream of spending my retirement running a small hotel in Lampoon. It’s quiet and beautiful there.