7-Eleven worker in Bangkok serves foreign shoppers in 7 languages, from Burmese to German

A 48-year-old assistant manager at a Bangkok 7-Eleven has gone viral after a TikTok clip showed him speaking fluent English and Chinese, two of the seven languages he says he can use.

The user who posted it, @gameboyz666, wrote that the employee could speak as many as seven languages and asked where 7-Eleven found staff like him. Commenters joked that he might be the company chairman in disguise.

The employee is Teerawat Wanichkam, known as Tony, or Phi Tho to his younger colleagues, Khaosod English reported. He works at the 7-Eleven branch at the Bangkok International Trade and Exhibition Center (BITEC), a convention venue in the city's Bang Na District.

He has been with the chain for more than three years and also works as an interpreter and master of ceremonies.

In an interview posted on Oct. 23 by another TikTok account, @711idol, Teerawat said colleagues had shown him the clip, but he never expected it to reach millions of views. Comments praising him as a credit to Thailand touched him most, he said.

"I work in the service industry. You could compare my role to that of a goodwill ambassador, welcoming visitors from around the world and making them feel at home," he said. "I want them to feel that 7-Eleven in Thailand is different from elsewhere, so they will appreciate the experience and want to return to Thailand."

He said he can use all seven languages in daily life and at work: English, Chinese, Japanese, Malay, Indonesian, German and Burmese. English, Chinese and Malay are his strongest.

A 7-Eleven store in Thailand at night. Illustration photo by Unsplash/Ainur Iman

Teerawat comes from Ayutthaya, a former Siamese capital popular with foreign tourists, and said he has been at ease with foreigners since childhood.

His education includes a bachelor's degree in communications, studies in law and master's degrees in languages and tourism.

He lived and worked on the Malay Peninsula and was posted to Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia, which got him used to switching between languages.

Before joining 7-Eleven, he was a tour guide for foreign visitors, a career upended by the Covid-19 pandemic, Tnews reported.

With the tourism sector shrinking, Teerawat turned to the convenience store chain, where he could keep dealing with people and using his language skills.

He recalled once occasion during his first days, more than 10 tour buses pulled up and hundreds of Chinese tourists streamed into the store to buy souvenirs, a rush that let him put his language skills to full use.