I buy with a little help from my friend

Looking for bargains in Bangkok? Rose George can recommend a personal shopper

Pong is all-powerful. He knows nearly everything, and even when he doesn't, he knows a man who does. This is what makes him such a treasured employee at the Banyan Tree Hotel in Bangkok. Because Pong – a concierge by day – is the hotel's star "shopping companion" and a priceless weapon in the eternal battle for business.

The luxurious hotel's shopping-companion service was the first in Thailand, invented to soothe the gift-buying obligations of its business-traveller clientele, who have little time to browse. But it also fits nicely with the recent efforts of the Tourist Authority of Thailand, which has embarked upon a campaign to entice women to the country.

"We get too many single male backpackers," says a tourist board spokeswoman . And everyone knows women love shopping. All women except me, that is.

Even so, the carrots dangled before me are pretty hard to resist: Bangkok's two-monthly Grand Sale offers discounts in 750 shops of up to 80 per cent on prices that are already pretty appealing (£5 for DVDs). But the other carrot is even sweeter, as I discover upon my arrival at the Banyan Tree. "You're booked in for a three-hour Royal Thai massage, if you don't mind," says the smiling receptionist.

Mind? No, not really. I turn up for my 3pm appointment with Pong the most fragrant I've ever been, after three hours of massage accompanied by a soft voice and endless rose petals. Our Mercedes limousine costs 500 baht (£7) an hour; Pong's services are free (though as hotel staff in Bangkok earn around $100 a month, a tip is morally obligatory for a man of his talents). Take a taxi instead, for a fifth of the price, and the hotel staff will note down the driver's number in case of complaints.

There is nothing Pong will not do to help me. And I need help: in normal conditions, my shopping tolerance is 30 minutes. Faced with Bangkok's sprawl, traffic, heat and abundance of shopping centres – the pristine Skytrain monorail has seven malls on one line alone – I am tempted to stay by the pool. So I start with the easy stuff: Thai handicrafts.

Pong heads for Silom village, a cute, low-rise development, and the games begin. I pick up a tray, and Pong jumps in, tapping the rattan: "Not good quality." I pick up another. More tapping. "Reasonable price." But not reasonable enough: my favourite part of the Pong service is his bartering, something I can never be bothered to do. After torrents of words, he pronounces a "last price, Miss Rose. Quite reasonable". A week after our first shopping trip, I find a letter from him at reception, telling me where to find some steel plates I had been looking for, and the retailer's most reasonable price. "If I don't know where to find something, I ask people in the hotel," he says.

He is bemused that I want to explore the lower end of the markets. "I can take you to where Thais get their clothes," he says. "It only costs 40 baht for a shirt." But it is probably beautiful cotton, unlike in the brand-name universe, where corporate minds have determined that Thais are to wear nylon and polyester in 35C heat. Even Marks & Spencer is an uncharacteristic riot of man-made material. If you want a dress in Thailand that will not stick to you in all the wrong places, get it made.

Indians are the best tailors, says Pong, and Raja's Fashions on Sukhumvit is a good one, while the Chinese control the Bangkok gold market, in gentlemanly fashion. "If you buy gold from the right places, you can sell it back if you need money later, and they give you 98 per cent of the price."

But when I suggest a trip to Chinatown, Pong checks his watch and looks pained. It is only 4pm, but already rush-hour is under way so it could take two hours. This is the city where police have been trained in midwifery because so many babies get born in gridlocked traffic while their mothers are en route to hospital. It is also where officers dance at intersections to ensure that drivers pay attention.

That night I venture forth to Bangkok's first official night bazaar. It is not far from the more notorious night market at Patpong, where a man thinks I'll be interested in "pussy writing letter". You cannot really bargain here, the shop girls tell me, but that may be because I am Pong-free. I succumb only to cotton shirts for £1 each and a year's supply of flip-flops, 100 baht each. Pong would be horrified.

Within an hour, all my bulky purchases – a set of steel wire kitchenware (£63), and the "reasonable price" tray (£6) – have been beautifully boxed by the Banyan Tree's concierges, complete with fashioned string handles. My credit card is steaming lightly. Before we part, Pong tells me he goes shopping three times a week. "People ask for me again because I am funny-friendly." I calculate that I've put in six hours of shopping. That makes him funny, friendly and a miracle-worker.

Rose George was a guest of AsiaWorld (08700 799 788; www.asiaworld.co.uk) and the Banyan Tree (01494 876 677; www.banyantree.com). AsiaWorld offers five nights' b&b at the Banyan Tree in October for £839 per person, including return flights with Thai Airways International and private transfers. All AsiaWorld guests will receive a complimentary upgrade to the Banyan Tree Club Floor. Return flights to Bangkok cost from £451 with Swiss via Zurich in September. Rooms at the Banyan Tree can be reserved direct from £190 per night.