“Philippine construction industry needs to catch up”: Robinsons Land Corp.
Investvine talked to Frederick D. Go, President and COO of Robinsons Land Corp. (RLC), one of the Philippines’ largest real estate developers and operator of mixed-use properties, hotels, office buildings, residential condominiums, shopping malls, hotels and social housing.
Among the company’s flagship projects are large mixed-use developments in Metro Manila, the Robinsons Galleria complex and the Robinsons Place Manila complex, as well as the Robinsons Magnolia Town Center in Quezon City, and additionally a number of high-end condominium projects and hotels in Manila – among them the iconic Trion Towers in Bonifacio Global City (BGC) in Taguig -, in Cebu and other cities.
The company is the development arm of Philippine tycoon John Gokongwei’s JG Summit Holdings Inc.
Some believe that a couple of Manila’s property markets, namely Bonifacio Global City, are being overbuilt. What is your opinion on this observation? We think that BGC or Fort Bonifacio will be the future premier Central Business District (CBD) of the city.
So do you see a ceiling in sight for the Philippine construction boom? Or can this growth be sustained for many more years? This would depend on the real estate boom. There are also a lot of opportunities to grow and improve the country’s current infrastructure. However, the construction industry has lagged behind the property industry boom. They have a lot of catching-up to do.
How does the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry support your decision-making with regards to future developments? The BPO industry is very important when we consider decisions for future developments. The BPO sector is the main driver of the office market growth in the country, which has a direct impact on our office business, and the staff they employ are potential consumers for our malls, guests in our hotels and buyers of our residential projects.
Southern Luzon is seen as a “very lucrative” real estate market. Why, in your opinion, do you think is that so? One reason for this is that since 1986, there was a big government push to develop the Calabarzon area (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon), resulting in its current development state.
In your view, what is the most exciting development RLC is working on right now? The most exciting development of Robinsons Land is Bridgetown Business Park, our newest mixed-use development located in Quezon City. This is a project in an eight-hectare property along two major roads, C-5 and Ortigas Avenue. We have recently opened our first office building there, Tera Tower.
How does RLC distinguish itself from competitors in the property development sector? As of today, we have 14 mixed-use developments across the country. For example, our Galleria complex features the Robinsons Galleria mall; two office buildings, Robinsons Equitable Tower and Galleria Corporate Center; the Galleria Regency condominium; and two hotels, the Crowne Plaza Manila Galleria and the Holiday Inn Manila Galleria, which are all physically connected together.
[caption id="attachment_26529" align="alignleft" width="159"] Frederick D. Go, President and COO of Robinsons Land Corporation[/caption] Investvine talked to Frederick D. Go, President and COO of Robinsons Land Corp. (RLC), one of the Philippines’ largest real estate developers and operator of mixed-use properties, hotels, office buildings, residential condominiums, shopping malls, hotels and social housing. Among the company's flagship projects are large mixed-use developments in Metro Manila, the Robinsons Galleria complex and the Robinsons Place Manila complex, as well as the Robinsons Magnolia Town Center in Quezon City, and additionally a number of high-end condominium projects and hotels in Manila - among them...
Investvine talked to Frederick D. Go, President and COO of Robinsons Land Corp. (RLC), one of the Philippines’ largest real estate developers and operator of mixed-use properties, hotels, office buildings, residential condominiums, shopping malls, hotels and social housing.
Among the company’s flagship projects are large mixed-use developments in Metro Manila, the Robinsons Galleria complex and the Robinsons Place Manila complex, as well as the Robinsons Magnolia Town Center in Quezon City, and additionally a number of high-end condominium projects and hotels in Manila – among them the iconic Trion Towers in Bonifacio Global City (BGC) in Taguig -, in Cebu and other cities.
The company is the development arm of Philippine tycoon John Gokongwei’s JG Summit Holdings Inc.
Some believe that a couple of Manila’s property markets, namely Bonifacio Global City, are being overbuilt. What is your opinion on this observation? We think that BGC or Fort Bonifacio will be the future premier Central Business District (CBD) of the city.
So do you see a ceiling in sight for the Philippine construction boom? Or can this growth be sustained for many more years? This would depend on the real estate boom. There are also a lot of opportunities to grow and improve the country’s current infrastructure. However, the construction industry has lagged behind the property industry boom. They have a lot of catching-up to do.
How does the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry support your decision-making with regards to future developments? The BPO industry is very important when we consider decisions for future developments. The BPO sector is the main driver of the office market growth in the country, which has a direct impact on our office business, and the staff they employ are potential consumers for our malls, guests in our hotels and buyers of our residential projects.
Southern Luzon is seen as a “very lucrative” real estate market. Why, in your opinion, do you think is that so? One reason for this is that since 1986, there was a big government push to develop the Calabarzon area (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon), resulting in its current development state.
In your view, what is the most exciting development RLC is working on right now? The most exciting development of Robinsons Land is Bridgetown Business Park, our newest mixed-use development located in Quezon City. This is a project in an eight-hectare property along two major roads, C-5 and Ortigas Avenue. We have recently opened our first office building there, Tera Tower.
How does RLC distinguish itself from competitors in the property development sector? As of today, we have 14 mixed-use developments across the country. For example, our Galleria complex features the Robinsons Galleria mall; two office buildings, Robinsons Equitable Tower and Galleria Corporate Center; the Galleria Regency condominium; and two hotels, the Crowne Plaza Manila Galleria and the Holiday Inn Manila Galleria, which are all physically connected together.
