Looking back at the last two and a half years, our lives changed in ways we never imagined.
We are cognizant of what was lost. But we also recognize that this is a testament to our resiliency as Filipinos. For us at Ayala Land, it reinforced our belief that the true value of our business is how it can better serve the community, most especially during trying times.
One important realization we find quite fulfilling is how the relevance of estate living became pivotal to the pandemic and how it aligned with the priorities of people living and working within these communities.
Building mixed-use, sustainable estates centrally-located within key growth centers has always been at the forefront of our vision. More than physical structures, we develop communities which combine commercial, industrial, institutional and residential developments. Integrated in these bustling urban districts are parks and open spaces that provide respite from the hustle and bustle of daily life.
Taken together, these create economic engines within a sustainable environment that provide greater value to stakeholders and end-users.
The pandemic demonstrated the preparedness and significance of our estates which are master-planned for integration, comfort, convenience, and security. With quarantine restrictions enforced, being confined in a complete estate where essentials are easily accessible became advantageous.
Mobility
Incorporating mobility and pedestrianization in the design became providential too. People living and working within our estates appreciated the ease of movement. Providing greens and outdoors for the community served as sanctuaries for wellness. Our estates naturally became safe leisure destinations.
Despite frequent lockdowns which nearly led to the shutdown of the economy, we never ceased business operations and proceeded in delivering products and services to our customers, while ensuring that our communities adapted to the new environment.
To achieve all these, we, first and foremost, ensured our employees were safe, while equipping them with all the tools needed to be able to work efficiently. Employees and their families were enrolled under the Ayala Vaccine and Immunization Program (AVIP). We implemented flexible “work-from-home and where effective” arrangements. We re-assessed and re-tooled our teams to emerge stronger.
Three new estates
With renewed energy and commitment from our organization, Ayala Land will launch three new estates this year to reach and serve more Filipinos. As we continue to stay a step ahead, these new offerings cater to the post-pandemic world while retaining our company values as Ayala Land.
As a trusted and well-established developer with decades of experience, we need to be agile, adept and must continue to evolve.
In our residential business, we saw increased demand for horizontal products these past two years as people preferred life outside the city with more open spaces.
While this trend may continue, we also expect a recovery of vertical projects across income segments as the economy re-opens and people increasingly return to their pre-pandemic lives.
We are offering a balance of products this year with the launch of P100-billion worth of inventory, equally split between horizontal and vertical offerings.
At the height of the pandemic, we provided rental concessions to our Ayala Malls merchants nationwide to help ensure the viability of their operations. In response to changing consumer and market needs, we also enhanced experiential retail and repurposed spaces to strengthen our malls’ thrust as the town centers of the communities they serve.
The office market
The office leasing sector remained stable during the pandemic and we are now seeing increased demand from the BPO and HQ locators. Our recently completed office buildings in the central business districts have provided new options for those expanding their operations or setting up business in our country.
With activity normalizing and “revenge travel” happening, our hotels and resorts are now in full operation, ready to welcome our local and foreign guests with the hospitality they have come to experience from Seda and El Nido resorts.
All told, while it was our fundamentals and prudent strategy that helped the company weather the effects of the global pandemic, it is our foresight in planning and our ability to innovate with the community in mind that differentiate us at Ayala Land.