Our focus for the next 5 years is NCR: Amarjit Singh Bakshi, MD, Central Park
Sanjeev Sinha caught up with Amarjit Singh Bakshi, MD, Central Park Estates Ltd, for his take on the industry and the group's various plans. Excerpts:
By ET Bureau |
The Central Park group, known for its upscale properties in Gurgaon, has been involved in infrastructure development and real estate projects for the last three decades. Jointly promoted by Amarjit Bakshi and K S Bakshi, it also has Ashmore PLC, a leading international PE fund based out of the UK, as a third partner. Central Park currently has projects worth $2 billion under various stages of implementation -- over 2 million sq ft of existing development and another 6 million sq ft in advanced stage of planning/execution across verticals such as upscale residential development, hospitality and SEZs. The company’s current focus is the NCR region and plans to become a $5-billion company in 5 years from now. Sanjeev Sinha caught up with Amarjit Singh Bakshi, MD, Central Park Estates Ltd, for his take on the industry and the group’s various plans. Excerpts:
Which are the businesses the Central Park group is currently in and what are its core strengths?
Central Park is into developing luxury condominiums, resort living, mass high quality housing, hotels & spas, commercial buildings & malls, and SEZs. The core strength is the attitude of the organization which is aligned towards the overriding goal of creating customer delight. This is our biggest strength today. Secondly, we believe our leadership team represents amongst the best talent in the industry in functions such as HR, marketing, execution, finance & accounts, purchase & commercial and land procurement and liaison. We are a people-oriented corporate company with a zero debt and our attempt is to achieve high standards of governance. The company doesn’t get into pressure to do anything which doesn’t fit in the highest practices of conduct. Regardless of the category of the customer that is being served, our organisation being customer-led, we are highly focused on quality.
Central Park has been involved in infrastructure development & real estate projects for a long time. How is the real estate industry doing currently and what are its growth prospects and future outlook?
The real estate industry is a direct reflection of urbanization. The growth is very strong in our country, particularly in NCR. Therefore, the company’s focus for the next 5 years is NCR. The future of the industry is extremely bright. The fact that a few companies are highly stressed because they are leveraged does not indicate that the real estate space is under pressure. So far as the future of the industry is concerned, we strongly believe that the real estate sector will evolve with a central focus on customers, which means that good construction companies will become real estate developers and real estate companies will have to become good construction companies to ensure projects are delivered on time and are of high quality, having costs under control.
The industry is also facing lots of issues currently. With the Union Budget round the corner, what are the main expectations of the industry to sustain its development and growth in future?
Infrastructure is the biggest challenge around new growth centers. There needs to be greater accountability at the state government level. I don’t think the budget can entirely solve this problem. Roads, sewerage lines, common parks, public transport and the state of traffic are all in a pathetic condition and such issues need immediate redressal.
How important is the NCR region for you and what are your plans for this region?
Our major focus is NCR for at least 5 years because it is a high potential area and also one that we have immense knowledge of.
Which are the businesses the Central Park group is currently in and what are its core strengths?
Central Park is into developing luxury condominiums, resort living, mass high quality housing, hotels & spas, commercial buildings & malls, and SEZs. The core strength is the attitude of the organization which is aligned towards the overriding goal of creating customer delight. This is our biggest strength today. Secondly, we believe our leadership team represents amongst the best talent in the industry in functions such as HR, marketing, execution, finance & accounts, purchase & commercial and land procurement and liaison. We are a people-oriented corporate company with a zero debt and our attempt is to achieve high standards of governance. The company doesn’t get into pressure to do anything which doesn’t fit in the highest practices of conduct. Regardless of the category of the customer that is being served, our organisation being customer-led, we are highly focused on quality.
Central Park has been involved in infrastructure development & real estate projects for a long time. How is the real estate industry doing currently and what are its growth prospects and future outlook?
The real estate industry is a direct reflection of urbanization. The growth is very strong in our country, particularly in NCR. Therefore, the company’s focus for the next 5 years is NCR. The future of the industry is extremely bright. The fact that a few companies are highly stressed because they are leveraged does not indicate that the real estate space is under pressure. So far as the future of the industry is concerned, we strongly believe that the real estate sector will evolve with a central focus on customers, which means that good construction companies will become real estate developers and real estate companies will have to become good construction companies to ensure projects are delivered on time and are of high quality, having costs under control.
The industry is also facing lots of issues currently. With the Union Budget round the corner, what are the main expectations of the industry to sustain its development and growth in future?
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Infrastructure is the biggest challenge around new growth centers. There needs to be greater accountability at the state government level. I don’t think the budget can entirely solve this problem. Roads, sewerage lines, common parks, public transport and the state of traffic are all in a pathetic condition and such issues need immediate redressal.
How important is the NCR region for you and what are your plans for this region?
Our major focus is NCR for at least 5 years because it is a high potential area and also one that we have immense knowledge of.
What are your other plans and projects?
Our major focus is on high-quality mass housing which will change the way houses in India are constructed. Automotive manufacturing practices will be incorporated into this. The technology will be precast to ensure high quality and highly safe buildings at reasonable prices where the benefit of improved practices will be passed on to the customers.
Are you also eyeing the overseas markets?
Not for the time being. But later on, when high-quality mass housing takes shape, we will look at places such as Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Nepal and Bhutan where a real need exists for such housing.
Belgravia Resorts is one of your upcoming projects. What exactly is resort living and how is it different from other luxury projects?
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We are not only going for Belgravia Resorts, but are also going for a higher segment called Belair Resorts because there is an unmet demand for such a living experience. Resort living is the need of any family who is doing well, but it is not available anywhere else in the NCR region. Here the living is designed as if a family is living on a resort with greenery all around. Noise, air pollution & vehicle congestion are simply not there. All other facilities such as walking, jogging and cycling tracks, horse riding and a club house are available. These compare with the best of such facilities globally.What is the future of resort projects in India?
Once we have created and shown resort living, we believe all our competitors will enter this segment in a big way.
What are your plans in the hospitality sector?
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We are looking at the hospitality sector as an independent vertical and we plan to have about 20 projects within 5 years from now. This will consist of resorts, spas, 5 star and 2 star hotels catering to leisure and business segments.If all goes well, where do you see the Central Park group from, say, 5 years from hence?
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We expect the Central Park group to be a $5-billion company in 5 years from now. We are determined and focused to ensure that it happens as we have planned. Download
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