In 2020, Echo Investment achieved a net profit of PLN 122 million, which was the result of hand over 1,505 apartments to clients, growth in value of the commercial projects under construction, as well as completed Resi4Rent projects.
Taking into account the new reality in which the company operates, social trends, and changing client preferences, Echo Investment focuses on growing the residential sector. Apartments for sale and apartments for rent account today for about a quarter of its assets. Due to the high prospects for this sector in Poland and the lower need for external financing of this business, Echo’s ambition is to increase significantly the proportion of residential assets on its balance sheet. After finalizing the purchase of the majority stake in Archicom, only in 2021, the group will start the construction of 7,000 apartments for sale and rent.
“Last year we made a decision to increase the focus on the residential sector and to carry out most of the investments as part of multifunctional, large projects called "destinations". These directions are a part of our current strategy that also assumes that we strive to be leaders in each segment we operate. We are going to grow our presence in the residential market annually going forward and thanks to joining forces with Archicom our group will become the biggest residential developer in Poland,” says Nicklas Lindberg, CEO of Echo Investment.
In 2020, the developer completed the construction of eleven projects in Warsaw, Łódź, Poznań and Wrocław and started the construction and sale of apartments in seven projects, which added almost 1,300 apartments to the offer. Last year, Echo Investment hit records both in sales and handovers of apartments. The company managed to sign 1,570 sales contracts with clients, which outperformed last year’s results by 16%. At the same time, clients received their keys to 1,505 apartments, which meant a 19% increase compared to 2019. The sales only in Q4 2020 amounted to 464 units, while handovers to 792.
Resi4Rent, the largest private company with apartments for rent in Poland, has now nearly 1,800 apartments in Wrocław, Łódź and Warsaw, and in 2021 it will complete another 460 apartments and start construction of more than 3,000 additional units. Ultimately, by 2025, it will offer 10,000 apartments in the six largest Polish cities – in Warsaw, Kraków, Łódź, Wrocław, Gdańsk and Poznań.
“The financial situation of Echo Investment is stable. In 2020, we generated over PLN 122 million of consolidated net profit, and at the end of the period, we had cumulated PLN 327 million of cash on our accounts. In addition, in 2020 we have acquired attractive land properties for 275,000 sqm of residential and service space. With such a strong financial situation and an impressive land bank, we are ready to implement our strategy,” comments Maciej Drozd, CFO of Echo Investment.
Last year, Echo Investment's office department focused on completing the construction of office buildings as scheduled and on providing tenants for them. The developer commissioned five buildings with a total area of over 125,000 sqm. At the end of the year, their average lease level exceeded 60%, and the current level of commercialization and our advanced talks bring this ratio closer to 85% that is making the buildings ready to be sold on the market.
The retail sector was hit the hardest during the pandemic, mainly due to three lockdowns and continually protracted restrictions. It has been a priority for Echo’s leasing and management departments to reach an agreement with tenants on principles for returning shopping centres. The most important event for the company’s retail projects in 2020 was the opening of the first Primark store in Poland in Galeria Młociny in Warsaw. It was one of the most anticipated debuts on the Polish market, which definitely strengthens the attractiveness of this project.
