VINDICO Celebrates 20 Years of Excellence in the Retail Real Estate Industry!

COVER STORY

VINDICO CELEBRATES YEARS OF EXCELLENCE

IN THE RETAIL REAL ESTATE INDUSTRY!

September 2022 marks an important anniversary for Vindico. 20 years ago, this retail delivery and design business simultaneously launched in London and San Francisco. Founded by Peter Row and Marc McQuain, Vindico began servicing owners and developers of retail assets with a disciplined approach to the design and construction of tenancies. In 2007, they established their head office in Dubai. The move to the UAE represented the continual efforts of Vindico to grow and push international best practices into different parts of the globe. Over the years, Vindico has collaborated with many of the premier retail developers in the industry to achieve success in opening their marquee assets. From the likes of Place Vendôme Qatar in Doha, to Aldar’s Yas Mall in Abu Dhabi, to Reliance’s Jio World Drive in Mumbai, Vindico has a pedigree for delivering successful retail projects for and on behalf of their global clients. Of equal importance is how Vindico

VINDICO Management Team

L-R Back - Paul Mathews - Chief Operating Officer | Nicci Anderson - Chief Financial Officer | Maryam Patel - Head of Retail Delivery | Nihad Muzamil - Director | Ramesh Anbalagan - Head of Talent & Digital L-R Front - Trapti Rai - Marketing Manager | Abdullah Al Rafaei - Executive Advisor | Marc McQuain - Founding Director | Peter Row - Founding Director | Richard Kim - CEO & Managing Director Lynn Hemingway - Head of Qatar & Oman

YAS BAY

Abu Dhabi, UAE

facilitates the relationship between landlord and tenant which evolves beyond the initial development stage and sets the tone for a successful operating asset. Opening a new shopping center is never easy. It creates what Vindico defines as the Developer’s Dilemma. Developers always face the three forces that create opening uncertainty or dilemma: 1) volatility of the leasing markets, 2) dependency on tenants and their teams, and 3) the complexity of rigid construction methods and programmes. When opening days go wrong, there are disgruntled brands, disappointed customers, delayed returns, and damaged reputations. Vindico overcomes the Developer’s Dilemma by creating a process which addresses those three forces. Their process achieves certainty over what opening day looks like. They have been on a mission to help their clients obtain this certainty and redefine retail real estate with what they have labeled as retailmomentum™. It connects brands and buildings with agility to deliver a complete retail experience. As Vindico scales their business and expands their offerings, a collection of key partnerships has formed. Anarock, one of the leading real estate services companies in India, has

PLACE VENDÔME

Lusail, Qatar

LULU MALL LUCKNOW

Lucknow, India

Bringing Brands and Buildings Together

partnered with Vindico to create a more robust and wellrounded service offer across that country. Vindico has also joined with Pradera, a European fund and asset management company. This joint venture expands their presence in the middle east whilst expanding Vindico’s service offerings. Using 3D graphics, vacancy activation specialists, 3DWD create engaging storefront activation solutions for upcoming brands and commercial real estate developers. Vindico’s local presence in the Middle East & India and 3DWD’s design solutions are redefining the experiences that shopping malls and airport retail centres can offer their customers. Vindico’s sister company, Pop Retail, was formed in 2014 to provide tenants and landlords with a product offer for pocketshops™ inside retail assets requiring a transition

JIO WORLD DRIVE

Mumbai, India between leases or solutions for vacancies. Temporary or popup retail has been utilized more widely in recent times and pocketshops™ were created to address this need. And in the United States, Vindico has invested in a company called Volstrukt, an LSF manufacturer for the residential market. Volstrukt was developed to administer cost effective solutions to housing shortages found in various parts of the country. Vindico is currently lead by an executive team composed of CEO and Managing Director - Richard Kim, COO - Paul Mathews, and Director of Operations - Nihad Muzamil. We recently had the opportunity to interview Richard to get his thoughts on a variety of different topics affecting Vindico and the retail industry. 1. What is Vindico doing now in the international market?

We have several dozens of on-going projects and clients worldwide, including India, Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Qatar. Our partnerships with companies such as Anarock and Pradera have proven to be beneficial in adding to our sales pipeline whilst increasing our exposure to different markets. They have been critical in developing our plans for scaling the business across various regions. We’ve also had the opportunity to expand our service offerings through these partnerships along with our technology investments.

YAS MALL

Abu Dhabi, UAE

Prior to the pandemic, the retail industry was already seeing softness in the market and as we were adjusting to that slowdown, the pandemic hit, and we all experienced the difficulties in living through that. But weathering global and regional economic slowdowns is nothing new. Whether it’s a recession or a virus, every business, and person for that matter, needs to pivot when events beyond one’s control happens. We are a nimble company that has and will continue to weather any downturns while advising the best course for our clients. And as many experts have determined, the pandemic ushered through an evolution in many industries, including retail, during the span of those 2 years. It would have taken decades had the pandemic not hit. We look at this as a huge opportunity to innovate and find solutions, particularly from a tech and digital perspective. 3. How is Vindico using technology to enhance service to your clients?

I’m generalizing here, but compared to other industries like finance or automobiles, real estate and development have had a tendency to underutilize digital tools. Additionally, research and development of industry specific technology has always been less of a priority than that found in other industries. It’s no surprise our industry operating assets and buildings have not changed much from 20 years ago. That being said, there are some really creative companies and ideas transforming the way retail and commercial spaces are being designed, built, and operated. We include ourselves in that group of innovative businesses. We see the inefficiencies in legacy processes, and we are determined to provide better solutions. Our business began as an Analog Platform, bringing various parties together to work collaboratively towards a common goal. We have since digitized much of that process. For several years now, we have been offering a Technology Platform solution to retail delivery called VRDnet.

We have positioned ourselves to scale significantly over the next several years by penetrating additional regions and setting up partnerships to facilitate the increasing demands of the market and our clients.

4. What changes have you seen in the retail industry and where do you see the opportunities?

Consumer driven solutions and goals have never been more important. And with the advent of data sciences that aggregate and churn through metrics that analyze buying trends with a level of specificity beyond anything we could have imagined just a few years ago, the pressures on retail brands and subsequently the landlords that house those brands, is immense. There has never been a time that requires more collaboration between landlords and tenants than now and Vindico always sits in the middle of those relationships and have witnessed some remarkable shifts. The change that brands have brought to their products, in how they market themselves, in how they manage their supply chains, in how they interact with their customers, etc. have all manifested in a shop that acts as a store, as a fulfillment center, as an experiential environment and continues to be a local commercial hub for that brand. And what some of the great landlords have done is simply house those brands in an environment with commercial agreements and physical connections that are mutually beneficial, rather than creating animosity and conflict. We ensure these relationships flourish.

5. Where will Vindico be in 10 years?

We have positioned ourselves to scale significantly over the next several years by penetrating additional regions and setting up partnerships to facilitate the increasing demands of the market and our clients. We think the continuing pressures on commodity and material pricing will force developers to innovate and find efficiencies in building processes, which then lends itself to hyper efficient use of space. Subsequently, retailers will find themselves pivoting and designing spaces and products that must be viewed, experienced, and purchased online and offline, through continuously diversifying omni-channels. We believe in being part of a circular economy that demands sustainability and zero waste. The repositioning of existing assets to become multi-functioning (not just mixed-use) properties will demand focused design parameters that cater to multiple consumer and community needs. Additionally, we believe in giving back to the communities we work in. For many years we have contributed to an international organization called B1G1 which provides education to children. We are excited to continue this association with B1G1 and other charitable organizations in the future.