NAVIGATING THE PANDEMIC WELL

ATTY. ANTHONY VINCENT S. SOTTO President and CEO 8990 Holdings Inc.

Our chairman emeritus, Luis Yu Jr., said it best: “Nothing beats preparation and planning.”

When the pandemic hit, there was an air of uncertainty. After restrictions eased following the first lockdown in 2020, the company’s top management convened for a week to identify and plan out what we needed to do for the rest of the year.

Knowing the pandemic would put a strain on logistics, we started to purchase materials in advance. That really made the impact on why we were able to not only survive, but actually post positive numbers.

Most important resource

What the pandemic also highlighted is that our most important resource is people. Our employees will ensure the sustainability of the company in the years to come.

We made sure our people were protected by implementing immediately our anti-COVID-19 protocols and company-wide vaccination program. Given that the real estate industry was one of the first sectors that was able to open up, it is a blessing that none of our employees were hit with the virus badly. While there were infections, they were all contained.

We are also proud to say that we did not retrench anyone.

Navigating the pandemic

To ensure a steady growth, it is pertinent that we stick to the plan we mapped out in 2020 on how to navigate and overcome this pandemic. We also review these regularly to make sure it adapts to the current environment.

Growth has always been there. The backlog currently stands at 6 million and the pandemic only emphasized the need for it.

Additionally, we believe that the demand for housing will further increase as the government further recognizes that homeownership is a wealth multiplier and, once unlocked, can support the country’s growth.

Should the pandemic situation continue to improve, we expect to see demand remaining strong next year. We have a number of projects in our pipeline and I’m excited that next year we will introduce another residential development in Metro Manila.