CEBU, Philippines - When AppleOne Properties Inc. Vice President for Operations Yvet Villareal Andalis started selling the condominium and office units of AppleOne Tower, she felt like she was a "stranger introducing a new developer."
After all, she and her husband, who have been living in the US, and came home to the Philippines, to Cebu in particular, to handle the property.
But although she felt like a stranger, Ms. Andalis is no stranger to the world of real estate. She has 20 years of solid experience in real estate management, operations, project development, sales and marketing in the Philippines, as well as the US.
Before joining AppleOne, Ms. Andalis was a licensed realtor in the US and a member of the California Association of Realtors, National Association of Realtors and Rancho Southeast Association of Realtors in Cerritos, California. She was also connected with Uptown Brokers, based in Bellflower, California.
In the Philippines, before she moved to the US, Ms. Andalis was part of the MBVillar Group of Companies and was the creator of the distinct high-end image of Brittany. She was also connected with ExtraOrdinary Development Corporation, as well as the Fort Bonifacio Development Corporation, under Metro Pacific Group and Ayala Land where she served as Vice President for Marketing, Sales and Leasing.
Ms. Andalis, a Bachelor of Arts in mass communications, journalism and broadcasting cum laude graduate of Centro Escolar University also worked for multinational advertising agencies like J. Walter Thompson, Ogilvy and Mather, and J. Romero & Associates.
"That was the hurdle when I started with AppleOne. No one knew us as a developer. It was quite hard for me. I was a stranger introducing a new developer," she said
But in just a short period of time after introducing AppleOne to the Cebu market, Ms. Andalis and the property gained the trust of the buyers. "We are now known, the people have trusted us and they now know that their money is in safe hands. Nakita ko na ang fruits of my labor," she shared.
It was not really hard to sell AppleOne, according to Ms. Andalis. The location, she said, AppleOne Tower is located at the Cebu Business Park, right beside the Cebu City Marriott Hotel, is already a perfect selling point to start with. "Cebu is the best of both worlds. The business environment is great and relaxation and leisure time is also perfect, what with all the beautiful beaches."
Dealing with the Cebuano is also delight, as Ms. Andalis said Cebuanos are a sincere people. "Mas madali magtrabaho dito. There is a depth when you talk to people. Cebuanos really mean it. I really admire the level of transparency of the Cebuanos. Dito, kung ano ang kaharap mo, hindi nangpapanggap," she said.
AppleOne Tower being a hit proves that Ms. Andalis and the people working with her have done a great job in introducing a new brand.
To date, the residential units at AppleOne Tower are already 100 percent sold out. "Most of our buyers are Cebuanos who are residing in the US or in Australia, there are also foreigners. Most of these buyers are young professionals born in the 70s to 80s, mga bata na may pera," she shared.
Ms. Andalis said that they have also met 60 percent of their target when it comes to the office space sales. The AppleOne Tower is an accredited IT Building by the Philippine Economic Zone Authority so it is ready to serve business and knowledge process outsourcing companies.
As to the construction of the tower, the work is already at the 7th floor of the 16-storey building. "I am very pleased that we are doing good in terms of sales. Soon we will have our topping-off ceremonies and we expect to be able to turnover the units to our clients in 2012," Ms. Andalis said.