The digital age has introduced smart innovations into human life. From the smartphone to the smart car, the watchword is efficiency and integration across a wide range of functions. The global pandemic acting as a catalyst has sped up the process and thrust us into a new dawn where technology permeates every facet of life. To harness the immense potentials for a more productive and healthy lifestyle, The Purple Group is taking the lead in creating ideal communities that provide the ideal work-life balance in the digital age.
The Purple Group, in our flagship project, Maryland Mall, now rebranded Purple Maryland, created an exquisite shopping hotspot and leading neighbourhood retail and entertainment centre in a strategic location on the mainland.
Building on the success of Purple Maryland, our Group is extending the experience to the Lekki axis in Lagos with a much grander project, Purple Lekki. Typifying the vision of a 21st century cutting-edge mixed-use property concept, Purple Lekki is an integrated entertainment, hospitality and retail hub featuring retail groceries, co-working and private offices, serviced apartments offering residential and hotel lifestyle extended living.
This unique concept we have encapsulated in the apart-hotel model, which incorporates features of a regular residential apartment and a luxurious hotel suite, giving an all-round readily affordable living experience.
Apart-hotel straddles the real estate and hospitality markets, creating a high-yielding asset for astute investors. Considering the model, the yet-to-be-announced international partnerships and alliances, expected occupancy levels, room rates and several other factors, total returns will be high. These extended stay accommodations provide fully-fitted and furnished, self-catering apartments. They give you that home-away-from-home feeling. The living areas and fully-equipped kitchens help recreate the convenience and autonomy of home life.
The digital age has brought great changes to the way we live and interact within our immediate environment. The global pandemic, acting as a catalyst, has hastened the process and thrust upon us a new dawn requiring new perspectives on work-life balance.
Apart-hotel is the future of hospitality industry in a post-pandemic world. Holiday travels (or travelling for pleasure) are projected to dominate business travels as organisations embrace cutting-edge technology to streamline operations. The apart-hotel would naturally have more appeal in terms of cost and overall comfort than a traditional hotel, taking length of stay into cognisance.
Unlike traditional hotels, apart-hotels can fall within the traditional hotel size and up to three to four-bedroom apartments all containing the elements that make same a long liveable space for sleeping, cooking and hosting friends. Thus, you can eat and unwind there, but go to bed within this extended and multifunctional space.
The extended stay or apart-hotels have direct comparison with the studios to standard hotel rooms, but may seem smaller in size, with the two- and three-bedroom spaces when compared to the pure longer term traditional two- and three-bedroom apartments. They offer a fully-equipped kitchen with a dining area, cooking hob, microwave oven, and top-end kitchenware. Also, depending on the type of room chosen, a washer/dryer and dishwasher as additional amenities.
Market demand for apart-hotels is high and the Purple Group plans to meet that demand with supply on both the mainland (the Purple Macros) and on the island (Nanos at Purple Lekki). The Purple Macro will be sited beside Purple Maryland on the strategic Ikorodu road axis. With this close proximity, Purple Macro’s design safely incorporates 21st century mixed-use property concept that promotes connectivity, comfort and convenience.
Airbnb generated more money in the United States than Hilton, the world’s second-largest hotel group, and narrowed Marriott’s lead over the market. As such, Airbnb now accounts for 20 per cent of consumer lodging spending in the US market and continues to grow at a faster rate than the world’s three largest hotel chains. The tech-enabled drive that the Purple Group is pushing in the medium-term, using our proptech platforms would enable us to create a universe of units held by us and others, within the extended stay and residential space for investors looking for returns as well as occupiers looking for a place to stay.
There is a dire need for housing projects that will provide safe and affordable homes for the teeming populace in the country. The private sector has a critical role to play. The Purple Group through its Purple Living concept of mixed- use development is at the vanguard of this private sector participation.
As more organisations embrace the concept of operating from remote locations, more workers will find themselves spending more time working from home. Hence the need for home ownership is a major investment need of households in the 21st century.
Purple Group is poised to meet this need through the Purple Living concept that will see it providing premium and affordable housing units in choice locations around the metropolis starting with the unique Lekki and Maryland projects.
Purple Group brings a whole new concept into home ownership. The rising cost of rents in a cosmopolitan city, such as Lagos puts home ownership and real estate investment on the top list of priorities for an income earner. To ease the financial burden associated with a large ticket investment such as real estate investment, the whole Purple Living initiative incorporates structured payments which will further offer maximum customer satisfaction and an unbeatable long-term return on investment
Apart from providing much-needed housing units to bridge the estimated 18 million housing deficit in the country, the mixed-use development, which is an urban village plan of placing residences close to essential services and entertainment, is also a veritable means of wealth creation for savvy investors.
Many a time, ambitious pioneering projects face serious liquidity problems that may not totally ground the project, but would affect deadlines for completion thereby eroding profitability projections. The Purple Group has circumvented this problem by its strategic alliance with key financing institutions in both the public and private sectors.
A key partner is the nation’s premier financing institution, the Bank of Industry, which sees the huge potential for the economy on many fronts. Apart from addressing the important issue of housing shortages in the urban area, Purple Lekki will also provide a boost to the entertainment industry. This futuristic model will certainly play host for the shooting of many movies coming from the stables of the Nigerian film industry, Nollywood. This is in addition to the on-ground cinemas that will further increase the takings on domestic blockbuster movies.
Another key backer of this innovative project is Keystone Bank, a major player in the Nigerian banking sector. This private sector participant will certainly be on the lookout for how best to maximise the overall profitability of the project for all stakeholders.
In a bid to meet needs across a broad spectrum of investors, Purple Group has also issued Sukuk bonds to finance its property development. The bonds are halal products that meet the religious requirements non-interest bearing investment.
Given its professionalism and track record for meeting deadlines, Purple Group is set on delivering its first batch of Purple Living innovative developments on record time commencing Q2 2022.
The Purple Group commenced business in 2010 as an investment firm through synergies and continuous partnerships, delivering and creating lifestyle experiences through investments in superior mixed-use facilities, real estate, finance and entertainment across Nigeria.
* Mr. Olaide Agboola is the Group Chief Executive Officer of Purple Group
