US-based exec back home to take Ortigas to new level

The opportunity to take a billion-peso company public does not come up every day.

This is why when Rowell L. Recinto was offered the chance last year to become chief operating officer of Ortigas and Co. – now OCLP Holdings Inc. – he packed up his bags in the United States and came back home five years ahead of his self-imposed schedule.

Recinto tells SundayBiz that while he was happy working and living in the United States with his family, he did not really envision retiring in a foreign land. Coming home to the Philippines for good and leaving behind a fruitful and fulfilling corporate career have always been part of the grand plan, he says.

The 50-year-old real estate veteran just did not count on coming home this early.

The challenge to take the Ortigas group to the next level, however, proved too good to resist.

“Not too many people will have this opportunity. It is a chance that is not available to everybody,” says Recinto, who was involved in the redevelopment of the Ayala Center and Alabang Town Center, the development of Ayala Center in Cebu and the setup of the property businesses in the United States during his long years with the Ayala group.

It has been almost a year since the Industrial Engineering and Chemical Engineering graduate of De La Salle University took on last October 2010 the top job at OCLP Holdings, which is celebrating its 80th anniversary this year. And he has no regrets.

On the contrary, Recinto considers himself very fortunate to have been considered worthy to lead a company known to be among the pioneers in large-scale, integrated and mixed-use real estate development.

Ortigas developed some of the country’s landmark real estate projects, including the Ortigas Central Business District, Greenhills Shopping Center, Tiendesitas, Frontera Verde, Valle Verde Subdivisions, Greenmeadows and Greenhills subdivisions.

Soon to be added to the list is the Circulo Verde mixed use development in Quezon City.

Now Recinto has the mandate to add his own chapter to the Ortigas group’s long history by finally taking the company public, hopefully by the end of next year.

Recinto predicts that there will be a healthy demand for OCLP shares once they are offered to the public through an initial public offering because of the company’s huge land bank and enviable track record for developing real property assets the right way.

He says the group’s reputation for quality development should keep its bottom line healthy despite the significant increase in competition from both the veterans of the real estate scene and the new kids on the block.

“Not enough people are aware that we have a very valuable asset base. And we still have a substantial land bank and assets that can sustain us through the long term. We don’t even have to buy land now. We have more than enough real estate inventory for the next 10 years, maybe even the next 15,” says Recinto, who has a master’s in Business Administration from the Asian Institute of Management.

Recinto says that by going public, more Filipinos will be able to benefit from the Ortigas group’s growth, and the proceeds will help accelerate the development of real estate projects in the Ortigas group’s pipeline.

While other real estate companies are venturing into areas outside their core expertise, he says Ortigas will likely stay within its preferred niche, where it dominates and for which it is known.

“Ortigas’ strategy has been different from the start, because we have been a boutique developer and have focused on our niche. Our developments are mostly high-end retail and real estate, and I believe we have been – and will continue to be – a leader in that niche,” says Recinto.

With Recinto at the helm, combining management skills honed in the Philippines and abroad, there is no reason to believe that this will change anytime soon.