RLC putting up building for contact center operators

Robinsons Land Corp. will not be left behind when it comes to establishing cyberparks or information and communication technology hubs.

RLC senior vice-president Frederick Go said the company is constructing an office building for contact center operators to take advantage of the Philippines’ booming call center business, which has generated employment for close to 32,000 Filipinos.

Go said the new office building is part of RLC’s latest project in Mandaluyong dubbed as the Gateway Park, which will feature a shopping mall and a residential condominium building.

Go said the company is in discussions with a number of call centers which have committed to either locate in the country or expand their existing Philippine operations.

According to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), the Philippines represents the fastest growing call center industry in the world, overtaking the markets in India and China. The DTI expects the industry to employ 100,000 Filipinos by 2005.

The trade department said that about 80 percent of the call center operations in the country are offshore operations coming from the US and other countries.

A study by Australian-based research firm noted that the country’s contact center industry has generated revenues amounting to $328 million a year.

Call centers handle call-in queries and technical support, e-mail, online chat, travel and consumer services, and medical and legal transcriptions.

Owned 87.6 percent of conglomerate JG Summit Holdings Inc., RLC operates a successful chain of shopping malls. It is also the largest domestic hotel owner with a combined room capacity of 1,145 rooms.

The shopping malls are generally anchored by sister companies Big R Supercenter, Robinsons Department Store, Robinsons Supermarket and/or Handyman. They enjoy high occupancy rates, currently averaging at 94 percent.

RLC intends to steadily expand its shopping mall business by building three to four new shopping malls a year. It also plans to develop leaner commercial centers in provincial citites with a smaller average gross floor area of 25,000 square meters each.

As for its high-rise buildings business, RLC plans to focus on the development of affordable residential condominiums with a price range of P1.8 million to P3.5 million for the middle-income market.

For its hotel division, RLC intends to maintain its higher-than-industry hotel occupancy rates by strengthening its marketing organization to focus on corporate and leisure travellers, as well as to bolster the domestic market with affiliate, Cebu Pacific Air.