By Ola Noureldin and Julian Nabil

In light of the recent developments taking place in the entire Suez destination, Invest-Gate interviews Tatweer Misr’s CEO & Managing Director Ahmed Shalaby to know more about their latest flagship project, Il Monte Galala, in Ain Sokhna. Shalaby also reveals details on the company’s recent partnership with Liverpool, and how this will reflect on their international sales.

How do you view Galala city? How do you see it developing the entire Suez destination?

I think launching and developing Galala City is a strategic move when it comes to the urban development of Sokhna. The Sokhna area lacks a lot of facilities and services, in addition to lifestyle amenities. As developers, we can usually provide amenities –but not the basic services such as the hospitals, schools, and universities. Galala City will have the complete infrastructure of a city, and will provide all services to the entire area, including but not limited to schools, universities, and hospitals. I believe Galala is a big move towards the development of the Eastern side of Egypt in general, and Sokhna in particular.

What is unique about IL Monte Galala?

IL Monte Galala is all unique, it is a very special project. If we start with the land, the topography of the land ranges from 0-210 meters above sea level, which is really different from any other project. For the first time in Egypt, we are able to deal with the mountain and its topography, respecting nature and working around it in a way that ensures all our clients get a stunning view regardless of their location in the project.

At Tatweer Misr, we always put in mind as a priority the added value we can offer our clients, the view is just one. The design is another, for example, all units are designed in a way that ensures all rooms can enjoy their privacy. Moreover, the master plan itself reflects all elements needed for mixed-use developments. We have a hotel, food and beverage services, nightlife, supermarket, and a crystal lagoon for the first time ever on a mountain. We have around 11 kilometers of sandy beaches around the crystal lagoon in both phases of the project.

We also believe in the importance of sustainability and its implementation, in that regard; we use local materials, solar heating systems, and water treatment plants to reuse water for irrigation. We are also planning to have a water desalination plant and solar energy integrated throughout the project.

There are two more aspects that I believe are unique at IL Monte Galala, the first of which is accessibility throughout the entire project. The project is planned and designed so that 50% of the units are accessible to the handicapped and/or people with disabilities, through ramps and elevators around the site and inside the units.

The other aspect is mobility solutions, we have a mix of mobility solutions available so that when you arrive, all you need to do is park your car and use our mobility solutions. All movement inside the project will be through inclined elevators, electrical buses, electrical bicycles and motorcycles so that everyone can enjoy the tranquility of the project, without the need for a car. Needless to mention that all mobility solutions will be through access cards to facilitate their use for our residents.

When will you start delivering units?

The first delivery date is December 2019, and the completion of the whole project is set for 2027. Starting December 2019, we will start to have life here, and every six months, we will be planning to deliver some more. We will fully deliver phase one by December 2022. We have some major work ahead of us, especially with our attention to details and quality.

Do you have plans for other projects in Galala city, or in general?

No, for now this is our only project in Galala city, we might think of expanding the project in the same area with more phases and more plots around us, especially that we are now experts in the mountains. We will have an eye out on opportunities offered at Galala in the upcoming period and we might decide then.

What is the value added for you as a real estate developer after your recent partnership with Liverpool?

We at Tatweer Misr believe in adding value to the society and focus on developing people not just developing communities. Since youth represent over 60% of our society, we pay great attention to them. And as
sports is an important aspect for youth, we include sports as one of the vital pillars we focus on.

Last year, we participated at the La Liga football league; we put our ads at the Barcelona and Real Madrid away games. Soon after, we got contacted from FC Liverpool offering us to enter into a partnership with them. We loved the idea! At that time, Mohamed Salah was moving to Liverpool. But also, the most important factor is that we are looking for promoting our international sales, we needed a push to be known internationally, and Liverpool has a huge fan base all over the world, so we thought it was a great opportunity to team up with Liverpool as it will help us with sales and will help us support the brand of Tatweer Misr in Egypt. It is a successful association, I believe.

How will the partnership help you market your products abroad?

We are able to use the name of Liverpool with all our marketing campaigns in Egypt. In England, we have time slots where we can use their name on advertising materials. However, in social media, we can use their platform any time. We can use our association with them at anytime. We also have a number of tickets allocated to us in a number of games; we can invite clients and media partners. We still need to work on more, but we will build on that on the upcoming few months to strengthen our cooperation and get the maximum value we can.