Tbilisi Hills Chief Investor: Our Strategy Is to Increase the Number of Investments & Jobs

INTERVIEW

GEORGIA TODAY spoke to Oleg Osinovsky: Chief Investor, Tbilisi Hills Golf & Residences.

“The period of isolation had a very interesting effect on people. It was a kind of catalyzer for mechanisms that we knew about and yet were not fully aware of,” Osinovsky notes. “It was clear to almost everyone that offices and business centers were already ‘yesterday.’ Even banks refused to finance businesses because it was clear that office work had nothing to do with the successful operation of a company. Today’s means of communication allow you to successfully work remotely, without having to spend time moving around or spending money on office rent, while modern technologies can successfully imitate live relationships, a fact which appeared very clearly during the quarantine period.

“Another exciting trend is in the restaurant business,” he adds. “It turned out that the best restaurants in the city can easily and efficiently deliver dishes anywhere. Without any extra movement, people have the opportunity to see any world cuisine dish in their own kitchen within 30 minutes of ordering. Here, the question arose: how much do you need restaurants? It turned out that the sector needs merely a proper cooking and delivery service. This will significantly change future trends.

“The same can be said about shopping malls. There is no longer a need to go to one location to buy products: it is much easier to do so online, efficiently, with a good choice, without leaving home and, most importantly, it’s cheaper. I think all of this will change a lot of things in the world. These trends were already evident, and the pandemic simply acted as a catalyzer and revealed them more quickly. The new world will no longer have offices, shopping malls, restaurants or even cinemas.

“Then the second question arises: what is the need to live in the city, when the city gives you only easy access to the above facilities.

“People will move out of cities, choosing instead to settle in nature, in the regions, and so de-urbanization will start, a process that will completely transform the world. In 50 years, the existence of cities may become a thing of the past. This is a whole new story that creates absolutely new opportunities. Whoever sees this is one step ahead.

“As for employment, throughout history, the structure of the labor market has been in constantly evolution. 200 years ago, 95% of people were involved in agriculture, but now, on the contrary, 95% are engaged in entrepreneurial activities. In the process of human evolution, the structure and trend of the labor market has changed many times, which is normal. I do not think the time for global unemployment is coming. People will simply have to change or transform professions.

“I see only a positive effect of the pandemic in the field of tourism. The first is that much more money will be spent in our own country. The second is that citizens who were used to traveling abroad will impose higher standards in their home country, which will inevitably have a positive impact on the service industry. However, the driving force of tourism is human curiosity. No matter how well-equipped the tourism infrastructure is in your country, human curiosity still drives them to visit untouched places. That is why I think international tourism will not die. This pandemic is transient and sooner or later everything will return to its usual course.”

What strategy should a business choose during the pandemic or post-pandemic period?

In this matter, everyone chooses for themselves; I can only share my personal vision with you. The first is that in the event of any crisis, you should try to invest as much as possible in the business and create jobs. Without this, the state will simply collapse before our eyes. Exactly when everyone is scared and hiding is the time we need to act and create as many jobs as possible, because we live in the community we belong to. If there is a difficult period in the country, we will all suffer, without exception.

With this in mind, we will definitely increase our investments and consequently create more jobs. We are talking about ‘Tbilisi Hills’ and so it is in our interest that everything is fine in Georgia. I hope other entrepreneurs and businessmen will impose the same strategy and we will all together improve the country's economy.

We must do everything possible to minimize the economic downturn. More jobs should be created for this, and salaries should not be reduced. In this case, everything will be fine. That is why I repeat: our strategy is to increase the number of facilities under construction, investments and jobs.

This is a macro image. Historically, the high-income segment does not suffer in a crisis. It might be unfair, but it is a historical fact: this segment is usually protected from crises; they always have the financial means to maintain a normal standard of living.

We, quite objectively, believe that ‘Tbilisi Hills’ is the most luxurious development project in Tbilisi today. Moreover, from my own experience, I can say with full responsibility that today there are very few luxury districts in the world such as ‘Tbilisi Hills’.

To live 15 minutes away from the city center, in nature, with extraordinary views of the city, surrounded by the golf courses which is ranked 34th in continental Europe among 5000+ golf courses, is the rarest opportunity. Therefore, the demand for our services has not decreased. This crisis has not affected us much and we do not expect it to affect our activities in the future.

Translated By Ana Dumbadze