Though Jan Andrus has an engineering degree, he has been active in the real estate market since the late 1990s. He started with residential housing and retail projects, but six years ago he moved from shiny retail shopping arcades to concrete expanses of truckyards. “There are people out there who are good at inventing things. And then there are people who can make things. In both cases, people create values. I see myself somewhere in the middle,” explains Jan Andrus, our Senior Leasing Manager for the Czech market, a proud father and an experienced real estate expert.
What brought you to industrial real estate in the first place?
Although I'm an engineer, I've always been interested in real estate. People have always needed to live somewhere, they have always been looking for ways and places to safely protect what was valuable to them. It used to be a cave, today it is a nice house, flats or, for example, storage and production halls. For a long time, warehouses have been thought of as a blot on the landscape, but today people are aware of their importance. I understand that no one wants to have a warehouse behind their fence, but at the same time we all want the goods that we ordered to arrive within an hour. A bit of a paradox, isn’t it? I find warehouses incredibly versatile. They are like a big construction set – and it's only up to you how you manage to set up your client and present him in technicolour how his visions and needs fit perfectly into your building.
What did you bring to P3 from the retail sphere?
My professional experience and contacts. Industrial properties have always been perceived by the market as “grey halls” on the outskirts of cities. As something that does not need much care and deserves attention only during the building permit process. However, recently the importance of industrial real estate has been increasing with the rise in e-commerce that has grown from retail. Classic retail is slowly becoming a thing of the past and is undergoing a metamorphosis, at the end of which there will be no butterfly, but an e-shop.
“My role is to connect the buyer with the seller, the tenant with the landlord, etc.”
How did you get to P3 and how did your position evolve?
I started there almost six years ago. The position had a slightly different name than today, but the scope of work remains. My hardworking and capable colleagues really understand the industrial property segment. Each of us is different – we are like jigsaw puzzle pieces – each of us has different qualities, but at the same time we make an excellent team in which it is a pleasure to work and be a part of it. It’s like yin and yang. We complement one another.
How is your position important for the business?
There are people out there who are good at inventing things. And then there are people who can make things. In both cases, people create values. I see myself somewhere in the middle. Once an experienced colleague of mine advised me to find the time to think about the people, processes and events around me for an hour. To “step out”, as it were, and learn to look at life from above. And that’s how I do it – and that’s why I see my clients’ needs, I see supply and demand. And thanks to that I can connect the buyer with the seller, the tenant with the landlord, etc. That’s my role. My goal is a satisfied client who is truly happy when he gets the keys to the hall in one of the P3 parks.
“I show my colleagues that there is also room for something else in our buildings. It can be a climbing and trampoline park, for example.”
Are you trying to inspire your colleagues to see their work from above too?
I show my colleagues that there is also room for something else in our buildings. For example, in one of our projects in Prague Letňany, our two clients will soon open one of the largest climbing and trampoline parks. Before them, there was a printing company in the building and neighbours complained about the noise from the air conditioning and about all the trucks. Now they are excited, the project has great support from local authorities and I am convinced that it will become a popular sports centre.