A quarter of a century of continuity and trust

Ralf, what has kept you connected to the company for a quarter of a century?

Ralf Lohse: In the beginning, we were very small and were located in the Aachener Kreuz industrial park, where we developed our real estate. From the outset, my motivation was to grow and play a decisive role in driving this growth forward. But the real bond is still created by our spirit, which continues to inspire me to this day. We have always managed to bring people into our team who are intelligent, professionally competent, and personable. Every time I come into the office, I am delighted to have so many great, friendly colleagues. It's a good feeling and it's just fun!

things were certainly different in 1999. How did the connection come about?

Ralf Lohse: Yes , it was an exciting time back then. I was still really young and CFO of Caliston. I met Norbert Hermanns at an eclipse event in Munich. He happened to be standing next to me at the same bar table and we got talking. He had been developing commercial real estate with AMW Projekte GmbH for several years and at some point said to me that he could really use a finance guy with controlling experience. I was still tied up at the time, but offered to come in as a consultant one day a week. In the end, this led to a great mandate that has developed very nicely.

One day a week quickly turned into more.

Ralf Lohse: Yes , after a few years I had more time professionally and Norbert said he wanted that time. Norbert Hermanns had incredible instincts and enormous creativity, and in me he had someone who was very cautious, very conservative. I think we made a very good team back then. A little later, I became commercial director. My only condition was that we make the company significantly bigger with the goal of achieving a project volume of one billion euros. We shook hands on that, and that was enough for me. An employment contract was not necessary. Well, now we have achieved that goal together and have long since exceeded it.

What has changed during this time?

Ralf Lohse: There were sixof us when I joined, and now there are over 200 in the group. There was never any standstill; we never rested on our laurels. When we developed a good project and made a profit, we were able to tackle the next project, which was perhaps a little bigger. Everything was always done with our own money. AMW Projekte GmbH gave rise to Landmarken AG. So everything has developed continuously from this industrial park at the Aachen interchange. We are now active in more than 30 cities, including Hamburg, Mannheim, and Leipzig. And unlike in the past, when everyone in the company did everything, we are now much more specialized, of course. We have experts for each individual task, whose strengths are brought to bear through our interdisciplinary collaboration.

And with the increasing number of projects came diversification?

Ralf Lohse: Yes , we drove this forward as we grew, both in terms of property types and regions. When I started, we were doing retail parks, then we added more and more segments: offices, residential, retail, and so on. This allowed us to spread our risk across different asset classes and ultimately across different regions. I believe that this is also a key factor in our stability, that we never focused on just one asset class or stayed in just one location.

We are also constantly adapting our business model. This has made us a jack of all trades with several legs to stand on. If one leg, e.g., an asset class or region, no longer works, the other legs carry us. A lot has changed, but I'm still happy to have my place here. I feel very comfortable and can't think of a job I'd rather do.

Because the mix of stability and agility is enjoyable?

Ralf Lohse: That's right . We have always looked at trends and tried to get in on them relatively early. We often weren't the first, so as not to get our noses bloodied, but we were right behind the wave. I think that has always proven to be very effective.

But sometimes we were also in first place, as can be seen at the RWTH Aachen Campus, an important development for the whole of Aachen. What was new here was the construction of research buildings by private investors. The plots of land were advertised with hereditary building rights, and we were the first in Germany to ever develop something like this. Beforehand, we held talks with all the banks and made the whole thing financially viable, so that now many others can benefit from simply finding a ready-made hereditary building rights contract.

And, incidentally, this has given rise to a new asset class.

Ralf Lohse: Yes, exactly. At the time, these properties were considered difficult to sell due to the hereditary building right, but now research properties with a hereditary building right contract are commonplace. In other words, something that didn't exist before has become standard.

Another example is the O-WERK | Campus in Bochum, right?

Ralf Lohse: I remember it like it was yesterday: Norbert Hermanns came into my office and said, "Ralf, we're buying this Opel building." It was a beautiful red brick building that you always saw on TV back then. The Opel workers were on strike in front of it because the decision had been made to close it down. I said to him, "Norbert, you can't be serious. If Opel leaves Bochum, Bochum will be dead for decades." But Norbert was convinced that something good could come of it, especially if we involved the excellent university, which is within walking distance.

So we spent a year knocking on doors and presenting our ideas, but nothing happened. Then the university rented half of the building and the company babymarkt.de rented the other half. That was the initial spark for the development of O-WERK | Campus, because suddenly there were other interested parties who wanted to move into the location. Today, the transformation of the former Opel site is one of the best examples of successful land recycling in Europe.

We just talked about diversification. Does that also apply to financing?

Ralf Lohse: We do a lot of traditional business with savings banks and credit unions, with whom we work extremely well. But we have also proven that we can develop creative financing concepts. For example, we talk to fintech companies about their ideas and deal with certificates that go to international companies, or with the idea of covering interest rate hedges with derivatives. We are also very interested in green finance solutions. Together, we are open to new approaches. However, we remain conservative in one other respect. We have always carried out projects using only our own capital. We have never brought in outside money, for example in the form of mezzanine capital or private equity. We only do things that we can afford ourselves.

How many banks are you in contact with?

Ralf Lohse: Not me, but we: Unlike in the past, we are now negotiating up to 20 financing deals at the same time. We have business relationships with over 40 banks. That's why I'm grateful for our strong finance team: Dagmar Posten, who has been a highly valued contact person for the banks for many years, and Philipp Brinkmann, who is also an expert in the field of investment.

Let's take a look at the near future: Do you expect growth again now?

Ralf Lohse: Absolutely . At the moment, prices are not yet where they need to be. But we are noticing that there are good opportunities to get involved again, selectively. We are looking into some interesting things and yes, I do believe that we will continue to develop in a stable manner, unchanged. Investors are also approaching us again and again, offering us the opportunity to get involved in projects that need support.

And that's where the "white knight" concept comes into play?

Ralf Lohse: In the current market situation, there are many project developments that are in difficulty. This also affects financing savings banks and banks, to which we offer support as part of the "white knight" concept. Depending on the situation, we offer our expertise and financial strength as a joint venture partner, acquirer, or, in exceptional cases, as a consultant.

How do banks view us?

Ralf Lohse: We have been in the market for over 30 years now and have never owed a cent. The people involved are well known and stand for continuity and trust: Norbert Hermanns is still there as chairman of the supervisory board. I have been here for 25 years, Jens Kreiterling for 16 years. And Anke Tsitouras, Norbert Hermanns' daughter, not only represents the orderly transition to the next generation, but has also integrated herself excellently with the knowledge she brought with her from her time as a banker in London.

As a company, we have jointly built up substantial hidden reserves, which we guard as carefully as we possibly can. Even in the current phase, we are receiving very positive feedback on our strategy, our transparency, and the way we manage our finances and conduct our business. That is why we continue to receive very, very good financing. I believe we enjoy a very, very high reputation.