Which achievements of the fund are you most proud of?

I am most proud of the fact that we have collected all rents, reach the occupancy of 98.5% and provide great diversification in countries, industries and companies. Our economic results are excellent. Behind all this success, there is a high commitment of the international Accolade team, as well as the trust of our investors, tenants and business partners. I do appreciate it! For ten years, we have been building the economic infrastructure of the states together, always with ecology in our mind. We are the largest fund in the Czech Republic and we certainly have ambitions and the potential to go further.

What are your wishes and visions for the fund in the following years, considering the tenth anniversary of its existence? 

For the fund, our shareholders, our tenants, the Accolade team and our founders, I would like to repeat all the successes of the first 10 years. The key for us is to maintain occupancy and the success of rent collection. Empty properties or non-paying tenants would devalue not only the investments of our investors, but also our investment, because Accolade Holding, a.s. is still the largest single shareholder of the Accolade Fund.

Furthermore, I would like to get an investment rating for the fund as soon as possible and thus advance to the top league. For this, we especially lack the size, which must be EUR 2-2.5 billion. And then there are a lot of other condition, but I believe we will fulfill them easily.

I am proud of the fact that we have the most Czechoslovak investors. It's great when Czechoslovak money can be invested and earned abroad. I would like more investors from among Czech athletes, who unfortunately often invest through Swiss or American banks. They grew up in the Czech Republic and it would be great if they invested here.  It would also be great if more state entities, institutions or municipalities invested with us. Money should simply stay at home, turn around and earn money at home. The previously mentioned Americans and Swiss are excellent at this.

I am also thinking about the new sub-funds of the Accolade Fund. We would like to invest outside Europe in order to offer our investors a non-European product and create a global institution. 

However, I would be even more happy with a sub-fund focused on the reconstruction of Ukraine. It's not about size, it's about growth, it's about doing the right thing.  This would mean that the terrible war is over and instead of funding weapons and food, we could build new business facilities in Ukraine for not only Ukrainian companies. I believe that it would greatly help the Ukrainian people, the economy there, and that our investors, tenants, business partners will be happy to take part in it. The Accolade team would be very proud of that.

What key trends in the world of real estate investment do you expect in the coming years and how should the fund respond to them?

This is a typical question on a fortune teller, but unfortunately I'm not. I think the basis will not change. The location, the quality of the property and the quality of the tenant will always be a key. To this, let's add energy, which must have the right price (competitive) and color (green). Unlike residential, office, or shopping centers, industrial properties become obsolete more slowly. Aesthetics does not play such a role. The restoration of old industrial halls is also natural. Just as the housing stock is renewed, so are the industrial properties, which is an opportunity for the Accolade fund.

Regarding the trends, I think that the growth of tenants from the E-commerce sector will continue. Today, they make up about 40% of our portfolio. However, for the further development of E-commerce, additional distribution centers will have to be created, especially in smaller cities, in order to enable the flexibility and economy of delivery, which is crucial for e-commerce.

Another trend is certainly the return of production from Asia, or to the place of consumption.  The growth of wages, and thus the standard of living and raised consumption in Asia, on the other hand, the growth of automation in Europe should bring production back to Europe. The need for safety and environmental protection forces us to produce where we consume things. Cane sugar imported into Europe from Brazil will never be green enough. So I expect new production premises will be needed as well and that is certainly an opportunity that Accolade wants to seize.