From cars to homes

By EJ Dominic Fernandez
After changing the course of their business from automotive dealership to property development and leasing of real estate properties in the 1980s, Davao Motor Sales (Damosa) was said to have sailed on untested waters—a shift which could make or break the company at a time when 20-year Ford dealership business took a nosedive.
It turned out to be a shift in time.
From cars, Damosa ventured into property development and became Damosa Land Inc (DLI). It now has its hands full on home community building.
At Damosa’s 65th Anniversary coacktails at Seda Hotel inside the Abreeza Mall complex, DLI vice president and general manager Edgardo Villaver said they are now focused on home community building and the industry can expect the firm to be highly competitive amidst the animated competition with property development giants expanding business in the Davao Region..
Villaver said Damosa Fairlane, their first home community project, which they just launched in April last year has half of its units already sold.
He said Phase 1 of Damosa Fairlane, with 120 units, is 40 percent of the entire project, and roughly 80 percent of phase one has been sold out.
“We are expecting Phase 2 to be sold out soon, which leads us to planning for an expansion for the Damosa Fairlane project,” he said.
According to Villaver, they are looking at project sites at the southern and northern parts of Davao City, and is already planning to build a low-rise condo building at another prime property in the northern part of the city.
Damosa Fairlane is perched atop Barangay Angliongto, Lanang, a stone’s throw away from the Damosa Complex via Mamay Road. DLI has earmarked P300 million for the seven-hectare development.
Villaver said DLI will be expanding for another 3 to 4 hectares more around the area with the vision of transforming it into a housing hub.
DLI has also set its eyes on areas in Davao del Norte, where they will develop a hundred hectares of a “really big mix of industrial, commercial and residential developments,” he said.
Meantime, Anflocor Senior VP Ricky Floirendo said during Damosa’s celebration of its Blue Sapphire anniversary that, “in passing the legacy and values of our father Don Antonio Floirendo Sr., Mindanao is assured as a prime real estate experience for the years to come.”
Anflocor Vice Chairman Antonio R. Floirendo Jr also wished for the longevity of the company that it may continue to prosper and provide high quality real estate development projects for another 65 years.
He said the shifting of Damosa from dealing automotive to property development were tough and challenging times, and it was the leadership of their father, who turned challenges into opportunities, that brought them to their success today.