We expect to end 2024 with an annual increase of our business in the low double digits. This is a significant evolution of our income generating operations, given the context. Operating on the same footprint of the leasable area portfolio, we earned improved revenues due to growing businesses of our commercial anchors and adjustments of rents in our office business. Do we have margin for improving? Definitely. We see tangible potential in upgrading our modern office stock and continue to supply the market with best-in-class value, albeit our market is class B office premises. On a lesser tangible level, we continue to search for our next big partner that will associate with us in delivering the next big retail project, for which we conserve our best location and amenities. This is a pipeline for the next 2 years. There is also our cornerstone ambition to finally reengineer our complex starting with former Zorile building, going back to its architectural roots, elevating it to a symbol building while upgrading it with all necessary technical features. That should unlock its full commercial potential for the next decades.

The visibility of the brand is essential for the success of any business in a digital era. Outdoor advertising transforms commercial and office spaces into extensions of the company’s image, with a logo strategically placed on a building facade that quickly captures attention and strengthens the visual identity thereof. This continuous exposure conveys a statement of professionalism and stability, consolidating the interaction between brand and location. Compliance with legal provisions is crucial for these benefits to materialize sustainably. Recently, local public authorities from Chișinău have increased attention to advertising devices and the authorization procedures for their installations. According to Law no. 62 from 17.03.2022, “advertising is the information, distributed in any way using any means, addressed to an indefinite number of persons in order to create and/or support public interest in the subject of advertising” and any placement of advertising devices on building facades is subject to the authorization procedure as a temporary structure. It essentially means that in order to install a company logo on the building facade (the building within the company operates), one must receive the legal (construction) authorization from the local public authority (e.g., Chișinău City Hall) for the advertising device. Subsequently, one will submit a request along with the technical documentation: a technical expertise report assessing the technical condition of the building’s supporting structures, the urbanism certificate, an execution project (including the explanatory report, facades, color solutions, work execution, etc.), all aimed to ensure compliance with safety norms and urban aesthetic standards. It is important to note that by authorizing the outdoor advertising space, one becomes a tax liable subject, e.g., in 2024, for Chișinău, the annual fee for advertising devices was 865 lei per each square meter of advertising device area. These levies are intended to finance public services and local infrastructure, but also to control and encourage the maintenance of a harmonious urban landscape. All this is a clear indication that the outdoor advertising as a marketing tool transcends to a transformational symbol that pairs long-term company identity interaction with cost and administrative complexity.

Traffic to our properties stabilized at 2,2 million visitors in 2024. It remained flat against 2024, taking into consideration that some of the upgrades we made to our properties February last year prevented visitors from accessing some of their favorite stores in the complex. We are cautious about 2025 in terms of drawing substantially more shoppers to Zity as we do not see sufficient macroeconomic prerequisites for substantially improved purchasing power. Inflationist pressure remaining high, Moldova only targets around 3% of economic growth in 2025. We reckon the international interest around the settling of the military conflict in the region will incentivize economic optimism and persuade Moldovans to shop more confidently, including returning to the emotional shopping as well. What could function well is partnering with new retailers, preferably new to our country even. We might have something in the pipeline for this year and look forward to convince future international businesses of our utmost interest to develop mutually long-term-profitable partnerships.

After a long process that started in 2023, we are happy to deliver our upgraded entertainment venues, namely Zity Entertainment Park and Zity Playground. Originating in a conceptually ”age-dependent” bifurcation, we have ended in accepting that entertainment has no age prescription and should be involving, diverse and even challenging. Both our concepts revolve around the desire to inspire offline activities mostly. Still, technology is in the veins of our kids more than we would like. As of today, our partners for both the projects, i.e. Walltopia, Kompan, ImSim, Hologate and MagicPlay, provide offline and electronic entertainment facilities in our projects. This makes us extremely proud as we want our clints to the acquire the most elevated and the safest entertainment experience in town. We look forward to play with you.