The developer that signed a multi-billion dollar contract to build luxury apartments and hotel villas on Dubai’s The World Islands has signed a similar deal with a firm in Bahrain.
Revolution Precrafted, the Philippines’ first startup to achieve unicorn status and be valued at $1 billion, has penned a deal with Bahrain’s Property One Investment Company (Property 1) to supply 500 modular “eco-villas” over the next five years.
As part of the partnership, Revolution Precrafted will design the villas using a combination of precast and prefabrication technology.
The four-bedroom villas will measure up to 200 square metres each, and will be valued starting at $320,000 each.
“This is an exciting period for the company as we continue to expand our footprint worldwide,” said Revolution Precrafted founder and CEO Robbie Antonio.
“Bahrain is an important part of this expansion because of its strategic location and its very strong economy.
“We are excited to partner with Property 1 because of its management’s track record and experience in the real estate industry,” he added.
Established in 2015, Revolution Precrafted specialises in building pre-fabricated made-to-order homes designed by prominent architects at what the company says is a fraction of the cost of a commissioned design built using traditional construction methods.
A year after it was founded, a Series B funding round led by Singapore-based VC firm Venture Global raised the start-ups valuation to over $1 billion, allowing the company to establish a footprint in a number of global markets, including Italy, Japan and the UAE.
Gulf is ripe for affordable homes
Speaking exclusively to Arabian Business on the sidelines of the Gateway Gulf Investor Forum in April, Antonio said that he believes the Gulf is ripe for “designer homes that are affordable and can be done expeditiously.”
To gain entry into the market, however, Antonio says that the pre-fabricated homes will have to be built to suit the particular needs of the Gulf region.
“A lot of our models have a lot of glass, but it’s way too hot here. People ask that they be hear resistant,” he said.
“People want slightly larger units, and better finishes. In Southeast Asia, studios are 23 square metres, but here people live differently….so we need to create more flexible spaces for the Middle East and Middle Eastern clientele.”
During the interview, Antonio said he’s been in discussions with a number of developers and government officials across the Middle East, particularly in Dubai and Bahrain.
“We’re being told to do four and five-story villas [in the Middle East], even if many of our models are catered to Southeast Asia,” he said. “But that’s not a problem for us.”
Among the agreements that Antonio has signed in the Gulf region are a $3.2 billion deal with luxury developer Seven Tides to design, supply and install two- and three-bedroom condominium apartments and villas in Dubai’s the World Islands.
In Manama, Antonio said that the villas would be priced starting at $150,000, but declined to comment on the final number of villas, saying that the figure would be determined “later”.
In March, Antonio said that he expects between $300 million and $500 million worth of sales from the project, which will launch on an island-by-island basis in Q3 this year.
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