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At 40, he leads an “empire” of strip centers, which could continue to grow if his firm, Patio, finalizes the purchase of the assets of Vivo Corp. They say he is a “great negotiator.”
Álvaro Jalaff was at the center of the news this week. On Monday it became known that Grupo Patio, the firm that he co-founded with his older brother, Antonio, and of which he is now CEO, was initiating formal conversations with Álvaro Saieh’s Vivo Corp, to merge, buy or associate. But he was also a privileged witness to the historic elections in the United States: these days he moved between New York, where Patio set up offices, and Miami, where he has lived since mid-September.
Fast and tough negotiator, who strives to buy cheap and does not get tired until it is finalized. With those words, an executive of a company who knows him well and who has led more than one opportunity with him describes his way of operating. “He has an incredible sense of timing.”, complements the same person.
Someone remembers, for example, when in 2017 he negotiated the purchase, together with LarrainVial, of the Aurus real estate fund, a manager that had to close its funds after its former manager Mauricio Peña, was accused of fraud and delivery of false information to the market. For that negotiation, which Jalaff led, “He put himself in the place of the other, saw their difficulties and opportunities, and bid and won. This is how he is to negotiate, quickly analyze what is in front of him and take five steps ahead of what the other can refute him in the price “says another actor who knows him very well. They describe him as a tough negotiator, who strives to buy cheap and does not tire until he is done.
Thus, from that strip center that started 16 years ago on the corner of Tobalaba with Eliecer Parada and that began the history of Patio, they grew not only in Chile but also in Peru, Mexico and the United States, they have more than 110 assets focused on It rents and operates five business units: Commercial, Offices, Industrial, Residential and Patio Capitals. Last year alone they had real rental income of 1.8 million UF or something like US $ 70 million. Their assets under management exceed US $ 1.7 billion.
Of course, Jalaff (40 years old, married, 4 children) every time he can highlights that he does not work alone and that Patio integrates endless looks. Hence, for example, these days when they formally sat down to analyze the business with the Saiehs, there was Pablo Manríquez, manager of Patio Comercial, in the United States. On the legal side, meanwhile, Ricardo Escobar, Vanesa Facusse and Carolina Menichetti advised Jalaff, the Garriguez law firm did it for Patio and Saieh was advised by internal lawyers from CorpGroup and Morales & Besa.
Get up early and work all day
A worker since he was a child, he always remembers that when he was little he helped him sell his father in the summers and was treated as just another employee. She usually remembers a phrase that he used to say to her: “If you want good luck in business, get up early and work all day; this is the only way for luck to come one day “.
Today, Álvaro moves between the United States, Mexico, Peru and Chile, where he officially resides, in search of new business.
Sergio Jalaff, the patriarch, who is the son of the Syrian immigrant Pedro Jalaff, is close to Álvaro Saieh – they are countrymen, someone recalls – he was the forerunner of the neighborhood shopping center industry in Chile, implementing a model that he knew in depth in the United States. Hence, it was not surprising that the Jalaff Sanz brothers followed a similar path 16 years ago.
Although they are not friends, the Saieh and Jalaff have known each other for a long time on business matters. They had already bought four assets from CorpGroup in February of last year for US $ 180 million.
But now could be a millionaire success that would transfer the assets of Vivo Corp to Patio, or even that Saieh sits on the board of the firm and takes a part of the property. All options are part of a study that will last 120 days.
And the size is not smaller: according to the 2019 Report, Vivo has seven shopping centers, four outlets, 34 stand alone and 16 strip centers throughout Chile.
Who has led all these talks has been Jorge Andrés Saieh on the side of Vivo and Alvaro Jalaff on Patio, but always supported by the Executive Committee in which his brother Antonio, Andrés Solari, Cristián Menichetti, Pablo Manríquez and Cristián Cahe participate.
Those who are aware of the business say that Álvaro Jalaff and Jorge Andrés Saieh spoke for the first time about the possibility of advancing in this business during an international shopping center fair in May last year, in Las Vegas. From then on, they had several conversations, both in Santiago and in the United States to finalize the agreement, which intensified in recent weeks taking advantage of the fact that both were in the United States.
Álvaro Saieh also participated in those conversations at some point, but it was his son who gave the go.
Patio’s board of directors is made up of Paola Luksic, Alejandra Mustakis, Vannesa Facuse, Darío Calderón, Andrés Solari, Antonio Jalaff, Patricio Rojas, Sebastián Khamis, Cristián Abumohor and Cristhoper Blundin. All were permanently informed and closely followed the progress of the agreement with the Saieh. It is a very active table, which closely monitors each of its decisions, they say close.
His crusade for SMEs
“I was an SME.” On more than one occasion Álvaro Jalaff has reiterated that they were a small company, so they know of the difficulties in getting to pay the bills at the end of the month at the office.
For this reason, among those who know him, the initiative that he personally led and that the entire board of directors and the executive committee seconded in May of this year was not surprising as a result of the catastrophic effects that the pandemic was causing on the tenants of his shopping centers and which he titled “The other utility.” “By what we do today we will be measured in the future,” reads the open letter that Jalaff published in late May in the media.
To date, the temporary suspension of leases has benefited nearly 400 clients and, in addition to this, Grupo Patio is still today implementing different types of discounts to its SME clients to support them with reopening.
Regarding the consultancies and mentoring included in the initiative, to date about 120 orientations on financial, legal and emotional issues have been carried out to SMEs of different areas, such as hairdressers, clothing and footwear, coffee shops, pastry shops, cell phone accessories, veterinary, bookstores. As of July, they had about 55 interested in obtaining loans at a 0% rate that Patio proposed to its clients.
It might interest you: Álvaro Jalaff, CEO of Grupo Patio talks with Marily Lüders
The Bad Step
But not only from Patio does Álvaro live. He is also a partner in companies such as Youtopia, which apart from his gym in La Dehesa took control of the former Balthus and will be Youtopia Vitacura. It is also in Provalle, a fruit exporter and producer of Mal Paso pisco.
One of the things that motivates him the most, they say in his environment, is venture capital and there he has invested in ventures such as fintech Kredito, Biwiser, Cotalker, Haip, Agucare and Allvp, among others. He also actively participates in Asech and in the National Multigremial led by Juan Pablo Swett.
But in other leagues, he is also on the board of the Fundación Dunas de Cachagua, which seeks to protect the ecosystem of the iconic dunes of La Zapallar beach and prevent real estate development in them.
The small committee of the Patio
According to what they say, Álvaro Jalaff usually says “You always have to surround yourself with people smarter than you.”
That is why Patio has a solid Executive Committee, a body in which day-to-day decisions are made and all the details of the operation are managed. Always under the guidelines of the board of directors. In addition, all the members of the Executive Committee participate as partners of the company.
Who make it up?
Antonio Jalaff, one of his 5 brothers, and who has recently dedicated himself to opening the group’s office in the United States based in New York and is also in charge of the relationship with all the company’s stakeholders.
It was he who for years strengthened ties with Norman Foster and managed to convince him to design a sustainable project in the San Joaquín commune with the spirit of making a more just city. This real estate development will be located next to La Fábrica Patio Outlet, an emblematic project of the company, which rescued the old textile Manufacturas Sumar, and which gives the official entrance of Patio to the residential segment.
Andres Solari he is vice president of the board of directors and represents Algeciras, the Elberg family office, at the table. He has experience in different industries: in finance as vice president of the international bank, in agribusiness he is vice president of Hortifrut and in the automotive sector he participates in AutoSumitt, among others.
Cristián Menichetti, he joined Grupo Patio approximately two years after the company was founded and is considered a co-founder of it. In addition, he is general manager of Patio Offices, Patio Industrial, Patio Residencial and head of Patio Capitales. This division has grown a lot lately thanks to its alliance with LarrainVial. Menichetti is one of those who stands out for his analysis in each transaction. In addition, it is responsible for the implementation and monitoring of operations.
Pablo Manríquez, General Manager of Patio Comercial, the division that has grown the most in the company, is another of those on the executive committee. Those who know him say that he is very analytical and with an outstanding commercial profile. As a result of his position and ability, he has been very involved in the agreement with Saieh. In fact, he was in the United States where the deal was closed.
Christian Cahe, is cohead of Patio Capitales. He brings his extensive experience in banking, including various senior positions in Citibank and HSBC.
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