On Branding Panama, part II

I've just returned from my fourth trip to the Azuero Peninsula of Panama and am ecstatic to report that our efforts to brand the town of Pedasí and the surrounding region have been met with incredible success. The exhaustive brand manual I generated for the consortium of landowners, developers, and hospitality businesses a year ago is now in the hands of the Republic of Panama's federal government. The promo-political machine that is José Goldner is directing the Ministry of Tourism in making our area the focus of their international marketing efforts, which, two years ago seemed a pipe-dream.

Pedasí and its virgin hillsides, farms, and Pacific beachfront are finally receiving the financial and marketing weight so richly deserved, including a new multi-million-dollar airport and massive infrastructural upgrades (roads, electricity, water treatment). All this while keeping the betterment of the native community and eco-sensitivity top-of-mind.

Our network of US expats and a few local professionals — businessmen, lawyers, landowners, commercial and residential developers, architects — living in and around Pedasí has become a genuine force for positive change. Its nucleus is Briggs Capital out of Boston and its Managing Partner Rod Robertson. Briggs has played a pivotal role in land bank investment and development permits, as well as JV arrangements in the fishing industry, and their Panamanian partners (the aforementioned José Goldner, a Briggs partner, chief among them) have become an excellent conduit for deployment of stateside equity as well as business opportunities.

At the risk of sounding like a salesman for a moment, if you're looking for incredible oceanfront and oceanview property at a fraction of what you'll find in Mexico or even Costa Rica, move on it NOW. We've cracked the egg and the world has begun to take notice, which means the Chinese, Europeans, Israelis, and of course Americans have started to inject their money into the Pedasí arena. In a year's time the maturation of the financial complexion here will have skyrocketed the value of this beautiful land and associated properties dramatically.

Look at it this way: beachfront here 10 years ago was 20 cents per square meter; today it's $20+/sq m. That 's still the deal of the century for hurricane-proof Pacific shoreland, but don't expect those prices to last.

That's why my tagline for this initiative is It's Now Forever. Oceanfront property is a finite resource, and unless you're an oil sheik who can actually build islands and beachfront, once this land is gone it's gone.

There's a reason Hollywood celebs and West Coast technology magnates are buying in this area. It's clean, private, beautiful, and less expensive than you can imagine. In other words, it's like nowhere else in our hemisphere. That's not hyperbole.

Do yourself a huge favor and visit Pedasí. My good friend and British expat Tony has an incredible deal going at his Ocean Lofts in the Azueros development. Take him up on it and go as soon as you can.

An Azueros Ocean Loft in Pedasí, Panama

I often tell my clients the value of branding isn't visible in some overnight epiphany. Rather, it's the heart-racing experience of watching your brand take its first steps, like a toddler.

Well take it from a proud parent — this kid's about to run.