“As A Company That Has Been Growing For The Last Half Century, We Are Proud To Have Three Generations Working Together.’’
We are meeting with Ahmet Noyan, Director of The Noyanlar Group of Companies, and a well-established company that could be called the architects of Iskele, regarded as the apple of North Cyprus’s eye and is projected to the world’s media as the number one space for living. In this article we will talk about Noyanlar, about İskele and about living in Northern Cyprus. We are aware that Mr. Ahmet rarely gives interviews, so we had a lot to ask when the opportunity arose.
- We understand that you worked hard to convince your family company, Noyanlar Construction, and particularly your family elders to make an investment in İskele at a time when those around you were unsure and you were constantly saying that there is a big future in this area. Can you tell us your position in the company at that time and how you visualised Long Beach developing?
The Noyanlar Group of Companies is a well-established, family company that has been working in this land for nearly half a century, serving the needs of this country. Companies have to take radical steps at certain times as they grow and our radical step was to leave Famagusta in the early 2000s to build sites in the İskele area. Architecture is ever changing and it is expected that you have to look to exceed the previous one with each of your projects. In this stage of development, you also need to think about the people and what they need in life. When we looked at it from a greater perspective, from beyond just the Cypriot and the British people, we discovered that the Russian and Scandinavian people may also be interested in this place. Because of the peace, the tranquillity and the high quality of life here, in addition to the advantages of the Mediterranean climate and the traditional sea-sand-sun factors. With this in mind we made plans in 2007-2008 for the great potential offered by Long Beach and working on the infrastructure works.
There were one or two companies here when we started, now there are eleven or twelve companies operating. Today, Long Beach has become a major centre of attraction, not only for tourists but also for the construction sector. Of course, when developing a city, it has to be thought through from every angle, it is necessary to prepare the infrastructure to meet the various diverse needs, such as roads, education, shopping and worship.
I had imagined in 2006 that this place would develop to this extent. Of course, every stage was very difficult and yes, my parents objected to it initially. But, when the idea is right, everybody eventually accepts it if you manage to make it right. At this stage, there is a successful work for Long Beach and our next task is to work out how to carry this city to the next level. We need to see our shortcomings and continue to grow by responding to the needs of those looking to buy. We are fully aware that we must protect nature and protect the green spaces, while working with the interests of the country with all companies, with the regional districts and the municipalities. To achieve our aims we have to act together by sharing the responsibility and the pride, not to just go it alone. We're confident we're in the right place and more importantly moving in the right direction.
- It is also clear that your work is valued, and based on the research recently published in Forbes magazine, Long Beach is listed as the number one living space in the world. Can you tell us about Noyanlar before you came to İskele area?
Noyanlar Group of Companies was established in 1973 by my father, Master Architect Gökhan Noyan and my uncle Mustafa Noyan, and I joined them in the 90’s. And after my wife Zarif Noyan joined us as Sales Director. Since the first day of the company, we have not compromised on keeping up with changing times; this is how we created the character of the company. In our company, everybody does what they know and works in the area they are trained in, the company is based on corporate companies. Now we are proud to be able to take this organisation one step further by integrating the third generation of family into the business. My daughter, Doğa Noyan, has been in our company for about six months, working with a young and dynamic staff, and my son will gradually complete his studies and also take his place in the team.
We constantly look to shape both our company’s vision and our projects in line with modern day requirements, brought about by a new era. Modern day Smart Houses and other services that meet today’s needs in public housing. There is a Turkish saying (which doesn’t readily translate) which talks about the vision of the founders, passing on that vision through their children to their grandchildren. The proudest part for us is being able to work together as three generations of a family; this, for me, is a great value. I believe that there are two purposes for establishing a company in one’s business life. The first is to grow the business into an established company, sell it is as brand and continue with the same vision by perhaps establishing further businesses. Secondly, it is to transfer the established company from generation to generation, within the family company structure. What we do is give our company our own surname, brand that name and protect that value; it's a very difficult job and it's even more valuable when it's achieved. When you look at the projects we are working on with partner companies, we have always made sure that the companies we engage with have adopted this same mission. Today, with more than 4,000 homes delivered, we are in a good place in terms of honesty, goodwill and keeping that promise. But we move on and we are still carrying out more big projects with this vision.
- You not only build and sell houses, you also provide rental, maintenance and repair services to those who have bought a house but only use it say for a month’s holiday, can you give us details how this works?
The construction sector is very dynamic and a multi-branch system. We asked ourselves a question, why do people come to Cyprus? People mainly come for a holiday. People basically come one year on holiday for a month and then come again the following year. So we are offering our owners the option to leave us the key for the remaining 11 months, that way you will cover the costs of your next holiday, perhaps including your plane costs and what you are spending here whilst on holiday. We have even started to make profits for them, on top of it. During the 10 years we have been using this system our customer’s homes have retained their value and the owners have had free holidays every year.
As well as renting out our owners’ properties, we have 500 properties of our own in this rental system. Rentals are made for all periods of time, weekly, monthly or longer. Aside from this we have built a 3-star hotel for those who desire a holiday with a hotel concept. Now we have started work on a new 4-star hotel and today, I can proudly announce, we are getting the license and starting a hotel in a very beautiful location by the sea.
We are working very hard to provide tourists with every opportunity to see the natural beauties on offer in Cyprus. We have made huge investments in sports activities, such as diving and cycling, as well as boat tours and jeep safaris; and this investment is ongoing. We want to move forward by raising living standards here. The world now knows Long Beach, we have made very important promotions of the area for many years; in effect we have introduced Northern Cyprus and especially Long Beach to the world. People now think of Long Beach for holidays and we are continuing with the work of keeping Long Beach in the forefront of international tourists’ minds.
- Can you tell us about your ongoing projects?
They say life can be like a bicycle, if you stop you will fall off, so you have to pedal all the time. In business, those who stop regress. So we are always looking to move forwards, to be restructuring. Our 17th and 18th sites are completed with title deeds ready and handed out, and we are continuing apace with sites 19, 20 and 21. We are certainly customer-oriented in all our projects and, as stated above, we look to develop contemporary projects according to current demand.
The Four Vision Development, our project with 4 partners, is progressing extremely well. Having worked together and completed our first project, our second joint venture will be announced in the coming weeks with a third one on the way. We also have the Riverside Life Residence project, again a joint project and we will start to offer this for sale soon.
We always look to produce projects according to genuine needs and proceed according to customer demands, not just according to our desires or trends. This year, we have 3 new projects on the agenda, and we are planning to start in the near future. We basically have our plans settled until 2025, the land has been purchased and the initial works have started. We are really proud to be in a position to make these plans with the knowledge and capital to see them through. Starting from this year we are entering the summer period with a stock of around 350 finished properties, and around 50 show houses. Normally, there would be perhaps 50 to 70 ready-made houses every year, but this year with the worldwide problems, we are comfortable with slightly fewer.
With the 'Maintenance Doctor' brand, which becomes operational next month, we are also starting to provide renovation and maintenance repair services. As Noyanlar, one of the issues that we attach great importance to is our after sales and maintenance process. The worst thing for people who buy a property is not to deal with anything after selling it. Our customers are very important to us, we build properties so that people can live in them for years to come, and we provide extra services for the property needs that will arise over time. What we have learned over the years is that we experience peace, happiness and prosperity thanks to our customers, and we always need to keep their needs uppermost in our thoughts.
- A model of your new project, Riverside Life Residence, is displayed at the entrance of the office... You are starting another huge and valuable housing project, can you give us some information about this project?
Our Riverside project is a joint project with the Kömürcügil Family. The Residence, consisting of 820 units, is a beautiful project with commercial areas and an inner courtyard, just 200 meters from the sea. It is aimed entirely at those on vacation and holidaymakers. We are now waiting for the completion of the zoning plan, which has been in the process for 26 months, so as soon as it is finalised it will be implemented immediately.
We are of the opinion that we should respond to the needs of people with every project we implement, and for this, the guidance of our Sales Director, Zarif Noyan, is very helpful while developing our projects.
- We hear that such big projects contribute greatly to the development of Northern Cyprus. Would you like to talk about the contribution of your project to the national economy?
The construction industry is in a position to support around fifty business lines. When you finish a house, dozens of other sectors come into play just in furnishing the property. For example, if the cost of a project is £50million Sterling, the sales’ price is £70 million. With these figures you automatically pay record amounts of tax, making a great contribution to the environment and the country. We say that tourism comes first in the island’s economy, with education second, the construction and real estate sector comes in third. If you look at the taxation system, the contribution of the construction industry to the state, from everything from fees to licenses etc, provides a tax income of up to 35%. If you look at the scale of a £50 million project, you can easily see the contribution that will be made.
The construction industry needs to be protected, and supported by loans. It is our duty to keep emphasising this and to take all opportunities to ensure that this is understood. Societies that do not look to produce will eventually face extinction. We are an island country, we import almost everything and so we need to think about what we are producing here. It is really necessary to support our producers.
- You originally had a dream about your job, you came to Long Beach with this dream; can you tell us about your future dreams and business plans?
We have made our dreams to date come true, I really can say that. While making these dreams come true, we took steps with my wife Zarif Noyan, and who is also the Sales Director of Noyanlar Group of Companies. It makes us happy and proud not only to contribute to the visionary development of the company, but also to have trained the third generations in this business. Our dream for the future is to ensure that our children and future generations live a good life and experience the same pride as us; to continue these successes with the next generation, both with our partners and within the company. For them to understand what we were doing, following and achieving our dreams; now it’s their turn!
written by Propertync
Media
date :
05/10/2024
hour : 03:20 PM
