Crystal Lagoons U.S. Corp.® Sees Strong Sales Performance and Potential

With a number of successes in master-planned community amenity developments under its belt, Miami-based technology company Crystal Lagoons® is pursuing a new business model for amenity development, which consists of master licensing agreements for Public Access Lagoons™. The following is a publication released by Builder Online, a U.S. magazine that recently covered the firm’s success in the U.S. market.

The company’s exclusive partners are set to use Crystal Lagoons technology package to create public amenities across the U.S. anchored by beaches, retail, and other attractions. Between December 2019 and May 2020, the company had signed master licensing agreements for 16 new lagoons in the U.S., as well as many more overseas.

While the COVID-19 pandemic has placed restrictions on the company’s activity and prompted the closure of some amenities at the beginning of the pandemic—including the one at the Epperson community in Wesley Chapel, Fla.—Crystal Lagoons anticipates that its amenities will play important roles in a future economic recovery, particularly as sites for “mini-vacations” in a time when air travel is limited.

“Given that these are long-term projects that will not be completed in less than one-and-a-half years, the business’ dynamism hasn’t been affected by the pandemic,” says Iván Manzur, who is expected to assume the position of vice president of sales at Crystal Lagoons U.S. Corp. “On the contrary, we’ve seen investors moving forward, and these projects have been perceived as having a potential of reactivating the economy.”

BUILDER magazine spoke with Manzur about the company’s future plans and sales performance, as well as its management of the COVID-19 pandemic, opportunities as travel and recreation habits shift, and expectations for business under the “new normal.”

BUILDER: How has your public access lagoon business expanded in the U.S. over the past year? Can you tell me about the status of some of your projects?

Manzur: The United States is one of the main markets for Public Access Lagoons™, also known as PAL™. Although these projects started as real estate, they quickly converted to the PAL business model, as in the case of Epperson, which opened up a section of the lagoon allowing public access. People started going to the beach, and the outcome has been so remarkable that the development has often had to close the doors to control the flow of visitors.

Later, PAL projects emerged, with public access only, which were in association with amusement parks, for example. Since, the growth has spiked producing the first master licenses with renowned multinational companies, such as the signing with Epic to develop 16 projects across the U.S. Our business plan shows a potential projection of 1,000 developments of this type in the U.S. alone.

BUILDER: How do you believe economic reactivation measures will affect Crystal Lagoons?

Manzur: Every reactivation measure promoted by the U.S. is important. In the case of Crystal Lagoons, we can divide ours into two aspects. Regarding real estate projects that are currently in development, the measures will allow, in the short term, to increase the purchase of properties while also allowing people to partially restore the normality they are accustomed to.

In the case of PAL projects to be developed in the medium or long term, these reactivation measures will likely not have a major impact.

BUILDER: According to Crystal Lagoons, the company expects that families will look to have “mini holidays” in lieu of air travel this summer. Can you elaborate on this idea?

Manzur: The pandemic, even if it’s controlled in the future (vaccines, etc.), may change certain social habits, such as avoiding plane trips to distant locations due to risks associated with large groups of people boarding planes, at airports, confinement in planes, coming into contact with people from other countries where infection rates are possibly unpredictable, etc.

Being able to have beach life and recreational activities close to home reduces considerably many of these risks and could become a future trend.

Touristic destinations and public beaches are difficult to control on a sanitary level. On the other hand, on a private beach, such as is the case of PAL, access can be controlled by using tests, regulating its capacity, ensuring distances are respected, etc.

In fact, investors have identified that people will prefer to unwind in areas close to home, which will require infrastructure to be developed. These types of areas within cities will be especially necessary after confinement.

This concept of beach life just steps away from home positively impacts people’s carbon footprint and reduces the impact on biodiversity in natural places.

BUILDER: How have Crystal Lagoons amenities in residential communities fared? How are communities implementing safety measures?

Manzur: Epperson reopened its doors once COVID restrictions were lifted and has received a large number of people. What’s surprising is that, despite the current economic situation, commercial activity has been maintained, confirming the good results that Crystal Lagoons projects have always experienced in the U.S. An example of this are three new projects soon to open in Florida (Southshore Bay, Mirada, and Avenir) and Sierra Vista in Houston.

As for preventive measures, although the amenities and lagoons in the real estate projects were closed for a month, they are reopening and starting to operate normally.

BUILDER: What do you believe the future will hold for Crystal Lagoons?

Manzur: As previously mentioned, Crystal Lagoons is undergoing a structural change, registering the highest sales in its history, and is dynamically closing contracts.

Along with the master licenses previously signed around the world and the above mentioned negotiations, we’ve seen that there is a large market in the main U.S. mall chains, as several need to reinvent themselves and we’re in advanced conversations with them. The fall in their sales caused by e-commerce and an increase in unoccupied spaces has forced them to introduce new functional alternatives and new experiences, such as these lagoons.

Malls see in PAL a new hook or “anchor” to attract public. There is an important market here, and we foresee a great future reconverting these shopping centers.

Crystal Lagoons is an international innovation company, founded by scientist Fernando Fischmann, which has developed a patent-protected technology that allows the construction and maintenance of unlimited-size clear water lagoons at very low costs.

Latest News

In Onikisubat, Turkey, the Public Access Lagoons™ project by Crystal Lagoons, which has the largest lagoon in Europe, is garnering worldwide attention as the venue for a significant expo and summit on healthy lifestyles, green economies, sustainable living, education, and innovation.

The event promotes cooperation and knowledge exchange among countries regarding an environmentally respectful and sensitive culture within cities.

The Mayor of Onikisubat, Hanefi Mahçiçek, emphasized the significance of this development as the most prominent setting for the event due to its environmental characteristics. He also noted that the PAL™ development is part of the urban plan to transform the city into a model and modern district.

Indeed, one of the attributes of this project, in partnership with the local municipality, is the sustainability of Crystal Lagoons® technology and its contribution to urban public entertainment, setting a new standard with high social impact.

This Expo 2023 features the participation of over 24 countries and is expected to draw more than 2 million visitors worldwide. The exhibition encourages cooperation and knowledge exchange among countries on healthy lifestyles, green economies, sustainable living, education, and innovation.

The sustainability of Crystal Lagoons® technology, which has received multiple global awards, has been certified by Bureau Veritas for its low water and energy consumption. Another noteworthy feature is that it uses any type of water: fresh, seawater, or brackish. It uses up to 100 times fewer chemicals than a traditional pool and can reduce the carbon footprint in the tourism and transportation sector by over 40%.In Turkey, Crystal Lagoons is also in advanced negotiations to develop PAL® projects in several country cities. These complexes provide access to crystalline lagoons and white sandy beaches for anyone through the purchase of a ticket, delivering a tropical paradise experience amid the city. Around the lagoon are spaces for fairs, launches, food halls, weddings, hotels, shops, restaurants, and concerts on multiple stages, terraces, domes, and amphitheaters.

Crystal Lagoons has completed a significant expansion in Australia. The multinational innovation company has signed an important contract with investment fund Vibranium Capital Partners to develop 16 new Public Access Lagoons™ projects, also known as PAL™ developments, in Australia. Additionally, the agreement considers the possibility of entering with ten additional projects in other countries in Oceania and Southeast Asia.

Australian cities have been ranked among the best in the world because of their geographical richness and nature. Through this contract, cities like Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, Perth, Brisbane, and the Gold Coast will have large crystalline lagoons suitable for swimming and water sports, surrounded by white sand beaches. These complexes contribute new beach hubs, catering to the Australian lifestyle where aquatic activities and entertainment are prioritized.

While these cities are located close to the coast, the projects of Crystal Lagoons will develop second and safer shorelines. They will provide additional tourist infrastructure to the natural beaches that enable people to swim and practice water sports securely, free from the sea risks in that area.

The partner in this contract is an Australian investment fund with operations in Oceania, the Americas, and Asia, with more than 30 years of experience and an investment portfolio of US$4 billion. The firm’s interest in the PAL™ model is to expand its strategic partnerships and real estate development opportunities in key markets.

 

What to expect

Like all public access projects of Crystal Lagoons, the centerpiece is a crystalline lagoon, which can be accessed via ticketed entry. The PAL™ complexes also incorporate restaurants, multifamily areas, hotels, retail, beach clubs, etc.

Australians love the water and outdoor life. However, as with many tourist destinations worldwide, coastal edges are highly developed, and land is expensive. PAL™ developments offer a successful and sustainable alternative to developing beach and recreational infrastructure in inland areas, giving a larger part of the population access to these recreational spaces,” said Alastair Sinclair, Regional Director of Crystal Lagoons.

“We look forward to leveraging our experience under this partnership and the potential of Crystal Lagoons® concepts and technology, particularly in Australia. We will now focus on building partnerships with strategic investors, developers, and landowners in each of the territories to bring these projects to fruition,” added a Vibranium Capital Partners spokesperson.

Dive into our PAL™ projects and enjoy a new stream of possibilities here! 

Since expanding to the United States, the success of Crystal Lagoons has not stopped. Their developments have always been at the forefront of real estate sales rankings in the country. This is the case with their first project, Epperson in Florida, to the newest ones, Mirada and Sunterra in Florida and Texas.

This is again confirmed by the 2023 real estate ranking by RCLCO, one of the USA’s leading real estate consulting firms, recently released. In it, five projects of Crystal Lagoons are among the top 50 top-selling master-planned communities in the country. These include Sunterra, Sierra Vista, Windsong Ranch in Texas, and Mirada and Epperson in Florida.

All of them have a crystalline lagoon as a central piece. Sunterra was the best-selling development in Texas, with a 49% increase. Mirada, which features the largest artificial lagoon in the country, grew 59% in sales, being the project of Crystal Lagoons with the greatest dynamism.

Within RCLCO’s rankings, developments with crystalline lagoons are always among the best sellers. Crystalline lagoons impact the speed of sale and price, generating an advantage over the competition.

According to the consultancy, the success and added value of the lagoons are because amenities like these are among the most sought after by families in this country. These bodies of water allow for water sports, beach life, outdoor activities, and access to nature, benefits that buyers increasingly value.

“Artificial lagoons are a cross-cutting sales driver confirmed in various rankings in all their versions, such as RCLCO and the John Burns Real Estate Consulting ranking. That’s why the United States is the world’s main market for Crystal Lagoons, with more than 275 projects in different stages of development and negotiation,” explains Ivan Manzur, Senior VP of Sales at Crystal Lagoons US Corp.

This success reflects how the Crystal Lagoons® concept and technology, patented worldwide, has become the world’s top amenity, changing the landscape and creating a unique environment of turquoise waters and white sandy beaches.

 

RCLCO, Real Estate Advisors

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