Pellas Development Group For the love of central america

For the love of Central America

Tourism destination development promoted at a regionalscale: A case presentation of a multi regional legacy tourismproject, transforming border & coastal communities on bothsides of the Nicaragua and Costa Rica borders, reducingmarginalization and poverty in the region.

A Central American organizationborn in Nicaragua 130 years ago• Professional business group based on a tradition of family business.• Operations started in 1875. Nicaragua Sugar Estates Ltd. established in 1890.• A well-diversified economic group with presence in the Industrial,Commercial and Financial sectors.• Active presence in South Florida, the Caribbean and mainly in CentralAmerica and Panama.

And while we are known because werun some of the most admired brandsand companies in the region…..Nicaragua Sugar Estates Limited

Few people know that we were alsotrailblazers in the regional corporateworld with a long history ofcommitment to sustainability,philanthropy and social responsibilityprograms

“…as an organization, we measure our successby a triple bottom line metric….profits, peopleand planet. This is embedded in our core valuesand comes out of the true conviction that therecannot be successful companies in failedsocieties….”Carlos F. Pellas ChamorroChairmanGrupo Pellas

So not surprisingly when Pellas Developmentwas born 5 years ago our mission became:• To position and develop integrally planned destination resorts in CentralAmerica as places that will evolve and change organically over time,increasing the economic, biological and cultural value of the land, whilecreating experiences that meet the demands of today’s emerging globalmarketplace.

Our partnership with other localinvestors, who share our long termcapital, also share our vision and ofcourse our passion for legacy• Guided by the Pellas Development Group and a group of local andvisionary Central American investors like the Motta Group from Panama,the Durman Group, Garnier Group and Castegnaro family from Costa Rica,these projects fulfill a dream to do something meaningful for CentralAmerica by using its emerging tourism markets and great cultural andnatural assets as a method for balancing fragile economies. PDG vision isto create a series of truly unique socially and environmentally responsibleretreats within Central America’s most treasured places, and share themwith an increasing and emerging global marketplace of travelers, whilesetting a new standard for responsible and sustainable development withsignificant scale and reach.

As we set out to do what we promise, and provewhat no other private enterprise has done atthis scale in Central America, maybe it can bedone.• Both Santa Elena in Costa Rica and Guacalito de la Isla in Nicaragua, are apioneering compilation of responsible resort developments in spectacular,one-of-a-kind natural locales. Resonating with an artistic design aestheticand the authenticity and uniqueness of their particular geographicsettings, the resorts will redefine eco-luxury, social sustainability andenvironmental conservation throughout all of Central America.

To all of us at PDG this has been a greatjourney and a once in a life timeopportunity:• We have a blessed coast line of immense beauty and authentic culture waitingto be discovered. PDG has the potential to transform the reality of twoimpoverished regions currently beyond the limits of their property lines.

But of course, this is not only abeautiful land, it is also a verychallenging region• Some of the most marginalized communities inLatin America share at least one of thesecharacteristics:• They are coastal towns.• A large area of their territory is protected fromeconomic activities.• They are in border regions, with fragile territorialtensions between states, immigration, organizedcrime and human and drug trafficking.

La Cruz, Costa Rica, and Tola,Nicaragua have it all!!• Yes, the communities where our projects arelocated share all three of them!!!– COASTAL– 50% OF THEIR TERRITORY IS PROTECTED– THEY ARE BORDER REGIONS AND TOWNS

So how are we doing after four years?

Example: our support of locally owned smallbusinesses neighboring the project in thecommunity of Gigante, Nicaragua.• Gigante is a small fishing village next to our project inNicaragua, and benefits from personal funding from ourfounder Carlos Pellas, the direction of the Centro EmpresarialPellas, and Guacalito de la Isla. We are supporting localfisherman and entrepreneurs to transform their small andmarginalized community, creating an authentic and valuableamenity, while helping its inhabitants to sustain themselvesand develop their own businesses.

FONDO CARLOS PELLAS PARA LA EXCELENCIA TURISTICAALLIANCES FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE COMMUNITYThe Centro Empresarial Pellas (CEP) promotes projects to improve themanagement and economic capacity of small and medium tourismbusinesses in Playa Gigante, through the “COINVIERTO PROGRAM”.The C. Pellas Fund for Tourism Excellence provides locally ownedbusinesses up to 80% of required funding for their improvementprojects once they graduate from the certification program, that aimsto strengthten their management knowledge and capacities.

Example of our commitment to partner withcommunities to support basic needs long before thedevelopment of the project takes place: Santa Elenaand the Jobo-La Cruz Potable Water Aqueduct• The case of a poor and marginalized county like La Cruz inCosta Rica, their lack of basic infrastructure, employment andfuture, and how it is now transforming through a partnershipeffort where the planning is inclusive rather than exclusive,and with transparency. This case shows how we haveaddressed as partners with the community, the most basicinfrastructure needs, long before construction takes place…..changing the paradigm