MICROSOFT AND PUMA ARE BOUND FOR THE ALPHA

Another part of BB Centrum office park, Building Alpha, which is due for completion this December, has already had its anchor tenants since the Czech subsidiary of Microsoft and Czech Puma Dassler, s.r.o. signed lease contracts. Another significant part of the building will be occupied by the developer of BB Centrum, Passerinvest Group, which will move their headquarters in their new flagship building.

Microsoft will be a tenant of an almost 4,000-sqm area spread over two levels of the building, as well as 80 parking places. Czech Puma Dassler entered into a lease contract for almost 600 sq m, which is one third of a floor area, as well as 8 parking places. Another floor area, i.e. over 550 sq m, will be occupied by PASSERINVEST GROUP. Each of the above companies will move their headquarters immediately on completion of the building.
About half of the office space in Alpha is now available for lease.

We approached Jiří Grund, Public Relations Manager, Czech & Slovak to see the reasons why Microsoft has chosen Alpha for their headquarters in the Czech Republic:

Why did you deal with the question of moving?
Microsoft had expanded, so the former premises were lacking in adequate space. This is why we started to seek out a new seat of our company.

Why did your company opt for BB Centrum?
There were several options to choose from; however, what eventually decided was good traffic access. In addition, it is BB Centrum track record that speaks for itself because we consider this development as the largest and probably the most successful office park that has been so far completed in the Czech Republic. Its success can be illustrated by the names of mobile phone providers, IT companies and banks which have opened their offices in the existing buildings.

What do you expect from the new seat of your company?
Our principal aim is to approach our customers and partners and to provide our staff with an adequate standard of comfort. BB Centrum gives us these chances. It is easily accessible from the D1 Motorway, South Trunk Road, or alternatively, by public transport. Moreover, we are moving near our existing business contacts, which will be a considerable asset to our clients.

MICROSOFT
Microsoft was established by William H. Gates III. and Paul G. Allen on 4 April 1975. The Czech subsidiary of the company was set up in 1992. The main activities of Microsoft include manufacturing and marketing of software and hardware products, which fall into the following categories:
• Microsoft Windows
• Microsoft Office System
• Servers
• Development Tools
• Games
• Hardware
• Business Solutions
• Mobile devices
For more information on their products, see www.microsoft.com/cze/.
The mission of Microsoft is to enable people and companies around the world to fulfil their full potential. With the state-of-the-art information technologies adapted to suit the local markets, where they are located, they strive to help people enjoy pleasures of life, regardless whether they work, study or play games. Microsoft also contributes to higher quality of education, productivity of labour, IT skills development and computer literacy, which keeps Czech companies competitive and facilitates admission of this country into the EU.

PUMA
Established by Rudolf Dassler in Germany in 1948, PUMA are now conducting their business operations with a staff of 2,500 in more than 80 countries around the world. Their principal strategy is to merge sports, lifestyle and fashion, creating the most sought-after “sports lifestyle” brand in the world.
Following six years’ marketing and distribution of Puma products in partnership with Logosport s.r.o., Puma Czech Republic established Czech Puma Dassler, s.r.o, which is under their sole ownership. The latter has been responsible for selling, distribution and marketing of Puma brand products on the territory of the Czech Republic since 1 January 2002 (with 39 people on the payroll these days). Czech Puma Dassler, s.r.o. is led by Director Miroslav Ryba (31), who has been working with Puma since 2001. His previous experience of top management boosts morale of a young and highly committed team, who participate in global activities of the corporation.
Czech Puma Dassler, s.r.o. was established in accordance with the corporate policy, which is aimed at a new corporate structure and brand support in anticipation of the world without any time or geographic limitations, where customers’ attitudes will split the differences between nationalities, ages and sexes. It is the world where PUMA strives to contribute to shape the world of their key customers, whose lifestyle will be determined by the internet and remote control. It will be the world on the move, with neither time and geographic limitations nor cultural barriers.
The global sales of Puma increased by 46.8% in the first half of 2003, reaching €644 million, compared with €438.7 million last year. The profit before taxation rose by 122.9%, from €57.2 million to € 27.5 million, breaking the record profit generated in 2002. The dividends rose from €2.50 to €5.42.