The Market Seen from the Street: Consolidate, Grow or Change?
After months fully focused on hiring, executing and delivering, this week I finally managed to carve out some space to stop — and think.
It’s incredible what happens when we switch off (even if only partially).
Thoughts race, emotions pile up, and we quickly get caught in a web of doubts, ideas and memories:
• What went well? What went wrong?
• Where am I now? Where do I want to go?
• What do I need to do to reach my goals?
• Can I really make it? And if I can’t?
• Am I on the right path, or completely off track?
Well… it’s hard to tell.
It’s a matter of perspective.
For many years, I was a freelancer — in fact, practically throughout my whole professional journey. That forced me to develop a certain ability to solve problems when everything seemed lost.
Among the pros and cons, I carry an important challenge: I genuinely care about the people I work with, and I’m afraid of failing. I still haven’t fully learned to manage the emotional weight that comes with it.
In the past year, I’ve heard this far too many times:
“André, you can’t save the world. If you do it differently, you can benefit so much more.”
That may well be true. But to do so, I’d have to stop being who I am.
And honestly, I’m not ready for that.
I wasn’t born to seem. I was born to be.
With all my flaws and quirks, I still believe it’s possible to build a solid brand without giving up on certain principles.
Naïve? Stubborn? Maybe. But that’s what keeps me going.
After several years working in different areas of real estate — and after a string of disappointments and important losses —, at the end of 2023 I made a decision:
To transform practical knowledge into services with real added value.
My goal was clear:
To take part in real estate projects with some scale, even without having enough capital to invest.
The solution? Create value before investment.
Prove that I can help maximize project outcomes.
To achieve this, I developed a report model with practical inputs, strategic recommendations, and risk analysis.
The logic was simple: if I can help clients think better, maybe they’ll want me to help them execute better too.
And that’s exactly what happened.
Report by report, client by client, doors started opening.
“You’ve already planned. Now execute.”
In one of those moments, a client told me:
“André, I now have a clear explanation of what I need to do. Since you’ve planned it all, can’t you also execute it?”
That’s when I started realizing the true potential of what we had in our hands.
And with that, we began capturing more projects and more clients.
Along the way, I teamed up with people eager to build something bigger:
Pedro Almeida – numbers run in his veins. Great capacity for market analysis and valuation. He’s learning real estate project management and, as he gains confidence, he reveals his true potential.
Gonçalo Carvalho Miguel – comes from international relations. He had zero contact with the sector. Today he manages contacts, communicates with the market, researches and writes about critical topics. Curious, attentive, and with a huge drive to succeed. Over the next months, you’ll be seeing more of him.
Miguel Amaral – a “long-time partner,” with whom I share friendship, ethics and experience in complex transactions. A valuable addition.
At this moment, we have 23 active processes, in different stages and with different needs.
The team is still small, but it responds with dedication, commitment, and eagerness to learn.
I often hear:
“André, can we really do this?”
And my answer is almost always:
“I don’t know. But let’s analyze it and give our honest opinion. Then the client decides.”
So far, we’ve been right many times.
But I know we’ll also fail. And when that happens, we’ll be here to own it — always.
Right now, the vision is well defined:
• Continue providing real estate consulting and project management services.
Generates short-term cash flow.
• Strengthen the Capital Markets area, focused on structuring complex deals.
Generates medium-term cash flow and investment capacity.
• Build a solid base to operate in Real Estate Investment and Development.
This is the company’s true objective.
But… that’s a lot for so few people.
“André, you need to hire.”
True. But hire who?
Develop talent – bet on junior profiles, with medium-term growth potential?
Bring in specialists – integrate experienced professionals who can deliver immediate value?
Bring in partners/shareholders – willing and able to be part of Laplace Real Estate Intelligence, while also developing their own path?
I don’t yet have a definitive answer.
But there’s something we already know:
We need people who think differently, but share the same principles.
People who bring knowledge, critical vision, a hunger to learn — and above all, the drive to make things happen.
Whether they’re architects, engineers, deal makers, psychologists, lawyers, or people without a university degree?
Honestly… I don’t know.
But if they share the same spirit of collaboration and a desire to grow together, maybe we should talk.
And if we don’t find those people?
In that case, we’ll have to adapt the model.
Maybe accept fewer consulting clients.
And focus more on what we already know how to do well: develop, enhance, and promote real estate projects.
But that… we’ll figure out in the coming weeks.
See you soon,
André Casaca
