• Polish data proptech REDD secured EUR 1.4M of angel investment
• The platform offers the most comprehensive, complete and dynamic database of commercial real estate in Poland
• The startup’s plans include AI-focused product development

This September, Polish dynamic commercial real estate database REDD announced the closing of its angel round of investment. The amount is PLN 6.5M (EUR 1.4M), and this round’s angels were Tomasz Trzósło of EPP, Bartosz Mierzwiak (ex-Logicor), and Dr Krzysztof Kalicki of the Leon Koźmiński University.

From Excel to Big Data

Piotr Smagała and Tomasz Ogrodzki founded REDD in 2018 with the purpose of the digital transformation of the commercial real estate sector in Poland. Both having notable experience in the vertical, they could observe how quite hermetic and conservative the real estate market was and how it lacked transparency. According to Mr Ogrodzki, collecting data boiled down to entering records into Excel. Useful as it is, this tool has its limitations – the information obtained in this way is difficult to share and verify. This is a huge obstacle to free development and prevents maximizing the potential of data.

The name REDD is quite self-explanatory: it stands for ‘real estate digital data.’ The first entry to the database was the famous building at Rondo ONZ in Warsaw. Today, REDD is monitoring over 2,100 properties, which translates into 170 billion pieces of data.

‘Thanks to REDD’s high-quality IT tools, data from all these locations are managed instantly, in real-time, without the need for physical paperwork transfer or manual data entry in Excel spreadsheets. Every day, all 100 buildings in the REDD database are fully updated in terms of availability, costs, and any other essential criteria. However, there is still room for improvement, and the key to this lies with the clients themselves,’ Mr Ogrodzki explains.

The database gets updated in two variants:

• The ‘Basic’ Option: REDD collects data from property owners or the agencies representing them. Additionally, it may involve newsletters and updates, which the five-person research team at REDD receives and then uses this information to expand and update their database.
• The ‘User’ Option: A property owner can take control and manage their properties as a REDD platform user. If nothing changes with the property, the user can notify others daily simply by selecting their units and clicking refresh. The update date will change to the current day, indicating that this is the most up-to-date information. You can also edit units, marking them as reserved or setting a future availability date.

There is also the ‘flexible model’ which allows users to divide one space into several smaller units, specify their size and rental price, giving clients more choices and creating more opportunities for profit.

Smart Money and Esteemed Partners

The new investment round is in line with REDD’s ‘smart money’ approach of attracting renowned and experienced industry experts – who share REDD’s belief that the real estate market in Poland is at its transformative moment – to the board. The goal is to create a think tank that will lead the digital transformation of the vertical.

Before joining EPP, where he serves as CEO, Tomasz Trzósło was Managing Director of JLL in Poland and Central and Eastern Europe, overseeing the company’s operations in Poland and supervising JLL’s projects in the Czech Republic, Romania, Hungary, and Slovakia.

Bartosz Mierzwiak, until recently, was the Managing Director at Logicor. He was responsible for the operations of the Logicor platform in Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania, and Hungary, as well as DACH and Benelux. Before joining Logicor, he spent four years at Prologis, overseeing asset management, development, construction, and leasing in Poland, and nearly eight years with Jones Lang LaSalle Poland, where he was responsible for office space leasing across Poland.

Finally, Dr Krzysztof Kalicki is a famous Polish economist, banker, and government official, with a habilitation degree in economics and a professor at the Leon Koźmiński University. He served as Secretary of State in the Ministry of Finance from 1994 to 1996 and was the long-time CEO of Deutsche Bank Poland, currently serving on the bank’s Supervisory Board.

They all agree that the Polish commercial real estate market is critically underserved in terms of digital transformation.

Mr Trzósło strongly believes in the need for digital transformation in the real estate sector, especially in terms of data management. ‘Despite many projects in various companies, especially in the advisory industry, in Poland, this area remains largely untapped, or at least not sufficiently utilized. I believe that REDD is not only a response to market demand but also an opportunity to create an integrated system that can be used by all market participants,’ he states.

‘Although the value of the industry estimated at tens of billions of euros is undeniable, the lack of comprehensive, reliable, and standardized data, essential for making informed decisions in the field of development and investment, is equally undeniable,’ Mr Mierzwiak adds.

Market Dynamics and REDD’s Plans

Dr Kalicki is convinced that the continued growth dynamics of the real estate market, the efficiency of choosing offers, and the speed of transactions depend on access to reliable information and its transparency.

‘REDD’s proposition meets all of these demands – it strengthens the market institutionally and reduces transaction costs, while also signifying an important step toward providing modernity and convenience to the contracting parties. I believe that the entire market recognizes the benefits of the REDD system,’ he says.

With the new investment at hand and partners on board, REDD will continue its work on the digital transformation of the Polish commercial real estate market.

Mr Ogrodzki shares a glimpse: ‘REDD AI specializes in developing an intelligent tool for estimating the value of office properties. REDD’s new AI technology will enable real estate investment funds and other financial entities to analyze the value of selected assets through not just a few but thousands of data dimensions.’