Between the capital of Europe ans the most emblematic resort on the Belgian coast lies an invisible geography: that of the trajectories, the families, the legacies that have always moved between Avenue Louise and Le Route. This summer, two gatherings gave concrete form to that proximity: one through debate, the other through play. Belgium Sotheby’s International Realty was a partner to both, faithful to a simple conviction: exceptional real estate is never confined to tis walls; it draws its meaning from the connections woven around them.
when Brussels meets Knokke, powerred by ING Private Banking
In the industrial volumes of Joris Ice at Oosthoek, L’Eventail and the Zoute Paper brought together decision-makers and entrepreneurs from both poles the country around a direct question: what can the capital of Europe and the most emblematic resort on the coast offer one another? On stage, host Joris Ide was surrounded by Philippe and Miene Gillion (Sotheby’s Real Estate Belgium), mayors Cathy Coudyser and Philippe Close, de Luc Bertrand (Ackermans & van Haaren), Minister Bernard Quintin, de Jan Van Sande (ING Private Banking & Wealth Management) and John-Alexander Bogaerts (B19, 42 Belgium).
Led by François Didisheim and Marlène de Wouters, the conversation quickly left the terrain of pleasantries (attractiveness, real estate, building permits, ecology, security and art de vivre). One consensus emerged nonetheless: Brussels and Knokke would gain from confronting their models rather than juxtaposing them. Microphones off, the cocktail crafted by Aromates and bubbles of Domaine Chant d’elle gave way (a first for this edition) to a dinner where the exchanges found their second wind.
Friday 21 august, the Zoute approach
A few days later, the conservation changed ground. Also organized by HLCE and supported by Belgium Sotheby’s International realty, the Route Approach brought together teams of four players on the Route approach course, on the very spot where mini-golf has been part of the Knokke landscape for generations. The format owes its rightness to its very simplicity: short greens, a rhythm that leaves ample room for discussion, and that very coastal way of doing business without ever appearing to. At midday, a lunch welcomed the guests who had come to join the players; at the close of the day, a cocktail and the prize-giving drew the parenthesis to a close, in the low light of an August Friday on the coast.
The same conservation, two registers
A debate under the spotlights, a match played on the grass: two registers, a single intuition. Brussels and Knokke are not two markets observing one another, but a single ecosystem in conversation with itself, whose two extremities our clients often inhabit at once. That is precisely where our profession lies: at the intersection of a legacy, a place to live and a network. Brussels and Knokke have spoken. Until next year, to continue the conversation.
Our specialists in Brussels and in Knokke-Heist remain at your disposal for a confidential conversation.
