Maria Freimann
WHAT IF Managing Director & Founder
Maria is a strategist who turns ambitious visions into scalable businesses brought to market. As the founder of WHAT IF, she designs growth frameworks and leads teams so that ideas move quickly into market-ready business models and projects gain momentum.
Maria believes that the intersection of innovation and strategy is where new market standards are born.
Her background ranges from managing a 140,000 m² real estate portfolio to gaining an international perspective through studies in the EBS MBA program and at Bocconi University in Milan. Maria’s strength is connecting strategy, design, and execution – she drives projects from early ideation through delivery and is known for bringing clear structure and tangible results to complex initiatives.
She has contributed to sector-wide strategies, such as Rohetiiger’s Construction Roadmap 2035, and shares her experience at conferences and trainings, focusing on business strategy, innovation, and the future of real estate.
📍 Focus areas
- Business and growth strategies
- Leadership of large-scale development projects
- Digital infrastructure for real estate and data
- Go-to-market and brand strategies
- Management of investments and partnerships
📍 Selected projects
- WHAT IF – shaping business development and growth strategies and providing strategic leadership to teams
- Franklin – founder of the Digital Building DNA: initiator of the idea and strategy, builder of funding processes, teams, and partnerships
- Rohetiiger 2035 Construction Roadmap – co-author of Estonia’s construction sector sustainability roadmap; lead for planning, building design, and innovation
- RKIK – management of a 140,000 m² strategic real estate portfolio
- Portrait Milano – concept and strategy for a temporary tennis club in Milan, developed in collaboration with the Ferragamo hotel group
- Kawiare – building and launching an internationally oriented gourmet brand