Keppel Land invests $25 million in Smartworks Coworking Space

Smartworks provides office spaces that can be configured and customised in four to six weeks according to the needs of clients.

Home developer Keppel Land has invested $25 million in space solutions provider Smartworks Coworking Space that has a presence in nine cities and offers about 43,000 workstations.

Smartworks provides office spaces that can be configured and customised in four to six weeks according to the needs of clients. All of its centres include common amenities such as cafeterias, meeting spaces, training rooms, crèches, gymnasiums and first aid clinics.

The firm has 23 operational centres in nine cities spread over 2.3 million square feet and its centres cater to over 400 organisations. According to a statement, Smartworks plans to grow its footprint to 20 million square feet and provide office solutions for over 200,000 working professionals, over the next five years. The firm has presence in Delhi, Noida, Gurgaon, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai and Pune.

According to a statement issued by the firms, leasing activity in the commercial real estate segment rose by 40% year-on-year, crossing 30 million square feet in the first half of 2019, the highest recorded. It is poised to reach 50 million square feet by end-2019.

Neetish Sarda, founder of Smartworks, said the company is cash flow positive and is profitable at a consolidated level. “With this strategic investment by Keppel Land, we will be able to scale up even more rapidly across India’s tier 1 and tier 2 cities and further invest in building up our next generation product, improving client experiences, as well as boosting our talent and technology,” he said.

Tan Swee Yiow, CEO of Keppel Land, said this investment allows Keppel Land to enter one of the world’s fastest-growing flexible office markets, opening doors for further growth. “There are also many opportunities for cross-learning and collaboration between Smartworks and Keppel Land’s smart serviced co-office platform, KLOUD, which currently has a presence in Singapore, Vietnam and Myanmar,” he said.