91springboard, a co-working startup, on Tuesday raised ₹45 crore from its existing investors Pearl Brook Holdings Ltd and Al Nour International Holdings Co.
The funding, as it comes amid the covid-19 pandemic, is a shot in the arm for startups such as 91springboard that are creating co-working communities for large enterprises as well as small and medium enterprises and start-ups.
“We plan to utilize the funding by offering new-age and customized solutions that will help all our members adapt to the new normal,” said Anand Vemuri, chief executive, 91Springboard.
The startup claims that it is one of the few co-working players that has been profitable on a company level.
“We have reopened 14 of our 27 co-working spaces across India. These 14 office spaces are located in Delhi NCR, Gurgaon, Noida Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Goa. The rest of the spaces will reopen soon based on government advisories and our own assessment of health and safety. We have received an encouraging response from our members with nearly 60% of members returning or committed to return soon,” added Vemuri.
As soon as the lockdown was announced in March, 91springboard had paused it’s billing cycle on membership plans offering some respite. It had also launched two key initiatives to assist its members during the lockdown. These include the 91springboard’s startups vs covid initiative that consolidated all efforts being taken by investors, government departments, and stakeholders to support startups tackling issues pertaining to covid-19. It also started 91slive, a user engagement platform which offered information ranging from learning and knowledge (professional and personal) workshops, health & wellness stories and covid 19 updates.
Vemuri said the company has witnessed a two-times growth in demand from large enterprise teams as they are looking for benefits like flexibility, pan-India access and strategic partnerships. Various brands including Zomato, OLX, TataSky, Cleartrip, Mahindra Retail, and Cardekho use its co-working space and facilities.
As per a recent CBRE report, while the coworking industry is likely to witness short-term challenges in the coming months given covid-19 restrictions, the sector’s long-term fundamentals remain sound and it may show robust growth in the coming quarters.
