Shared workspaces start-up Innov8, owned by Guerilla Infra Solutions Pvt. Ltd, has raised a $4 million pre-Series A round led by Credence Family Office, said a top company executive.
Existing investors also participated in the funding round.
Innov8 will utilize the capital to expand its footprint beyond Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Chandigarh. It had raised an undisclosed sum in angel money from Lets Venture and Venture Catalysts in February 2017.
The shared workspace start-up, which was founded in 2015, is also backed by angels including Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Google India head Rajan Anandan, Anand Chandrasekaran, the global director of platform and product partnerships for Facebook, and Girish Mathrubootham, chief executive of Freshworks.
Credence Family Office is a multi-family office platform which provides advisory services, including wealth management, estate and succession planning, real estate and legal advisory.
“Co-working space is an exciting segment to be present in. Innov8’s unique business model has demonstrated promising growth trajectory along with some of the leading names in the industry as its clientele,” said Mitesh Shah, co-founder and managing partner, Credence Family Office.
Innov8 operates 13 workplaces across the National Capital Region (NCR), Mumbai, Bengaluru and Chandigarh. It plans to use the funds to expand to four centres and double its seat count to 8,000 in the next six months.
Innov8 plans to invest in building technology platforms for its business solutions such as proprietary access control and consumer-facing applications along the lines of a social networking platform for co-workers.
Its clients include RBL Bank, food delivery major Swiggy and Vice Media, among others.
Innov8 operates on an asset-light model, leasing working spaces for up to 10 years. Its co-working centres are typically spread over 22,000-27,000 sq. ft and the startup will be targeting campuses of 50,000 sq. ft, going forward.
“Our focus is on doing larger campuses because we feel that if we do larger campuses in a particular area, the economies of scale will kick in and we end up making more money out of it, as well as the community building factor plays along with it,” said Mallik.
Innov8 also aims to provide healthcare facilitates to its employees. “We will be going for an Innov8 Cafe where we will offer fibre-healthy food along with beverages such as luxury green teas and coconut water to our clients.”
Innov8 competes with Sequoia-backed Awfis, 91springboard and Cowrks, Blume Ventures-backed BHive, and WeWork’s Indian arm, among others. India’s co-working industry is expected to attract $400 million in investments this year, according to a report by the Confederation of Indian Industries.
According to a Knight Frank India report, the sector took up 13% of the total transacted office space between January and June, as activity-based working and community spaces have become a norm for modern-day office occupiers, seeking a collaborative ecosystem.
Innov8 boasts of nap-rooms in 10 centres, along with facilities such as rooftops, recreation facilities, refreshments and printing services. It claims to have 95% occupancy.
Source: Mint