Best printers for Home

Best Mixer Grinder

Best wired Earphones

Best 43 Inch TV in India

Best Wi Fi Routers

Best Home Theatre in India

Smart Watch under 5000

Best Laptops for Education

Best Laptop for Students

<ul><li>In an interview with Business Insider, <keyword id="3875950" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="amit-ramani">Amit Ramani</keyword>, CEO, <keyword id="3502552" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Awfis">Awfis</keyword>, talks about how they achieved profitability so soon.</li><li>Awfis recently raised a Series D funding of $30 million from marquee investor ChrysCapital along with existing investors Sequoia India.</li><li>According to reports, it plans to list by 2022.</li></ul>As gig economy in India expands and agility is becoming common even amongst large established companies – co-working spaces have started mushrooming. Even in this crowded segment, Awfis is growing fast. It has also managed to clock in profits within two years of operations. It recently raised Series D funding of $30 million from marquee investor ChrysCapital with participation from existing investors like Sequoia India &amp; The Three Sisters: Institutional Office. With this latest funding, Awfis plans to bring out new tech-driven innovative products and foray into Tier II markets like Jaipur, Ahmedabad, Bhubaneshwar, Kochi and Indore. It is already present in Chandigarh. The company also aims to go <a href="https://www.cnbctv18.com/startup/startup-street-might-list-the-company-by-2022-says-amit-ramani-of-awfis-4461911.htm">public </a>by 2022. Exponential growth Awfis also achieved a rare feat for a startup, which is profitability within two years. In the very first year of operations in FY16, its revenues was at ₹1 crore. In the very next year, the number touched ₹18 crore. In the next, its exponential growth swelled it to ₹56 crore. In the current financial year, it expects it to more than double it. “We have been growing three times every year, despite also adding seats and increasing our size,” Amit Ramani, CEO of Awfis told Business Insider India. Profitability has always been core to its strategy. “We were deeply invested in the unit economics of each centre and were very careful not to overbuild the capacity of our staff or go overboard on marketing,” he said. Ramani said that they now aim to expand to 200,000 seats by 2022. Currently, they have 30,000 seats across 63 centres in 10 cities. Not just for startups The company also discovered a new set of clientele. While most co-working spaces tend to target startups, Awfis realised that the Indian SMEs are in need of their services. “While most co-working spaces look at just startups which are 10% of the total requirement of office space, 60-70% of SMEs remain underserved. So, we give SMEs an upgrade while also saving them money,” said Ramani. Ramani said that when he had built the-proof-of-concept for Awfis in April 2015, it had three basic principles – bring flexibility back into real estate, provide accessibility as people’s lives are becoming very mobile and ensure transparency, with all discoverability and bookability being on an app allowing people to book on-the-go. See Also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/oyo-workspaces-launches-latest-old-fort-style-centre-in-delhi/articleshow/70605436.cms">OYO’s latest coworking space will give you a glimpse of the old world charm</a>

This co-working space achieved profitability in just two years and is now aiming for an IPO

New Delhi, Jun 12 () COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the adoption of digital tools in Indian real estate, and the process of search as well as shortlisting of properties will largely shift to online platforms, according to industry experts. Participating in a webinar, Arvind Subramanian, MD and CEO designate of Mahindra Lifespaces, said the technology would play an important role in the real estate sector, not only in sales and marketing but in construction and design as well. He described residential property as a 30-years consumer product and said it should not be treated as any other financial products. The webinar was organised by BW Businessworld and WHub. Dhruv Agarwala, the CEO of Housing Proptiger and Makaan.com, said there has been tremendous acceleration in digital adoption since the lockdown, which was imposed on march 25 to curb coronavirus spread. He mentioned that the total traffic at its three platforms fell 40 per cent during the first week of the lockdown compared with the pre-COVID level. However, Agarwala said, the traffic has now bounced back and is 20 per cent more than pre-COVID level. Although traffic on its sites has come back, he said, buyers will be cautious due to salary cuts, lay-offs and economic downturn, but investors are looking to purchase because of attractive prices and payment plans. Square Yards CEO Tanuj Shori said his company has been able to sell 3,000 properties during this period, thanks to fast adoption of digital tools like virtual walk through and payment gateways by developers as well as customers. He said the coronavirus pandemic has accelerated the speed of adoption of digital although there will be some element. NoBroker co-founder Amit Agarwal said around 2,000 properties have been transacted on its websites during this period. The process of search, shortlisting and walk-throughs of properties have shifted to online. He highlighted that even the rental deals are taking place without physical visits. MyGate founder Vijay Kumar said the technology will play a big role in making real estate market more efficient. SAI Estate Consultants MD Amit Bhagwan Wadhwani, however, said that human interference will be required to complete the real estate transactions, although digital tools are being helpful in lead generations. Awfis founder and CEO Amit Ramani said the technology is enabling coworking operators in providing services more efficiently. Agarwala of Housing.com said that the PropTech companies have not been able to attract huge investment in the last ten years but the scenario could change in the next decade. "We are just seeing the emergence of PropTech in India," he added. MJH BAL

COVID-19 quickens adoption of digital tools in real estate: Experts

Asia’s biggest co-working space, <keyword id="3502552" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Awfis">Awfis</keyword> with 2,500 seats is not just changing the way we work but is making sure we actually work. 
 Awfis recently launched a mobile office which is typically a van equipped with all the features you need on-the-move to work. Facilities like Wi-Fi; teleconferencing, printing, <keyword id="6354857" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="CCTV">CCTV</keyword> ,pantry and even a meeting table for their partner companies that want the employees’ commute time to be used productively. Now, that’s effective considering if you are forced to commute to Gurgaon or <keyword id="6356788" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Greater-Noida">Greater Noida</keyword> for work and you live in Delhi, the commute time can easily range between 2-4 hours every day, to-and-fro. 
 Amit Ramani, CEO, <keyword id="3207074" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Awfis-Space-Solutions">Awfis Space Solutions</keyword> caught up with <keyword id="824043" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Business-Insider">Business Insider</keyword> to tell us how Awfis is making sure that people ACTUALLY WORK at the office. ‘We are providing real-time analytics to companies that want to know if their employees are actually working out of our co-working space.’ Awfis has many companies like <keyword id="541988" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="SnapDeal">Snapdeal</keyword>, Renew Power, FICCI etc. are taking up seats at the co-working facility to give their employees an option to work near-home. 
 
<a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/A-survey-reveals-60-of-employed-Indians-aspire-to-be-entrepreneurs/articleshow/55152360.cms">The employees can be tracked </a>through CCTV cameras, in-out times and of course through Wifi usage. Good day for the honest workers. 
All of this to ensure that you are working, at your convenience. 
 
<a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Snapdeal-is-moving-its-employees-to-co-working-setup/articleshow/55182709.cms">ALSO READ: Snapdeal is moving its employees to this co-working setup</a> 
 
Sadly for workers,<a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Now-you-can-list-your-car-for-rent-and-get-paid-for-it/articleshow/55154351.cms"> traffic </a><a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Now-you-can-list-your-car-for-rent-and-get-paid-for-it/articleshow/55154351.cms">jams</a><a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Now-you-can-list-your-car-for-rent-and-get-paid-for-it/articleshow/55154351.cms">, </a>and bad connectivity can no more be valid excuses for missed deadlines.

This ‘Awfis’ is making sure that employees work every minute
of the working hours

<ul><li>India is home to over 200 co-working spaces and their seats are filling out fast.</li><li>But their popularity is surging because they are more than just office rental spaces. </li><li>In India, co-working spaces had leased about 2.9 million square feet in area just between January-March 2019. </li></ul>Dhruv Mullick, a sports management professional who handles Mayank Agarwal, the Indian test cricketer, used to work out of a Starbucks in Bengaluru . But one day when he had to sign a confidential legal contract, he needed an office space. He walked into WeWork in Churchstreet, Bengaluru, signed up for a membership for half a month in December, 2018. Today, he runs a business out of there. American entrepreneur Carolyn Horner needed to do a beta testing for her app, all she had to do was look across the room, offer a free donut and in return get real-time validation for her product. Horner, the co-founder of Jenzy, an app that makes it easy for parents to find the right fit shoes for young children, could do all of this just by sitting at her desk at WeWork in Philadelphia. Mullick and Homer are among many <keyword id="53533" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="entrepreneurs">entrepreneurs</keyword> who have embraced co-working around the world for their many benefits, ranging from affordability to a chance to network to finding business deals. In India, co-working spaces have opened up in almost every other corner of big cities and are now also entering Tier 2 and 3 cities in India. They have found favour with entrepreneurs mainly for convenience, affordability, and a place to network and become a part of a community, without having to invest in real estate. With seat prices starting as low as ₹7,000 a month at some places, many of these places can be a steal for business owners. According to a report done by property consultant Knight Frank, as of 2018, there were about 200 co-working spaces in India, with the likes of WeWork, Regus, Awfis etc., being the most popular. Such has been the craze of co-working spaces in India, that WeWork which launched in the country in 2017, already contributes to ₹6,788 crore of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) across its centres in Delhi-NCR, Mumbai and Bengaluru. Not just seat sharing But co-working spaces are evolving from being just seat sharing office spaces to a hub of mentorship from experienced professionals, giving entrepreneurs a chance to test their products before it goes live or just fall back on their peers when they are at a fix. Many co-working spaces also encourage networking events which also include beer-on-tap, creating a fun work environment, one which millennials love. And Amit Ramani, CEO of Awfis points it out – a millennial wants a break every hour and a half. “The fundamental question is if an office just has a meeting room and seats, where does that millennial go? The infrastructure with new age technology has even attracted corporates to co-working spaces - which offer activity-based settings,” Ramani told Business Insider. Infrastructure happens to be the key attraction of a <keyword id="2987257" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="co-working-space">co-working space</keyword>. Mishu Ahluwalia, Founder &amp; CEO, GoHive, a co-working space based out of Delhi NCR, believes that in a co-working environment a startup gets open access to a whole pool of networks which they can leverage for mentorship, vendor empanelment, recruiting and peer to peer learning. The model has worked so well that now co-working spaces are making money off offering services and building partnerships with corporates. “Co-working spaces now make focused efforts to give a bouquet of business services (including the likes of accounting, recruitment help, employee engagement, knowledge exchange, training) and on building value-added services, partner discounts and specific startup friendly rate charts to increase engagement within members and amidst people,” said Ahluwalia. Mullick, five months after he went into WeWork, has now set up his own firm – zlait Sports Bangalore LLP. “It was only because of the community which really motivated me to start up. You meet so many diverse professionals and get to bounce your ideas off them,” he told Business Insider. And the popularity of this shared workspaces is only set to grow. <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/wealth/real-estate/flexible-space-leasing-by-co-working-operators-sees-4-fold-jump-in-jan-mar-cbre/articleshow/69214520.cms">Reports</a> suggest that co-working spaces had leased about 2.9 million square feet in area just between January-March 2019, and this data comes from just seven cities. See Also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/jet-airways-staff-can-apply-for-jobs-at-wework-india-ceo-says/articleshow/69021327.cms">WeWork's India chief is inviting Jet Airways staff to apply for jobs</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/here-are-the-25-most-popular-workplaces-in-india-according-to-linkedin/articleshow/68704338.cms">Here are the 25 most popular workplaces in India, according to LinkedIn</a>

From beer-on-tap to testing an app for a donut, here’s how co-working spaces are bidding traditional offices goodbye

<keyword id="3502552" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Awfis">Awfis</keyword> Space Solutions Pvt. Ltd which is now South Asia’s largest network of collaborative co-working spaces, has received an investment of USD 20 million from <keyword id="563136" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sequoia-India">Sequoia India</keyword>, recently. The funds will be used to grow its network of centers, launch new and innovative products/services and further enhance the existing technology platform. It’s international competitor WeWork launches in the Indian market shortly, starting with <keyword id="6354321" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bengaluru">Bengaluru</keyword> and then expanding to Mumbai. Working towards achieving its target of having an Awfis centre within a 10 minutes driving radius in each of the key metros, the company plans to establish 100+ centres with 35,000+ seats across Mumbai, NCR, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Pune in the next 24 months. 

 <div type="embedgroup"> <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="58530868" title="Exclusive: AdvantEdge Partner, Kunal Khattar on why Failure should be Celebrated in an Entrepreneur’s Risky Life" rank="1.0" kind="RELATED" publishDate="May 05, 2017, 6:00 PM" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div></div>


Amit Ramani – Founder &amp; CEO, Awfis told Business Insider, “To expand at a rapid pace,we have embraced a joint venture model where 75% of our centers are managed by us but owned by others.We have 500 companies with us, currently ranging from India’s leading startups/MSMEs to Fortune 500 companies, forming the largest co-working community in India.” The co-working has a lot of features like: • A network of over 7,500+ seats across 21 centers in 8 cities across India • Strong demand from an eclectic community of entrepreneurs, SMEs, freelancers and business corporates who have helped create a thriving community of over 5,000+ Awfis members • An average 90%+ occupancy across its established centers • A unique, ‘Just-in-Time’ booking facility through its customized mobile app and website 

 <div type="embedgroup"> <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="58531903" title="The International MetLife Foundation Inclusion Plus Competition has awarded this startup $100,000" rank="1.0" kind="RELATED" publishDate="May 05, 2017, 3:07 PM" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div></div>


Apart from its own proprietary centers, Awfis also has a unique, asset light ‘managed aggregation’ model - partnering with space owners who have unused commercial space and transforming them into suitable places to work for the Awfis community. The company has a successful shared economy business model that not just provides a network of ready to use work spaces across India, but also offers value driven services that can be booked ‘just-in-time’ through its website and mobile app. The Awfis Rewards program provides its members access to exclusive offers from 100+ renowned partners (including Amazon Web Services, Oyo Rooms, Hard Rock Café, SRL Diagnostics, etc) just by registering a seat. 

 <div type="embedgroup"> <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="58532304" title="Flipkart announces the Big 10 Sale, which starts just after Amazon’s sale" rank="1.0" kind="RELATED" publishDate="May 05, 2017, 3:21 PM" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div></div> Their newest innovation is truly set to revolutionize mobility as they are even allowing their partner companies to work while travelling by remodeling car models like <keyword id="560486" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Tata-Innova">Tata Innova</keyword> to allow people to work inside their cars, enabled by facilities like desk, printers and even a coffee machine. That’s innovation at its Indian best!

Awfis Remodeled Cars with Printers, Coffee Machines is the Kind of Workplace We Need

According to reports, e-commerce giant <keyword id="541988" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="SnapDeal">Snapdeal</keyword> is shifting their staff from a 200-capacity space in Malad, Mumbai to about 90-seats in the <keyword id="3502552" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Awfis">Awfis</keyword> Space Solutions. 
 The first thought that comes to mind after reading this is that the e-commerce industry in India is running into such high losses that cutting costs has become necessary. The other thing worth noting is the fact that <keyword id="2498362" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="co-working">co-working</keyword> spaces have become such a norm that companies prefer it over the traditional office space. 
 Even as cash-strapped <keyword id="6362513" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Startups">startups</keyword> are creating demand for co-working spaces in the metro cities, it is not clear why Snapdeal decided to move employees into this setup. The company told media earlier that the move to shift its Mumbai office to a co-working hub is not aimed at <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Now-you-can-list-your-car-for-rent-and-get-paid-for-it/articleshow/55154351.cms">cost reduction.</a> It is to make commuting easier for as the new office is centrally located and provides better public transport connectivity with Mumbai metro in the vicinity. 
 
However, sources have confirmed that the company's move comes after it decided to cut on the space requirements as per the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Redefining-the-concept-of-tea-breaks-for-corporates/articleshow/55095324.cms">business demand</a>. 
 According to a <keyword id="6363605" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="knight-frank">Knight Frank</keyword> report, any office space maintenance and cost in Mumbai, Delhi or Bangalore can cost between US$25,000 to US$30,000 a year. The report suggested that office sharing could save new businesses between 73 percent and 76 percent of the total cost. In India as of now, there are close to 61 co-working spaces, according to startup tracking firm Traxcn, of which 16 were set up in 2016 and this number keeps growing. Recently, U.S. office rental startup WeWork announced that it is opening a center in India starting from the second quarter of 2017. 
 
So what is the real pull here? Most start-ups working out of this space think it’s the opportunity to work with people with different skill sets that can act as a pool of talent, mentors, and advice. 
 
<a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/A-survey-reveals-60-of-employed-Indians-aspire-to-be-entrepreneurs/articleshow/55152360.cms">ALSO READ: A survey reveals 60% of employed Indians aspire to be entrepreneurs</a> 
 Awfis specifically has turned it into a lucrative marketing channel for financial and consumer brands partnering with 50 brands including Dunkin Donut, MakeMyTrip, <keyword id="87153" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="BNP-Paribas">BNP Paribas</keyword> and OLX to provide members with discounts in exchange for marketing commission. So while on their website, a 9 persons office in <keyword id="6366112" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Andheri-East">Andheri East</keyword> costs INR 117,000 per month or INR 5,000 per month for a desk, Snapdeal might just have struck a smart deal with the enterprise. 
 <keyword id="824043" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Business-Insider">Business Insider</keyword> caught up with Amit Ramani, CEO, Awfis Space Solutions, which is <keyword id="52011" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="South-Asia">South Asia</keyword>'s biggest co-working space provider with 2500+ seats, and he was very bullish on the idea that big corporates are adjusting to co-working spaces,' The MSME sector will lead the change when it comes to debunking the conventional office spaces. Many organisations like Renew Power, FICCI are working with us to give their employees a chance to work near their homes instead of battling traffic which saves time and money and increases productivity scores.' 
​ 
The actual premise is that traditional offices are out of date. People everywhere, at start-ups or in large corporations, want open, creative spaces with cross collaboration, latest services like internet, security, food, and coffee and fresh design that doesn’t bore them. 
 
<a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Heres-how-you-can-go-kayaking-cliffjumping-snorkelling-ziplining-and-camping-all-in-just-under-Rs-4000/articleshow/55113996.cms">They don’t mind a desk job as long as it is on a bean bag in the middle of a coffee shop.</a> 
 
Image credits- Awfis.com

Snapdeal is moving its employees to this co-working setup

<ul><li>While the co-working spaces had to stop operations during the initial phase of the lockdown, things are now slowly getting back to normal.</li><li>In fact, the lockdown could have given a boost to the industry as more and more organizations are now looking at cost-efficiency, flexibility and people are increasingly looking for spaces near their houses.</li><li>Most players from the industry are confident that the co-working space will see resurgence soon, and that it has a good growth opportunity in the future.</li></ul>Before the world was hit by the pandemic that led to offices shutting down and people working from home, co-working spaces had started becoming the place for small businesses, entrepreneurs and start-ups to set up shop. Often bustling with people from varied background, all working at the same place, co-working spaces had a lot of pros. Apart from the cost-efficiencies and the increased flexibility for people working at their own pace and time, these spaces were also great places to network and build connections. However, with the lockdown, the functioning of these spaces was brought to a halt, atleast in the initial months, when people were stuck at homes. However, with things opening up, there has been a visible change in how people work. We decided to find out what exactly is happening in the co-working space and what its future of looks like from where we stand today. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="How the co-working space fared in 2020" text="How the co-working space fared in 2020">How the co-working space fared in 2020</cmsannotation> It is obvious that the co-working space would be hit by the lockdown. However, the same lockdown gave rise to an evolution in the way we work. People suddenly were looking for flexibility. Places like Mumbai where a huge population depends on local trains were left stranded once the trains were stopped, so it also led to a rising need for office spaces near people’s homes. Elaborating, <keyword id="309498" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Vineet-Singh">Vineet Singh</keyword>, Head of Brand &amp; Marketing - <keyword id="2918346" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="WeWork">WeWork</keyword> India said, “While everyone expected the demand for shared spaces to go down, the pandemic gave rise to a new style of working that included the need for flexible hours, rostered shifts, and workspaces closer to home. The workplace evolved from being purely functional to being more productive, experiential, and meaningful. Large occupiers started adopting conservative leasing strategies and put up decisions regarding fresh take- up of spaces on hold for the next few months. The pandemic led businesses to re-evaluate their commercial real estate strategy to make it more resilient and agile to adapt to these changes. Occupiers began to take into account the need for flexible workspace and helped occupiers to reduce capital costs, place greater emphasis on employee wellbeing &amp; sustainability, and fast track the adoption of flex working practices. During this period WeWork India continued to build on flexible working solutions for all our members with products to suit every business requirement, ranging from freelancers to the largest multinational companies.” <keyword id="3875950" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="amit-ramani">Amit Ramani</keyword>, Founder &amp; CEO, <keyword id="3502552" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Awfis">Awfis</keyword> shared a similar opinion. “Despite the unprecedented circumstances, the pandemic and subsequent lockdown emerged as game changers for the co-working sector. According to recent industry reports, the Indian flex space market witnessed a supply boom which resulted in a significant rise in the total stock of flex spaces, which nearly tripled from 9.9 million sq ft. in 2017 to 29.5 million sq. ft. in 2020 over a period of close to 3 years. Since most of our clients are large enterprises with long-term leases, we did not see substantial impact on our revenues. Also, as majority of our business falls under the profit-sharing (managed aggregation) model, the strength of our relationship with our landlords has played a significant role in helping us steer through this time. We also took this challenge head on to understand the changing needs of our customers, innovate and come up with new solutions to cater to the evolving work landscape.” Meanwhile, the pandemic also led to a lot of the players to re-invent and innovate, to address consumer problems. Two months into the pandemic, Awfis launched its work-from-home product - Awfis@Home. It provided employees the flexibility to work efficiently from their homes while replicating the setting of a productive office work environment, including the Physical infrastructure, IT infrastructure and Tech integration. “We have received a great response for the product, for instance, 1000 units of Awfis@Home have been sold till now via direct sales as companies are providing allowances to employees for a comfortable work from home experience. We also created win-win partnership models like ‘Powered By Awfis’, which continue to help companies optimize costs by creating flex workspaces out of their unutilized or underutilized real estate. This in turn generates an additional revenue source for them and while allowing us to add to our existing footprint,” shared Ramani. Meanwhile, some even looked at diversification to keep their businesses going. “We successfully launched our dream workstreams, namely Founders Club – a business accelerator to help early stage startups and The Circle of Angels, an angel network to facilitate funding for startups,” shared Bathla. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="The present scenario" text="The present scenario">The present scenario</cmsannotation> Despite the minor disruption that the lockdown caused, most co-working spaces are seeing a good resurgence and most players are optimistic about the industry getting back on track. “Co-working spaces are doing well and witnessing robust operations now. The post lockdown scenario is bringing in a wave of new opportunities for the co-working players. While the work-from-home model would have worked well in the lockdown, many companies may not want it as a culture and many business verticals and functions still require employees to work in an office setting. Work-from-home may co-exist, but office space will not lose its importance. Many companies, even pre-pandemic, have had to deal with the burden of long-term, lock-in leases with heavy security deposits, which take away the ‘business cashflow’ ability to respond to changes in the economy quickly. Now, more than ever, flexibility is crucial and hence co-working spaces, with their natural flexibility and inherent readiness to add value are best positioned to adapt and redefine the future of work and workspace,” explained <keyword id="2439294" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Manas-Mehrotra">Manas Mehrotra</keyword>, Founder, <keyword id="9435040" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="315work-avenue">315Work Avenue</keyword>. A recent report by JLL stated that the current market penetration of flexible workspaces in total office space stands at 3% and this percentage is expected to go up to 4.2% by 2023. The report further stated that irrespective of some short-term disruptions and challenges, increased demand from large enterprises will help the industry grow to more than 50 million square feet by 2023. The flexible spaces segment is expected to grow by an average of around 15-20% per annum over the next three-to-four years, even though the trajectory might not be linear. Meanwhile, <keyword id="10635247" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="rajiv-bathla">Rajiv Bathla</keyword>, Chief Operating Officer, <keyword id="10635246" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="the-circle-work">The Circle.Work</keyword> said that while there has been an incremental increase every month since things started opening, it’s still sometime away from normalcy. “With every subsequent un-lock, operation of public transport and the metro, incremental business volumes are certainly coming in. The occupancy levels still at best are 35% with larger enterprises still waiting it out. I feel apart from the financial aspect, there’s still fear around what’s safe and what’s not. People who have maintained all the necessary precautions, teams that have been vigilant on social distances norms and wearing of masks have been unaffected and continue to enjoy the plethora of benefits that our ecosystem offers them - a design-led, state-of-the-art plug-and-play infrastructure where individuals and teams thrive on enjoying each day at the workplace,” he said. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Bringing people back to co-working spaces" text="Bringing people back to co-working spaces">Bringing people back to co-working spaces</cmsannotation> Despite things opening up, there are many people who have their reservations about venturing out, atleast till the vaccinations hit the markets. Considering going to a co-working space means often working beside or making contact with people you might not know, how convinced are people to come back? And how are these spaces wooing people back? Apart from providing its members with multiple flexible options to suit their needs, WeWork is offering additional flexible options to help businesses ease into their new routines and get back to the office. “To ensure our space abides by the health and safety regulations, we conduct frequent cleaning of our areas, sanitization of equipment, in a bid to prioritize team wellbeing. Every WeWork facility has revised spatial guidelines, seating layouts, and social distancing norms. WeWork is ready with all health and safety measures as members return, keeping government and industry body guidelines in place. We are also the only shared workspace in the country to have received the global certification from The British Safety Council. The certification recognizes our efforts in taking stringent risk management and control measures to keep the environment safe and secure for all members and stakeholders, Singh shared. Shining the spotlight on what Awfis is doing to ensure safety, Ramani said “An operational checklist is in place to ensure the physical safety and wellbeing of our occupants along with maintaining the highest standards of hygiene. We are constantly and transparently communicating with our clients to address any concerns and also helping with formulating a return to workplace strategy to gradually transition back to the physical workspace after months of work from home.” Awfis will also be soon launching new features like the UV sanitization of meeting rooms and thermal scanning before entering the meeting rooms. Meanwhile, 315Work Avenue is also not leaving any stone unturned to make sure people feel comfortable in their spaces. “We have put in the best practices in place by consulting a vast panel of experts on our board which also includes several doctors. Based on their inputs, we have come up with two very differentiating products to provide hospital/ healthcare facility standard sanitization at our workspaces. First is making use of an ‘Ioniser,’ a patented technology that provides hospital standard air filtration and kills all the germs in the air. Second is making use of coatings and paints which always keeps the surfaces sanitized.We have also redesigned our seating arrangement at workstations and in areas like the cafeteria, lift, breakout lounges, etc. to maintain proper distancing,” Mehrotra shared. “Adopting to the highest standards of safety as prescribed by Ministry of Health and other government bodies, ensuring very visible sanitization and daily disinfection of premises, institutionalizing our own differentiated standards of contactless technology like temperature screens as members walk through the turnstiles, QR code-driven vending machines including tea and coffee machines are some of the initiatives we’ve taken to heighten safety, explained Bathla. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="What the future holds" text="What the future holds">What the future holds</cmsannotation> So what will the future look like for the flexi, co-working space? And how are these players future-proofing their business to ensure their businesses are not impacted adversely even if another year like 2020 comes about? “Our endeavor here was to future proof our team’s mindset. Team Circle persevered with a positive spirit, keeping the evolving future in mind and collectively worked to showcase how to navigate through tough times. Keeping relationships vs economics at the forefront, we retained more than 80% of our member base. The rebound is going to be superfast when you have customer and clients on your side,” shared Bathla. Meanwhile, Mehrotra feels that co-working space providers now need to rethink their strategy, packages, interior and design areas, and make the segment more attractive for consumers. “Co-working spaces will see a surge as they offer flexible infrastructure solutions and also set precedents for safe and healthy practices too. As companies look to resume business, redesigning and restructuring of existing real estate will pose yet another challenge, however co-working spaces will be able to respond to design changes required post-COVID-19 quicker and more efficiently than traditional office spaces,” he said. Earlier this year WeWork India received $100 million in a fresh round of funding and the organization already has a plan in place focusing on long-term sustainable growth across all its spaces. “We want to pivot our energies towards attaining profitability for sustainable long-term growth. While the first three months of 2020 were profitable for WeWork India, as we moved towards the pandemic phase, there were some changes we made at a strategic level that focus on existing locations, while we continue to enhance member-experience through flexible solutions. We continue to offer flexible solutions to businesses of all sizes this year and focus on attaining profitability by early 2021,” added Singh.

What the future holds for co-working spaces in India

<ul><li>Over 50% of the companies in tech and retail sectors are open to hybrid working models. </li><li>Interestingly, it’s the smaller sized companies who want their workforce to be back at their desks. </li><li>Around 35%-40% of the organisations are embracing the idea of hybrid working, says a survey by <keyword id="3502552" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="awfis" source="Orion">Awfis</keyword>.</li></ul>It’s not just tech companies that are ending the work-from-home phenomenon. As per a new report by Awfis, a coworking space network company, the sector that’s most strict when it comes to working out of the office is the pharmaceutical sector. In a survey by Awfis and <keyword id="3196150" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Qdesq" source="Orion">Qdesq</keyword>, 90% of pharma companies surveyed said that they prefer work from the office, with only 10% of them open to hybrid working models. The sectors that are most open to hybrid working models are banking and financial services, engineering and manufacturing – at 70% of them said in the survey. Next comes retail and tech sectors where 50% of those surveyed preferred hybrid working models. The work location preference also varies with size of the company. More than 70% of the smaller firms are in favour of working from the office, while 15% of large firms are on board with hybrid working models. Overall, across sectors and sizes, about 35-40% of companies prefer the idea of hybrid working. Around 45% of corporations are looking for new office spaces including conventional and flex, while 35% of them already instituted a multi-office approach through collaboration with coworking spaces, said Indian <keyword id="15597723" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Flex-Occupiers-Survey-2022" source="Orion">Flex Occupier’s Survey 2022</keyword>. A large chunk of the workforce went back to their hometowns during Covid-19 lockdown and the companies across all sectors had no choice but to pivot to a hybrid work model. The situation has since changed again and organizations are progressively collaborating with flex space operators to ensure the seamless execution of the hybrid work model despite office development in numerous places. “As firms continue to evolve with the changing market dynamics, the workforce expectations, too, have changed with new working models like hybrid, work-from-home, and working from office coming to the fore,” said Paras Arora, founder and CEO, Qdesq. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Flex workspaces core to workplace strategy" comment="subhead" text="Flex workspaces core to workplace strategy">Flex workspaces core to workplace strategy</cmsannotation> Sectors like banking, insurance and technology, where employees have already started going to the office again, are expected to lead the demand for office spaces in 2023, the report revealed. Majority of the respondents are looking to collaborate with coworking space players to implement a strategy for a distributed workforce, while 30% of respondents are searching for more affordable alternatives to rental offices to have more financial flexibility, the report said. “The years 2020 and 2021 played a defining role in causing a paradigm shift in Indian occupiers' demands and making Flex workspaces core to their overall workplace strategy. The return of the workforce to offices is now certain and so is the resolute need for flexibility at work which paves a clear path for accelerated growth and expansion of India's flex space market in the coming years,” said Amit Ramani, founder and CEO, Awfis. Top seven cities — Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), Pune, NCR, Kolkata and Chennai — account for 20% of the total demand for coworking space in the country, Anarock report said. “Organizations are implementing a set of new workplace strategies in a post-pandemic world, which have been greatly influenced by the circumstances faced during the pandemic,” the Awfis report said. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/news/alarming-rise-in-lung-cancer-amongst-non-smokers-women-and-youngsters-study/articleshow/95713544.cms">Alarming rise in lung cancer amongst non-smokers, women and youngsters - Study</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/mukesh-ambanis-jio-financial-services-deep-pockets-and-wide-reach-to-challenge-the-likes-of-paytm-bajaj-finance/articleshow/95714425.cms">Mukesh Ambani’s Jio Financial Services’ deep pockets and wide reach to challenge the likes of Paytm, Bajaj Finance</a>

Not IT or banking, but pharma leads the demand for employees' return to offices

Sumit Chhazed, Co-Founder, CredR 
 
"The <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/StartupIndiaStartups-and-investors-are-smiling-their-way-out-of-Vigyan-Bhawan/articleshow/50606389.cms">startup plan</a> is quite a promising one and we are happy with few initiatives proposed by the government such as tax exemption for 3 years, no inspection for compliance under labour law and starting start- up in 1 day via mobile app. Also the government acknowledges failures to be part of building great start - ups and promises 90 days exit plan, which is well received by the start - up community. Efforts to seed entrepreneurial culture and supporting it through incubation set ups in universities should really propel product innovation. 
 
Government is looking to accentuate the Make in India and Make for India efforts. Plans to create 1000cr fund over next 4 yrs with incentive for tax capital gains to investors would really boost start - up risk appetite in the whole ecosystem. This is indeed a wonderful move from the government and we hope to see these initiatives executed in the near timeframe." 
 
Samar Singla, CEO and founder, Jugnoo 
 
Immense potential for entrepreneurship in India can be forseen with this campaign. By making the taxation and compliance norms easier, the government has taken some very positive steps in this direction. 
 
Raghav Chandra, Co founder, Urbanclap, 
 
This initiative of PM Modi is the right step in making the environment friendlier for <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/StartupIndia-Standup-India-Softbanks-Masayoshi-Son-ishaving-a-roaring-love-affair-in-India-and-hes-in-no-hurry-to-move-on/articleshow/50601754.cms">entrepreneurs</a> and thus encouraging them to start up. We will wait for the fine print to understand exactly what the next steps will be. However, I can only say that outcome will be in the positive direction and we are very excited! 
 
Krispian Lawrence, Co-Founder &amp; CEO, Ducere Technologies – Makers of the world’s first haptic footwear Lechal 
 
The government's initiative to fast track start-ups patent applications is a very beneficial move to encourage start-ups. In addition, 80% rebate on patent filing and prosecution deals will allow start-ups to file and create intellectual properties which in the long run will end up being additional sources of revenue. This will spur product innovations in the country and allow Indian product companies to compete globally. Other encouraging aspects of the plan include self certification on labour and environment for all Start-Ups to be up in three years. 
 
Start-ups face a lot of challenges when setting up a business and if the government can ease smaller issues; it will help us to focus on scaling up the business. 
 
Shailesh Jain Co-founder, Mirraw.com 
 
It is delightful to know that our Prime Minister has taken into account small and medium size Start-ups that are not funded by huge investments. Specially, the tax benefits policy and ease on patent fee will extensively support a bootstrapped company like us where single money counts. India is a breeding ground for innovation and this intiative will give <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Startup-IndiaOla-Cabs-Bhavish-Aggarwal-is-conscious-thatsecurity-is-a-concern-more-measures-need-to-be-taken/articleshow/50602554.cms">opportunitie</a>s to many young minds to explore unique ideas. 
 
Anupam Tulsyan co-founder and managing director, Peachmode.com 
 
"We are going to witness a revolution in Start-up culture, with our country's PM validating the governing rules. Elimination of regulatory burden, faster certification and easy exit policy will encourage many youngsters to join the wagon. Tax redemption for 3 years is an important move by our Government that will help the new entrants to scale their business without VC's money. These tax redemptions will allow a bootstrapped company like us to be self-reliant and make profitable in the long run We have high hopes with Startup Indiamovement and sincerely believe that it will lead to many job creation in future. " 
 
Shaifali Agarwal Holani, founder and CEO, EasyFix 
 
What an initiative and a great day for India. Most populated India has sharpest brains of all times and this initiative will give a platform to many enthusiastic but under confident talents to come out of their ordeal. Encouraging privatisation will speed the pace at which India is developing and we will become a developed country soon. 
 
For us, EasyFix is a labour development &amp; construction focussed company, PM Modi said "he is trying to foster innovation and incubation" and our startup is looking forward to collaborating with Modi Govt for <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Exclusive-Practo-Foundersays-Modi-govt-should-do-away-with-regulatory-hurdles-in-the-healthcare-sector/articleshow/50604175.cms">skill development</a> and labour development initiatives. We want to be able to contribute to the society &amp; transform the unorganised labour market by doing things right, and that is by better execution of skill development programs. 
 
Swati Gupta, CEO and Founder, Industrybuying.com 
 
Patent fee reduction of 80% will be huge for IP based startups who can not only protect their intellectual property , but patents once registered add to tangible valuation increase" 
 
"No inspections for 3 years will very much reduce the regulatory burden related to VAT set up in new states, warehouse procedures , new factory set ups and much more physical infrastructure related start ups. 
 
Puja Bansal, Founder &amp; Director, Myheera.com 
 
Listening to action plan today I m most exited about the tax exemptions which will release the maximum burden on a startup like us. Self certification compliance in which for three years you are not disturbed from the govt end and you are at ease of doing your best to perform and more focused on the idea and its implementation. Today a start up can register themselves in one day which truly will show more minds and ideas coming quickly and getting jumpstarted. The fund of 10,000 cr which has been created to boost the startups will bring so much confidence as this is coming from our own country. 
 
Incubation centers getting promoted along with pre incubation centers will surely again prevent many failures in startups. Now when we see the entire ecosystem is contributing to 'Make in India' the sentiments of manystartups will change with much more deliverables and may more opening and changing the world. India is full of talents and now when our govt has finally joined hands we will see it as a big game changer with entrepreneurs emerging from every corner of the country. Faster exits were again a breather for many startup who again feel morally down with their failures. It will not be late when india will become world’s largest start up hub. 
 
Manish Kumar, co-founder and CEO of GREX 
 
“The Prime Minister’s announcement of the Startup Policy had quite a few important and measurable benefits that the startups can gain from. Most importantly, the Prime Minister and the Finance Minister outlined a change in the principle approach of the government towards the economy – that the government wants to stay away from deciding and directing on what needs to be done. Instead, the Government looks at a policy of arm’s length enablement. This stand is a bold new change in the government policy and disruptive in its own right. 
 
Venture debt was miserably missing in the ecosystem. Startups have only been used to equity as a mode of capital. GREX is completely poised to launch venture debt in a few weeks’ time. This will help our partner Banks and NBFCs walk the road along with us more aggressively as credits become guaranteed. 
 
Another big thing that was anticipated but not announced is the addressal of concerns around notional valuation gains to investors over and above the fair market value. The incidence of such tax deductions today lie at startups’ end. The ecosystem will expect more details on this front. However, the Prime Minister’s assurance on this is welcome. Some other welcome steps in favor of companies and therefore their investors are retention of profits by the company for three years.” 
 
Kulpreet Kaur, Co-founder, Shop Pirate Coupons

	“The Indian government has kick-started ambitious Start-Up India mission that envisages technology business incubators and research parks. This was for the first time a government in India has launched an exclusive program for startups and the expectations were really high. The vision to set up 75 such startup support hubs in the National Institutes of Technology (NITs), the Indian Institutes of Information Technology (IIITs), the Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research (IISERs) and National Institutes of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIEPRs) will help India to develop local brands that can create global footprints. In the past India has been a market for technological innovation created overseas. The time has come now that the Indians create technological products at home that can be marketed globally. 
	We have the skills and need a platform. 
	Start-Up India is going to go a long way in filling up this void. I would say today is the day, that will take new and young entrepreneurs to a next level as the issue from incorporation to talent to infrastructure, all have been discussed. Its appreciable that the major concern of B2B business which is 10% TDS and 14.5 % ST, have been noticed and government saying they will rationalize the same. <o:p></o:p>

	Also as rightly said by Anisha Singh, it’s important that women entrepreneurs should be looked upon as entrepreneurs, not just women entrepreneurs. It’s our work that should get noticed not our gender. However the change is need of time and to give this equality government has to encourage women entrepreneur. It’s good to see that certain provisions are made where there are funds allocations for women entrepreneur. Ecosystem is getting changed and allowing more women to work, which is a highlight of Start-Up India Initiative. Apart from this startup sector becoming unregulated will be better for the sector. Instead of looking at Singapore, we will now have our ecosystem in India. Hoping the budget session will further revolutionize the startups in India. Now the only concern will be 'Sell it India" that is a challenge that needs to be addressed next.<o:p></o:p>

	Amit Ramani, founder and CEO, Awfis Space Solutions Pvt Ltd
Honourable PM Modi's action plan demonstrates a startup like thought process. It provides simple yet innovative policies that can catalyse a revolution to transform India as the most innovative country and major player in global GDP, a feat India enjoyed around 300 years back.

You Searched For "amit ramani" and got 10 results

This co-working space achieved profitability in just two years and is now aiming for an IPO

Sanchita Dash

COVID-19 quickens adoption of digital tools in real estate: Experts

PTI

This ‘Awfis’ is making sure that employees work every minute of the working hours

Tanya Dubey

From beer-on-tap to testing an app for a donut, here’s how co-working spaces are bidding traditional offices goodbye

Sanchita Dash

Awfis Remodeled Cars with Printers, Coffee Machines is the Kind of Workplace We Need

Tanya Dubey

Snapdeal is moving its employees to this co-working setup

Tanya Dubey

What the future holds for co-working spaces in India

Samarpita Banerjee

Not IT or banking, but pharma leads the demand for employees' return to offices

Vaamanaa Sethi

#StartupIndia: Here's what startupreneurs have to say about PM Modi's Startup India polices

Purba Das

Here’s how the advertising and marketing industry reacted to Union Budget 2021

BI India Partner

Popular Keywords

Buying Guides