Co-working startup DevX to invest Rs 60 crore on India expansion; to foray into Singapore, US

"We started with a 40,000 sq ft facility in Ahmedabad in 2018… and under construction is around 4.5 lakh sq ft which are under the fit-out stage. So, by the end of this year, we will have space spread across a million sq ft," said Uttamchandani.

He said that DevX was looking at a T-shaped expansion. "Till now, we expanded horizontally into multiple cities and now the idea is to go deeper into these cities," he said.

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Sharing the expansion plan, Uttamchandani said the firm initially had 47,000 sq ft area in Noida and recently added another 95,000 sq ft.

“In Jaipur, we have taken around 35,000 sq ft of the area which will have around 480 seats. In Indore, we have taken around a 32,000 sq ft area which will have 410 seats,” he said.

The company has around 300 seats in 25,000 sq ft area in Chandigarh, while in Raipur, it has a 42000 sq ft area where 500 seats would come up.

It is adding one more centre in Ahmedabad of one lakh sq ft area that will house around 1,000 seats. “In Baroda, we are delivering an asset of 65,000 sq ft with 1,200 seats. We just added Rajkot centre which is a 250-seater with a 15,000 sq ft area. Our new Mumbai unit is a 300- seater, while that in Pune will have 400 seats," he said.

The company would invest close to Rs 48 crore to Rs 60 crore on this expansion, he said.

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Off-shore push

"We are planning to expand to other countries like Singapore, Dubai and the US. In Dubai, we have finalized around 6,000 sq ft of carpet area, which will have around 100 seats,” he said.

The company had shortlisted three properties in Singapore and was in talks with the owners. In the US, they were looking at Florida.

“In Dubai, we are investing around Rs 2.5 crore and would be investing around Rs 8-10 crore in Singapore and the US," he said.

Uttamchandani said the coronavirus pandemic had pushed demand for an increased area per person. "Earlier, we were operating at 40-45 sq ft per person, post Covid-19, it's around 55-75 per sq ft per person. Many people are also looking to come on a rotational basis. We have incorporated Covid-19 clauses in our agreement with the developer as well as with the clients," he said.