BHIVE Workspace raises $1.2 million from Blume Ventures, others

Co-working space provider BHIVE Workspace has raised USD 1.2 million in a fresh round of funding led by Blume Ventures, along with marquee investors like Ramesh Aravind, SKCL MD Meera Reddy and other high net-worth individuals.

With this fresh fund infusion, the company to fuel its pan-India and international expansion of premium co-working spaces.

Founded in 2014, BHIVE Workspace has over 100,000 square feet of office space with 10 centres across Bangalore.

Commenting on the development CEO Shesh Rao Paplikar said, “In the last two years, we've expanded our co-working space rapidly and currently have 10 centres in Bangalore. We are about to cross Rs 12 crore annual revenue run rate, and based on our current pipeline, we expect it to grow to Rs 100 crore in a year from now.”

Co-working spaces have been witnessing a lot of interest from strategic investors. In April this year, Delhi-based Awfis Space Solutions raised USD 20 million from Sequoia Capital.

According to multiple reports, WeWork, a US-based shared workplace startup is also planning to enter Indian market through a joint venture with Bangalore-based developer Embassy Group.

Positioning itself as premium co-working space, BHIVE plans to expand to other major cities in India and across Asia in the coming months. It is stepping up on the level of hospitality and technology enabled services at its centres.

The company is also integrating IoT and AI into its workspace technology to take member experience to a whole new level.

“Since the first round, BHIVE continues to grow with a focus to help build and create great workplaces with best-in-class global standards for Indian corporates and office goers. Key strengths of BHIVE include their focus on creating experiences and making themselves relevant for virtually all organisations, regardless of their size and form,” said Ashish Fafadia, CFO of Blume Ventures.

In an earlier funding round in 2015, BHIVE raised around USD 1 Million from Blume Ventures and other renowned investors.