Coworking moves beyond offices into hospitality and retail across India

Hotels, malls and even residential villas are becoming high-demand locations for coworking and flex spaces, with chains like Ibis, Minimalist, and Bloom creating workspaces at multiple places while operators such as Awfis now run centres in several malls across India.

 

“What we’re seeing today is the natural evolution of flexible work. Before the pandemic, offices were the default. From homes work has moved to anywhere — holiday destinations, cafés, and eventually hotels,” said Tejus Jose, director of operations, Ibis & Ibis Styles India that began “Work@ibis” model from 2021 onwards across Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Gurugram as they witnessed guests increasingly using for work lobbies and restaurants where high-speed Wi-Fi and all-day food and beverage options are available.

 

Minimalist Hotels and Bloom Hotels are also tapping into India’s coworking trend. Both brands have adapted hotel spaces — lobbies, lounges, and select public areas — into flexible work zones, offering much-needed amenities. Bloom Hotels goes a step further, providing dedicated coworking spaces and fully equipped conference rooms to support focused work and collaborative meetings.

 

While the broader hotel industry views coworking spaces as supplementary to their core business of rooms, the retail sector is emerging as a strong alternative for shared workspaces.

 

Amit Ramani, chairman and managing director, Awfis, said that the company now runs centres in Ambience Mall, Gurgaon; Taj Deccan Hotel, Hyderabad; Nucleus Mall, Pune; R City Mall, Mumbai; and Fun Republic Mall, Lucknow, among others, together spanning about 5.94 lakh square feet (sq ft) across these assets.

 

Awfis’ “managed aggregation model” — where mall landlords invest 70-90 per cent of the capital and the operator runs the centre on a 70:30 revenue-share — helped accelerate deals. “Malls already have what young professionals want: food, entertainment, security, and ample parking,” Ramani said. Amenities offered mirror those in traditional centres such as cafés, pantries, meeting rooms, collaboration zones, and cabins for two to ten people. Day passes range from ₹500-1,500 while meeting rooms cost ₹500-1,000 per hour. Long-term managed offices span 25-250 seats.

 

About 10 per cent of Awfis’ ₹900 crore coworking revenue last year came from malls and hotels, and 15 per cent of its portfolio now runs from these non-traditional assets.

 

Meanwhile, in premium villa communities, developers like the SPA group, which built the luxury EcoCity mansion community, have created dedicated work lounges and study rooms within the township, albeit reserved for residents. “These spaces exist because homeowners today often live in smaller homes,” explained Prashant Kajaria, managing director, the SPA group. “It is easier to go to a space that’s like an extension of your home,” Kajaria added. EcoCity’s coworking lounge seats 14-18 people. 

New layout

 

• Minimalist Hotels and Bloom Hotels have adapted hotel spaces into flexible work zones
• Bloom Hotels provides dedicated coworking spaces and fully equipped conference rooms to support focused work and meetings
• Awfis’ “managed aggregation model” helped accelerate deals, founder Amit Ramani said
• Developers like SPA Group have also created dedicated work lounges and study rooms within townships