Bhutani Infra and WeWork lease deal
- The deal signifies a watershed moment for the flex space industry and is WeWork’s largest, long-term expansion deal to date
- It is an Operator Deal, where the entire building P&L will be owned by Bhutani Group along with fitout investments
- Located in Noida, Alphathum is spread across 6,60,000+ square feet with over 8,500+ desks with total 25 leasable floors
WeWork India, India’s leading flexible workspace provider, has signed its largest expansion deal to date with renowned real estate developer Bhutani Group. This is a long-term operator deal wherein WeWork will take up the entire tower comprising 25 leasable floors at Bhutani Alphathum, in Noida. Under this partnership and deal structure, the entire building P&L will be owned by Bhutani Group along with fitout investments. Facilitated by leading advisory firm Colliers, the WeWork x Alphathum partnership is one of the largest commercial real estate transactions, marking a watershed moment for the real estate sector and a testament to the reliability and trust that leading developers are showcasing towards WeWork India.
Set to open in Q4 2022, WeWork Alphathum will be spread over an area of 660K+ square feet and will house over 8,500 desks over multiple phases driven by demand to offer a spectrum of flexible workspace solutions.
With the launch of this building, WeWork aims to curate a superior workspace experience for members and employees, while creating long term value for landlords. This partnership will not only align landlords and operator incentives with management agreements but also create a mutually-beneficial partnership for all parties. Partnering with flex space operators will also allow commercial landlords to diversify their offerings, making them less susceptible to economic downturns. Besides this, landlords will be able to deliver flexible office space themselves rather than simply leasing the space to a flex space operator, giving them the chance to cash in on the growing demand for these versatile office spaces. Although landlords absorb the cost of fit-outs, they receive a greater share of the revenue and reduce the risk of leasing to a single tenant.
Karan Virwani, CEO, WeWork India said, “We are very excited to expand our network in Noida through our long-term partnership with a pioneer like the Bhutani Group. There has been a great deal of progress among landlords who have greater faith in flexible workspaces as an industry, and advisors such as Colliers have played a crucial role here. We look forward to working with them for more such partnerships in future.”
Ramesh Nair, CEO, India and Managing Director, Market Development, Asia, Colliers said, “WeWork is one of the largest flexible workspace providers in India that caters to a diverse mix of clients. With the Alphathum expansion, WeWork India will establish a stronger presence in the North. Large enterprises and startups are increasingly preferring flex spaces to cater to a distributed workforce. Post the pandemic, the demand and growth for spaces has accelerated, and the average occupancy levels are now in the range of 70-80%. In Q1 2022, flex operators accounted for 15% of the total leasing and we see this number only going higher.”
Ashish Bhutani, Chief Executive Officer, Bhutani Group commented, “We welcome WeWork at Bhutani Alphathum and are committed to providing them with the highest quality of services. We look forward to a long-term mutually beneficial association which will be significant with respect to vibrant business activities and participation from prospective business communities.”
