BHIVE to Set Up New ₹400 Cr AIF Fund For Use in Acquiring Commercial Real Estate Properties

Bengaluru-based co-working firm BHIVE group is planning to set up a ₹400-crore CAT–2 alternate investment fund (AIF) to acquire commercial real estate properties.

The planned AIF will offer opportunities to high networth individuals (HNIs) and family owned businesses looking to participate in the commercial real estate growth story with a minimum investment of Rs 1 Crore.

BHIVE is a group of Coworking and FinTech companies focused on commercial real estate.

According to media reports, BHIVE has decided to wind up its current ₹400 crore AIF fund, which was launched last year but has not yet been operationalised.

In September last year, it was reported that the company has got "commitment of Rs 240 crore for its Rs-400 crore AIF Scheme - BHIVE Commercial Real Estate Opportunities Fund Series 1. It was being managed by Sandeep Gupta. This transition marks Gupta's decision to pursue new opportunities outside BHIVE.

Bhive Alts, the Fintech arm of BHIVE Group, has been set up to provide retail investors access to institutional quality Real Estate which were previously accessible only by Private Equity funds and offers these opportunities as a cash flow instrument which help investors diversify their portfolio.

BHIVE Workspace Raises $1.2M from Blume Ventures and Others

Leading co-working and shared office space provider BHIVE Workspace has raised $1.2 million in a fresh round of funding, to fuel its pan-India and international expansion of premium co-working spaces. The latest round is led by Blume Ventures, along with marquee investors like Actor-Director Ramesh Aravind, Mr. Meera Reddy, MD of SKCL and other high net-worth individuals.

In an earlier funding round in 2015, BHIVE raised around $1 million from Blume Ventures and high profile investors like Raghunandan G, Founder, TaxiForSure; Rajesh Rai, Venture Capitalist; Arihant Patni, Managing Director, Hive Technologies; Sanjay Mirchandani, Owner, Mirchandani Group; Arun Narayan, Director, UK India Business Council; among others.

"In the last two years, we've expanded our co-working space rapidly and currently have 10 centres within Bangalore. We've focused on the right mix of hospitality and technology to deliver a superior co-working environment, and have applied principles of lean start-up to achieve operational efficiency. We want to leverage our expertise to benefit more companies and start-ups." said Shesh Rao Paplikar, Co-Founder and CEO, BHIVE Workspace, “We are about to cross Rs. 12 Cr annual revenue run rate, and based on our current pipeline, we expect it to grow to Rs. 100 cr in a year from now.” he added.

BHIVE Workspace is one of the early entrants into the Indian co-working industry, and has quickly expanded to over 100,000 square feet of office space with 10 centres across Bangalore. BHIVE has focused on unit economics and all of its current centres are profitable. Its latest centre at Residency Road is rated as the most premium co-working space in Central Bangalore (CBD) with high-end interiors, premium lounge and café, facilities like free workouts, murphy beds, showers and access to free events. Current members of this centre include celebrities, actors, directors, top VCs, founders and innovative start-ups.

“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.” Ashish Fafadia, CFO of Blume Ventures.

Co-working spaces have taken off globally, drawing a lot of interest from strategic investors. BHIVE’s latest round of investment saw participation from some of the top real estate developers in the country.

“As a commercial real estate developer, I see that co-working is going to disrupt the traditional office space business. Considering the headway BHIVE has already made and the quality of their team, I am confident that BHIVE will be lead the co-working revolution in India.“ said Mr. Meera Reddy, Managing Director of SKCL, one of the top developers in Chennai.

BHIVE plans to expand to other major cities of India and across Asia in the coming months. Positioned as a premium co-working space, it is stepping up on the level of hospitality and technology enabled services at its centres. One of the key innovations by BHIVE has been its internet technology, BuzzNet, which has attained the reputation of being the most reliable workspace internet in the country. The company is also integrating IoT and AI into its workspace technology to take member experience to a whole new level.

"I am really impressed with the energy I see at BHIVE and am excited to see the way it has evolved over the last couple of years. In fact, I've decided to take up office space at BHIVE's Residency Road centre for myself. It's great to be a part of the co-working revolution, which BHIVE is leading from the front" said popular actor and director Ramesh Aravind.

BHIVE Workspace Raises $1M Funding Led by Blume Ventures

BHIVE Workspace, one of the well known brands in Bangalore’s startup ecosystem, has raised about $1 million in funding led by Blume Ventures. BHIVE Workspace is the largest co-working space in Bangalore catering to over 150+ ventures. It is a workspace provider, growing at a blistering pace and offering the most productive and vibrant workspace for all. From corporates to small businesses to freelancers, it offers a range of facilities that enable individuals and businesses to focus on their work and still have a community driven, vibrant work environment. The firm currently operates in 4 locations covering 50,000 sq. ft with over 800 active members. Its flagship center is currently running at 100% occupancy rates with many companies on waiting lists. It is a very transparent, professionally managed company that partners with landlords and ensures them a steady and predictable income.

BHIVE Workspace, launched in November 2014, believes in giving a complete experience to its members. Hence, it provides a fully equipped workspace with 24x7 access, round the clock security, best in class Wi-Fi experience, UPS and generator backup, open office environment, laser printer, scanner, unlimited coffee and tea, games room, events area, terrace garden, video conferencing, conference rooms, discussion rooms, phone booths, cafeteria and lounge facilities.

What makes BHIVE stand out is its ability to cater to a diverse audience and at the same time provide the best customer experience and flexibility to drive maximum productivity for all. They achieve this by building their own technology and customized processes. Moreover, it has been able to foster a vibrant community of business minds and individuals that actively participate in their events and community engagement initiatives.

BHIVE Workspace has a very strong management team, which comes with years of industry experience. Shesh Paplikar, CEO and Co-founder is an NITK alumnus and ex-Bloomberg. Ravindra M.K, Co-founder is ex-SAP and heads Sales and Marketing. Monnappa Bayavanda, COO is an alumnus of NITK and IIMA and ex-Amazon and ex-i2. BHIVE is also guided by a strong group of mentors including V. Sridhar, Raghunandan G and others.

Prior to this, BHIVE had attracted investments, from the likes of Raghunandan G (Founder, TaxiForSure), Rajesh Rai (Venture Capitalist and co-Founder, Venturesity), Arihant Patni (Managing Director, Hive Technologies), Sanjay Mirchandani (Owner, Mirchandani Group), Arun Narayan (Director, UK India Business Council) and others making it the largest co-working space in India’s startup capital Bangalore.

With this $1 million funding, BHIVE plans to expand strongly in Bangalore while also establishing a presence in the top 6 cities of India. The funds will also be used to attract top talent, build technology that will further enhance customer experience and in turn position BHIVE as an undoubted leader in the office space market.

"BHIVE represents a disruption in commercial real estate that's now brewing in India.  They are already fine-tuning a template that can scale across all of the rapidly growing ecosystem in the country. When they achieved 100% occupancy in their largest space, we knew that they were onto understanding the dynamics and pricing policies that could make co-working spaces/shared spaces a success. In BHIVE, we've found a team that's capable of leading this change at scale and add the critical aspects of community and technology essential for the early success of this business.” adds Karthik Reddy, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Blume Ventures.

Further, Raghunandan G, Co-founder of TaxiForSure and an early investor in BHIVE Workspace added, “Being one of the early investors of BHIVE, I have witnessed exponential growth with them. The gap in the demand and supply for shared office spaces has been one of the key drivers for us. I never expected such inefficiencies in the office space market, which BHIVE has been able to tap into and exploit. It was all possible because of what team BHIVE has been able to put together. Individuals like Monnappa and Prashant Kumar bring years of experience and expertise with them that has taken BHIVE from a start-up to an established company.”

 

BHIVE Workspace Secures Angel Funding from TaxiForSure Founder and Others

BHIVE, which started out as a provider of accessible and quality plug-n-play workspace in Bangalore's Koramangla region, has attracted angel investments, from the likes of Raghunandan G (Founder, TaxiForSure), Rajesh Rai (Venture Capitalist & Co-Founder, Venturesity), Arihant Patni (Managing Director, Hive Technologies), Sanjay Mirchandani (Owner, Mirchandani Group), Arun Narayan (Director, UK India Business Council) and others making it the largest in India’s startup capital Bangalore.

BHIVE Workspace houses startups, small businesses and companies. RoadRunnr, which is now a commended startup, started out of a 6 seater cabin in BHIVE Koramangala. Arpit Dave, Co-founder RoadRunnr says, “BHIVE helped us focus and accelerate in our early stage by providing us with the right scaffolds; requirements met, space, processes etc. We enjoyed our time as BHIVE members and moved out as we grew very large.”

"TaxiForSure overgrew its 1200 sq ft office space in no time. The growing needs of the company took its employees to four different offices in the same year. Many efforts, that rather be invested on work, were channeled into becoming a fully functional office space. When I heard that my classmate Shesh was contemplating around the same issue, taking away this burden from a dedicated mind, I knew the model would work.", says investor Mr. Raghunandan G, Co-Founder & CEO, TaxiForSure.

Today, one year from conception, BHIVE houses success stories of about 90 startups covering 4000 active members. BHIVE Workspace is opening its fourth location (HSR Sector 4) shortly.

Placed in prime locations in Bangalore, BHIVE houses enthusiasts across various work profiles like - Tech, Software, Mobile, Hardware, IOT, Fintech, Education, Innovation, Foodtech, Gaming, eCommerce, B2B, B2C, Hyperlocal, Social Impact & freelancers. The coming together of amazingly different yet like-minded and industrious individuals, in such a vibrant workspace, to meet, collaborate, communicate and exchange ideas, often creates value that nourishes the whole community.

Shesh Paplikar, CEO & Founder of BHIVE Workspace, firmly believes that co-working spaces are essential to developing a growing and vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem in India. He reflects that while an entrepreneur or startup spends time, efforts and investments on taking an idea to the next level, there exists many trivial, yet significant, issues that grab attention. Finding the right workspace, maintenance of office space, bill payments and operations, house-keeping and security, procuring food and beverages etc. are a few such distractions. Setting up the perfect backdrop to fix this issue or to amplify one’s productivity, lead to the conception of BHIVE Workspace.

Mr. Arihant Patni, investor, says, “Entrepreneurs need all the help they can get to achieve their vision. Physical work space is one thing, but having support from a community of mentors and other entrepreneurs in the same space is a big asset. BHIVE aims to provide this ecosystem in a way that will really help startups get to the next level. I am excited to support them in this journey."

Be it testing a product or hiring the right employee, finding the co-founder or investors… it all happens at BHIVE. The community celebrates one another’s successes. Mr. Vardhan Koshal, Udacity, explains “We being a small team derive energy from the larger community around us. Working alongside hundred odd people in such a workspace fills us with a feeling of expanse, which in turn keeps us motivated; on a busy day, a good conversation with a fellow member works as a stress buster. This apart, BHIVE Workspace comes at very affordable prices and includes various member benefits and discounts, making the experience more enjoyable!"

BHIVE forms a bridge to support its members for today’s fast moving, energetic and competitive global startup environment. In the regard, BHIVE Workspace has attracted partners like the Open Coffee Club. Mr. Amarinder Singh, Co-nurturer of Open Coffee Club (OCC), says, “OCC Bangalore is one of the oldest entrepreneurship un-conference styled communities in India. BHIVE is Bangalore’s largest co-working space. As the two are aligned in principal, it is but natural that there’s a marriage between them. We value and encourage such a partnership that, together, bridges the gap for many startups in the ecosystem.”

BHIVE Workspace Secures Angel Funding from TaxiForSure Founder and Others

BHIVE, which started out as a provider of accessible and quality plug-n-play workspace in Bangalore's Koramangla region, has attracted angel investments, from the likes of Raghunandan G (Founder, TaxiForSure), Rajesh Rai (Venture Capitalist & Co-Founder, Venturesity), Arihant Patni (Managing Director, Hive Technologies), Sanjay Mirchandani (Owner, Mirchandani Group), Arun Narayan (Director, UK India Business Council) and others making it the largest in India’s startup capital Bangalore.

BHIVE Workspace houses startups, small businesses and companies. RoadRunnr, which is now a commended startup, started out of a 6 seater cabin in BHIVE Koramangala. Arpit Dave, Co-founder RoadRunnr says, “BHIVE helped us focus and accelerate in our early stage by providing us with the right scaffolds; requirements met, space, processes etc. We enjoyed our time as BHIVE members and moved out as we grew very large.”

"TaxiForSure overgrew its 1200 sq ft office space in no time. The growing needs of the company took its employees to four different offices in the same year. Many efforts, that rather be invested on work, were channeled into becoming a fully functional office space. When I heard that my classmate Shesh was contemplating around the same issue, taking away this burden from a dedicated mind, I knew the model would work.", says investor Mr. Raghunandan G, Co-Founder & CEO, TaxiForSure.

Today, one year from conception, BHIVE houses success stories of about 90 startups covering 4000 active members. BHIVE Workspace is opening its fourth location (HSR Sector 4) shortly.

Placed in prime locations in Bangalore, BHIVE houses enthusiasts across various work profiles like - Tech, Software, Mobile, Hardware, IOT, Fintech, Education, Innovation, Foodtech, Gaming, eCommerce, B2B, B2C, Hyperlocal, Social Impact & freelancers. The coming together of amazingly different yet like-minded and industrious individuals, in such a vibrant workspace, to meet, collaborate, communicate and exchange ideas, often creates value that nourishes the whole community.

Shesh Paplikar, CEO & Founder of BHIVE Workspace, firmly believes that co-working spaces are essential to developing a growing and vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem in India. He reflects that while an entrepreneur or startup spends time, efforts and investments on taking an idea to the next level, there exists many trivial, yet significant, issues that grab attention. Finding the right workspace, maintenance of office space, bill payments and operations, house-keeping and security, procuring food and beverages etc. are a few such distractions. Setting up the perfect backdrop to fix this issue or to amplify one’s productivity, lead to the conception of BHIVE Workspace.

Mr. Arihant Patni, investor, says, “Entrepreneurs need all the help they can get to achieve their vision. Physical work space is one thing, but having support from a community of mentors and other entrepreneurs in the same space is a big asset. BHIVE aims to provide this ecosystem in a way that will really help startups get to the next level. I am excited to support them in this journey."

Be it testing a product or hiring the right employee, finding the co-founder or investors… it all happens at BHIVE. The community celebrates one another’s successes. Mr. Vardhan Koshal, Udacity, explains “We being a small team derive energy from the larger community around us. Working alongside hundred odd people in such a workspace fills us with a feeling of expanse, which in turn keeps us motivated; on a busy day, a good conversation with a fellow member works as a stress buster. This apart, BHIVE Workspace comes at very affordable prices and includes various member benefits and discounts, making the experience more enjoyable!"

BHIVE forms a bridge to support its members for today’s fast moving, energetic and competitive global startup environment. In the regard, BHIVE Workspace has attracted partners like the Open Coffee Club. Mr. Amarinder Singh, Co-nurturer of Open Coffee Club (OCC), says, “OCC Bangalore is one of the oldest entrepreneurship un-conference styled communities in India. BHIVE is Bangalore’s largest co-working space. As the two are aligned in principal, it is but natural that there’s a marriage between them. We value and encourage such a partnership that, together, bridges the gap for many startups in the ecosystem.”