Coworking Space Provider The Office Pass Raises $245K in Seed Round

Gurgaon based TOP Technologies Private Limited that runs a coworking platform The Office Pass, has closed a seed investment round from a group of individual investors. As per the company, the funds will be deployed in enhancing the platform and hiring technology & product talent. This investment has come within 2 months of their formal launch.

There has been a rapid increase in demand for coworking spaces and companies are trying different formats to meet this demand. The Office Pass (TOP), unlike most other coworking providers, is not a real estate company; it is a technology company that is solving a real estate problem. “We aspire to connect companies & professionals with high quality office space within 5 km. Most office-goers waste precious time and money in commuting to work. If they are able to work from a high quality, yet affordable, office near-by, it will solve a big productivity problem for Indian companies.” says Aditya Verma, Founder & CEO of The Office Pass.

Finding an office is a major challenge for Micro, Small & Medium Enterprise (MSME) and freelancers due to their inability to get into a long lease and block money insecurity deposits. Many of them prefer working from home and cafes. These segments remain under the radar for most developers and owners who prefer to rent to large MNCs. The Office Pass aims to solve this problem by offering office space on flexible terms without the need for long lease or security deposits.

Arun Tadanki, former MD of Yahoo Southeast Asia & India, who led this round of investment in the company said,“The Office Pass is an exciting business model that can disrupt the commercial office leasing market. The founders have the right domain expertise and they have been focused on building a scalable, capital-light business model where users can book office space on monthly, daily or even hourly basis”

Co-founded by 3 former employees of Makaan.com, Aditya Verma, Nikhil Madan and Sachin Gaur, TOP launched their operations with first facility at Sohna Road, Gurgaon on 1st March this year. “We are pleasantly surprised by the traction and are on track to achieve full utilization of our first facility within 3 months of launch”, says Aditya Verma.

Makaan.com Co-founder Launches The Office Pass, A Tech Startup in the Co-Working Space

“UBER for Offices”, that is how he likes to describe his new venture. Aditya Verma, co-founder & CEO of real estate website Makaan.com left the company in December last year, to launch The Office Pass a technology platform that helps companies & professionals find office space.

The past decade has witnessed number of technology initiatives in the residential real estate space but the office space market continued to be driven traditionally. Finding an office is a major headache for Micro Small & Medium Enterprise (MSME) and freelancers who do not have solid credentials to get into a long lease and block money into deposits. Many of them prefer working from home and cafes. They remain under the radar for most developers and owners who prefer renting to MNCs. This startup claims to solve this issue.

“Like UBER can connect you to a cab in 10 min, we aspire to connect companies & professionals with office spaces within 5 km. Most office goers waste precious time and money in commuting to work. If they are able to work from a nice & affordable office near-by, it will solve a big productivity problem for Indian companies.” says Aditya.

The first facility of the startup was launched earlier this month at Sohna Road, Gurgaon with few paid members. The startup is reported to be in the process of closing between $200,000 and $300,000 in a seed investment, but this could not be independently verified.

With slowdown in IT & ITES the absorption for commercial real estate in India has seen a steady decline forcing owners and investors to consider new models of generating returns. Co-working or shared office usage is one emerging model, but it remains to be seen if these will be actually scale or simply fade away.

“We are not a real estate company; we are a technology company solving a real estate problem. We will pursue a capital light model, as that is the only way to scale. UBER will not be what it is if it owned assets,” says Aditya. Besides him, The Office Pass has two other co-founders, who are in the process of leaving their current assignments.

The Office Pass, part of TOP Technologies Private Limited, is a technology platform that connects companies & professionals to "ready to use" cool, economical and flexi Co-working office space, much like Uber and AirBnB connects you to cabs and vacation homes.

The company takes care of all expenses associated with opening and operating an office. Expenses such as security deposit, maintenance charges, lock-in period, furnishing & equipment, rental, electricity, WiFi, security, housekeeping etc are all clubbed into a "a small fee per seat". This saves its customers valuable time and money, which can be used to improving productivity of their business. The company also provided “On demand” meeting and conference rooms thru its platform.