Before the pandemic upended life as we knew it, entrepreneur and freelancer culture had picked up tremendously. Tired of working from their homes or paying exorbitant rents, these young workers took to co-working spaces like bees to honey. In the span of just a couple of years, co-working spaces had sprung up around the country and were thriving. Then 2020 put a spanner in the works. Fortunately, after multiple waves and vaccinations, things seem to be getting back to the way they were before the pandemic. Co-working spaces too are attracting a large number of people. In fact, even those who work for corporate firms in large designated offices, enjoy using co-working spaces, as some offices remain closed or follow a hybrid method of functioning.
Bengaluru-based IndiQube is one such co-working space that has adapted itself well to a post-pandemic world and is thriving. “We understood that millennials and startups face challenges like volatility, high capex and long-term leases from traditional landlords. So, we addressed this problem and started our journey with IndiQube in 2015 as a flexible workspace provider, catering not just to budding entrepreneurs but also to enterprises,” shares co-founder Meghna Agarwal. Her entrepreneurial journey spans over 15 years and has been about challenging the status quo, self-belief and beating the odds. Her interest in diverse sectors led her on a path of growth across the fields of manufacturing, human resources, consulting, and commercial real estate. This exposure helped her create value through the companies she cofounded—UltraFine Minerals, HirePro and now IndiQube. She has an MBA in Finance from the Institute of Management Technology, Ghaziabad and a Company Secretary degree from the Institute of Company Secretaries of India. She shares with pride, “IndiQube today is one of the leading flexible workspace providers in the country with over four million sq. ft. of cumulative office space spread across sixty properties in eight cities. We cater to the office space requirements of over 500 clients. Our vision was to make IndiQube synonymous with office space. We are a one-stop solution for any workspace related requirement of our clients covering the entire gamut of space, design and build, operations, and management of workspaces.”
IndiQube has also adapted to the post-pandemic scenario well. Their MiQube app is aimed at enhancing employee experience by enabling one-touch access to book meeting rooms, attend employee events, order food, book parking slots, avail airport transfers and more. The MiQube member’s portal is a one-stop solution for all workspace management analytics pertaining to visitor management, parking and meeting room utilisation, power consumption, invoice monitoring, one-click helpdesk and more. Another app in their repertoire is the ServiQube app that assures consistent service delivery by their field executives. The app enables paperless monitoring and execution of tasks with easy to access checklists, one-click upload of task photographs and real-time feedback monitoring.
Over the next two years, IndiQube plans to reach over 1,20,000 seat capacity. They also see potential to add at least 30,000 seats year-on-year. This growth will be fuelled by deeper penetration in cities like Bengaluru, Pune, Chennai, Hyderabad, Noida and Mumbai, where they already have a significant presence. “Over the next three years, we foresee 5X growth in our top line with a very healthy profit margin. We have successfully established ourselves as a leader in the market in most metros. We also look forward to expanding into Tier-II cities. In the long term, we plan to enter emerging economies outside India where we could replicate our country’s success story,” shares Agarwal.
She believes their team of over 350 employees played a key role in overcoming hurdles so far. They have created a culture of constant learning and the core team is closely knit with the leadership team. Each of them inspires the other in challenging moments which makes it easier to overcome hurdles.
IndiQube’s six-year journey is quite inspirational. From a single property in Bengaluru to becoming a pan-India player, they have proved that co-working spaces that promise flexibility and comfort are assured success. Even a global pandemic could not stop this growth. Those looking for co-working spaces will surely benefit by checking their model out.
The writer pens lifestyle articles for various publications and her blog www.nooranandchawla.com. She can be reached on nooranand@gmail.com.
