StartupTalky presents Recap’23, a series of in-depth interviews where we engage with founders and industry leaders to explore their growth in 2023 and their predictions for the future.
Coworking spaces provide flexible work solutions for diverse professionals. These hubs foster collaboration and creativity in response to the rise of remote work. They cater to individuals and small businesses with shared infrastructure and cost-effective options. The industry’s adaptability makes coworking spaces integral to the evolving work landscape. They continue to play a pivotal role in shaping modern work dynamics.
The coworking space industry is projected to reach 41,975 spaces by the end of 2024, experiencing an annual growth rate of approximately 21.3%. A forecast for 2021–2025 predicts a market increase of $13.35 billion, reflecting an 11% annual growth. However, the pandemic led to the closure of 21.76% of coworking spaces, underscoring the industry’s resilience despite challenges.
In a recent Recap’23 interview, we at StartupTalky had the privilege of connecting with Robin Chhabra, Founder and CEO of Dextrus, We delved into understanding how Dextrus operates within the coworking space industry by exploring their strategies and gaining insights into their unique approach and positioning in the sector.
StartupTalky: What service does Dextrus provide? What was the motivation/vision with which you started?
Robin Chhabra: Dextrus offers office spaces as a service. We design, build, and operate premium office spaces for our clients. Our vision has been to bring a high level of design thinking to office space requirements, as it is an ever-changing landscape where flexibility and quality are key.
StartupTalky: What new services have been added in the past year? What is/are the USP/s of Dextrus?
Robin Chhabra: We have expanded to give enterprise office space where we design and custom-build office spaces curated to the minutest details for our clients.
StartupTalky: How has the coworking space industry you are in changed in recent years, and how has Dextrus adapted to these changes?
Robin Chhabra: COVID caused most companies to look at our model more carefully and see resonance in our offerings. Clients’ requirements change over time as they grow and need flexible office solutions. They also don’t wish to have the headache of overseeing these needs as it distracts from core functions. Our prowess in design and high service quality has helped address both those needs.
StartupTalky: How do you stay up-to-date on the latest trends and developments in the coworking space industry?
Robin Chhabra: We keep pushing the boundaries of design and service quality as we want to be the best in the business and hence focus mostly on that.
StartupTalky: What key metrics do you track to check Dextrus’s growth and performance?
Robin Chhabra: Occupancy levels are to be maintained at high levels, and customer satisfaction and good seat pricing are to ensure profitability.
StartupTalky: What were the most significant challenges Dextrus faced in the past year, and how did you overcome them?
Robin Chhabra: Hiring is our most significant challenge as we grow. Good talent who can be intrapreneurial. We focus internally on our team members via flexible policies as well, as we hope that we will spread the word that we are a good company to work for.
StartupTalky: Good service is something everyone is talking about in the service industry. How does Dextrus ensure that its clients are happy?
Robin Chhabra: Feedback is important, and learning from that feedback is as important.
StartupTalky: What are the different strategies you use for marketing? Tell us about any growth hack that you pulled off.
Robin Chhabra: Quality, Quality, Quality is the only focus. Word spreads, and that brings the clients.
StartupTalky: Foreign clients- this is what most of the service-based companies are looking for. What has been your experience?
Robin Chhabra: We look for companies that are well established; they can be foreign or domestic. Foreign companies understand what our model can offer and come with experience using it abroad, hence making it easier to close deals, though Indian companies are fast catching up post-COVID.
StartupTalky: What are the important tools and software you use to run Dextrus smoothly?
Robin Chhabra: We use Google Suite, Asana for task management, and Slack for internal communications. All of these talk to each other. We have also built applications using a Google platform to help operate more efficiently. We use Tally and Zoho Books as well for accounting-related matters.
StartupTalky: What opportunities do you see for future growth in the coworking space industry in India and the world? What kind of difference in market behavior have you seen between India and the world?
Robin Chhabra: Enterprise workspaces have seen great demand in India, more than the rest of the world. Growth looks upwards, with coworking spaces will comprise of 10% of grade-A office space in the country soon.
StartupTalky: How do you plan to expand the customers, service offerings, and team base in the future?
Robin Chhabra: We continue to expand in Mumbai; once we achieve a comfortable size, we shall turn to the other major cities.
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Coworking spaces are a great example of where business meets design, and that pursuit seemed like a natural transition. A coworking space endeavours to deliver office spaces which are carefully designed for their clients. Taking care of the details is what helps any managed office space, stand apart. Dextrus BKC (Bandra Kurla Complex) is a workspace that marries design with utility, a balance of form and function.
Mumbai-based Dextrus, a managed office space provider, aims to tap this growing market. Launched in 2018, the sprawling coworking space is located in the heart of Mumbai’s Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) and Lower Parel. Whether customers are looking for an open desk, a private office, or space for a client meeting or event; Dextrus offers that flexibility at an affordable price.
Dextrus is a one-of-a-kind premium coworking space, offering flexible membership plans at affordable rates. Dextrus workspace is built with the single focus of creating the right work environment for professionals and companies. They offer a range of options from flexible desks to customized and private office spaces. In addition to office spaces and flexible desks, they also have fully serviced meeting rooms and event spaces.
At Dextrus, you get the whole office, not just a desk. They offer customised options to freelancers, entrepreneurs and corporations across industries. With private offices, open flexible desks and a range of common areas including a library, brainstorm and meeting rooms, phone booths and event spaces, Dextrus offers you the ability to choose your most productive work space.
Dextrus Workspace
Built With A Single Focus
At Dextrus BKC, they have created an environment to enable be the best at what clients do.
Balances Community With Privacy
From their desk to the library, lounges to phone booths, employees can easily find a space to collaborate and to focus.
Styled With Utility
Dextrus presents an aesthetically-designed premium coworking space, flushed with natural sunlight. With end-to-end services and utilities provided 24×7, they can focus on work, and let us take care of everything else.
Dextrus is vying to grab eyeballs with its superior design aesthetics is clear. But the coworking space is so much more. It offers features such as the Dextrus Desk (hot desk or others), Dextrus Office (private rooms), Dextrus Daily (a flexible day pass), and Dextrus Virtual (a remote office).
Dextrus Coworking Space | Mumbai-based startup
Dextrus- Founder
Dextrus is founded by Mr. Robin Chhabra.
Dextrus Founder | Robin Chhabra
Robin Chhabra has a Masters of Architecture Degree from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. He has worked on projects as diverse as theatre set design and heritage hotels with a boutique architecture firm in Singapore. Post that he worked with the award- winning firm, Serie Architects, in Mumbai as a Senior Architect. He has led projects of multiple scales across residential and commercial spaces; including schools, hotels and sports facilities. Recognizing the need to provide path-breaking thinkers with a workspace that offers all the finesse of a top-notch office with none of the fuss involved in maintaining it, Robin Chhabra founded Dextrus in 2018.
“Dextrus was launched with one simple aim: to create a designed office environment where professionals of any kind can come and enjoy doing their work while we take care of everything else,” says Founder Robin Chhabra.
Dextrus has 16 employees in total. The work culture is very collaborative, professional and focused towards excellence. They constantly strive towards creating an environment that helps the team get better in the professional and personal capacity which in turn reflects in the way the company interact with the clients and also in the way they maintain the workspace and their service standards.
Dextrus Team
Their hiring funda is fundamental as they look for an individual with a strong work ethic and entrepreneurial spirit. They search for people who are constantly innovating and improving the processes and/or programs so that it could benefit the company and create room for significant personal and career growth.
How Dextrus Started?
Dextrus brings design thinking to the real estate industry where architecture and design brings value to the business model of coworking. Their deep roots lie in architecture and design which bring great synergies to the model and this has led up to be able to provide unique and beautiful workspaces that people enjoy using and coming to everyday.
They spent about a year looking at coworking spaces based abroad in Europe, America, Asia and also looked internally at Indian coworking spaces. This gave them a great idea on the landscape of the industry as well as where the opportunities lay in the market. They also spoke to industry leaders, property consultants to understand the sell side of the market to understand the target audience. Very early on, the focus on the professional companies became apparently clear.
Dextrus Coworking Space
There is a great need to service companies of all sizes as the benefits of saving on capital expenditure and the flexibility they provide are of a huge help. After launching their space, the response was great and people have resonated with the space as well as the experience and this has resulted in very high occupancy rates very quickly.
Dextrus comes from the word “Dexterous”; which is commonly defined as deft or handy but also means masterful, skilled, an expert. They tend not to use it in this form as the most common word form is ambidextrous. In their urban landscape they use hands to type, scroll and click but there are other professions that use a lot more of their limbs. Since, they are creating a space to work, they thought a link to agility/skill was apt and also important. they go with
Dextrus is a space that enables you to work hard and get better at what you do. It aims to help people “focus, collaborate, socialise, and learn”.
Dextrus- Vision and Mission
The team at Dextrus is focused towards providing a unique and seamless work experience. The driving concept behind the team’s effort is to create an unconventional workspace that piques the interest of users and inspires creativity and enhances productivity.
Dextrus Office
Dextrus- Target Market Size
Dextrus is a niche product that provides premium office infrastructure and service at a value price. Currently they are in BKC (Bandra Kurla Complex) Mumbai and our second location is under construction in Lower Parel and will launch by Oct, 2020. They are planning to expand to about a total of 5 locations in the next three years.
Dextrus is a workspace that is a unique blend of style and utility, ample flexibility resulting in a fully equipped workspace with absolute focus on our members’ privacy and security. They offer clients a wide range of customisable membership packages for office space, desk space, meeting rooms, common collaborative areas, event space as well as an opportunity to make us your virtual office. They are now able to adapt their space to meet the evolving requirements of their members as they have built that flexibility into the design process.
Dextrus launched their membership plans as a pivot to give members the benefits of having an office without having one. The membership plans allow members to choose how they wish to use the space, meeting room today, a desk tomorrow without having to be worried about a fixed cost. It’s a pay as you go model and this has seen fair traction with members as it provides good value.
Dextrus | Meeting Room
Dextrus- Revenue Model
Dextrus’ Revenue model is primarily from desk rentals and meeting room rentals.
Dextrus- Startup Channels
Property Consultants (brokers) are a great supply channel. Google, both ads and SEO have been great strategies. They also use Dextrus Events and social media to build brand awareness.
Dextrus- Customers/ Clients
Their service and the physical space have built Dextrus among the best names. They are able to retain their existing clients as their service goes beyond normal practices. The design of the space itself is what sets them apart. The physical design has an impact on the conscious and subconscious that cannot be forcibly superimposed. It speaks for itself.
Dextrus Coworking Space in Mumbai BKC
Dextrus- Recognition and Achievements
Dextrus being one of the luxurious coworking space for office worker, has won the Coworker Members Choice for Award 2019 for Best Coworking Space in Mumbai.
They have been proudly covered by some of the leading media companies like Architectural Digest India, Conde Nast Traveller India, ETNow, People Matters, Indian Express and more.
Robin Chhabra, Founder & CEO of Dextrus talks about COVID-19 impact on Coworking business
As their scale is small, making a name for themselves in the market was difficult. There are a lot of coworking spaces in the country. The design of their space here too has made a big difference. Their product visually sells itself and that could have only worked once they had their first center up and running. This led to Dextrus starting on day 0 without any customers but once their coworking space was up and running it became an easier sell.
Dextrus is currently in Crescenzo Building in BKC and very soon, they are launching their second space in Peninsula Corporate Park, Lower Parel by Oct. 2020. In second year of operation, they touched 95% occupancy. Their clients range from conglomerates to SMEs whose business fields range from tech to financial services to social impact. They are planning to expand to about 5 centers in the next three years.
Dextrus would love for the Startuptalky readers to come and experience their coworking space, and book a free-trial via: info@dextrus.in
Shubham Kumar
