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Taking a cue from pod hotels across Japan and China, Mumbai has got its first brand in this segment under the name of Urbanpod.
Typically, pod hotels have small rooms to accommodate budget-conscious travellers looking for a bed and shower options.
With pricing which is a notch below the regular budget hotels like Ginger and ibis, Urbanpod will have room rates below ₹2,000 situated across airports and railways stations.
Hiren Gandhi, Co-Founder & Director, said: “We are creating a new segment under pod hotels and have done a pilot in Mumbai and are currently experimenting with the concept.
“If it works and there is consumer acceptance, we may take it to other metro markets like Delhi and Bengaluru.’’
With an initial investment of ₹10 crore, Urbanpod is targeting new age travellers ranging from backpackers to leisure and business travellers with a bed and breakfast offering.
With railway stations getting modernised, Urbanpod is also open to collaborating with such stations to set up their pods within their premises.
“We are planning to approach the Railway Ministry to see if we can set up our pod hotels within the premises and replace the existing waiting rooms with this concept. It would be a public-private ownership model,’’ he said.
With rooms measuring 2 metres in length and width, about 130 pods have currently been set up at a commercial building in the Seepz region in Mumbai recently.
The pods are currently being imported from China as assembly units. “Pod hotels are common in East Asia and we plan to replicate the model in India.
“The pods are being manufacturing in China and it is easy to set them up within buildings,’’ he said.
“We have rented a commercial building in Mumbai and are open to forging strategic partnerships with real estate to set up pod hotels across the metro markets,’’ he added.
Franchising is also an option being explored by the hospitality company.
Urbanpod is already selling its rooms through OTA (online travel agents) and regular travel companies.
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