How gnômadic is making its mark on the crowded co-living space by focusing on expats

“Is this even real? Is everyone going to be talking about something else next year again?”

That was Jonathan Schiff’s response when a group of co-living firms approached him in late 2018 to seek investment and advisory opportunities.

Keen to find out more about the emerging vertical within the real estate industry, the industry veteran set out to travel across the world to experience it for himself. After speaking to several management teams, staying in co-living spaces and interacting with residents themselves, Schiff was won over.

“I was like wow! This does seem to be a secular shift in the way that people are looking at housing,” he shared in an interview with e27.

However, a problem arose. When sharing the idea of co-living with his acquaintances, a recurring theme emerged. “Isn’t that a bunch of 20-year-olds having keg parties on the rooftop every night?” he shared candidly of the encounter.

Thereafter, he realised he had to focus on a niche market to alter these perceptions and do well, especially in the rapidly expanding co-living market, where startups such as hmlet and Cove have emerged in Singapore recently.

Niche market

Seeking to dip his toes into what remains a nascent industry, Schiff founded gnômadic in January 2020. Based out of Singapore, the startup curates luxuriously furnished co-living homes with events to build a community for residents to unwind and connect. Prices start at S$2,500 (US$1,870) per month, with a strong focus on working professionals and expat community.

Also Read: How Rukita turned the pandemic into an opportunity to grow its co-living business

Schiff shares that while majority of gnômadic’s customers are in their mid-30s, it has a diverse range of clients residing in its four properties islandwide.

But the beginning of the company was not easy; within just months of starting, COVID-19 broke out and altered perceptions towards housing. There was a shift towards flexibility amidst the pandemic as uncertainty grew and locals started delaying big-ticket purchases, including property.

However, the movement restrictions imposed within the city-state did not result in an entirely negative outcome, he said.

“The pandemic was a great opportunity for us to learn more about our residents and how to serve them better,” he noted, as we settled in at gnômadic’s latest property Meadow, located conveniently off the bustling Orchard Road.

When quizzed on whether the increased rental demand would remain when the economy recovers, Schiff replied that demand would remain high within the professional community that gnômadic targets, as “highly qualified and compensated people” would continue coming into Singapore.

Community building

Throughout our hour-long chat, it was noticeable that building a community around co-living (through events) was important to Schiff.

Also Read: Why mixed-use is the future of real estate in a socially distanced world

Did the pandemic alter your plans? “Before the restrictions, we would have larger events such as rooftop parties with 20 to 30 people. During the lockdown, we were organising virtual events and that wasn’t a big challenge. The hard part was when physical events were reintroduced with restrictions on the size of the gatherings.”

“People wanted to get out of the house and physically interact with each other. However, there are restrictions still in place and residents are mindful of that,” he elaborated, adding that gnômadic is constantly innovating to come up with new solutions to bring residents together while adhering to the pandemic-induced restrictions.

Besides running gnômadic, Schiff is also Managing Director of a family office and a Director of a private equity (PE) fund. Having both founded and invested in startups across a variety of sectors, Schiff has a few words of advice for entrepreneurs.

“You have to focus on a particular niche. A lot of startups get into trouble because when you’re sitting down with a piece of paper, you can go any direction and could soon lose your direction,” he emphasised.

“Building a team is always important. At the moment, there’s an incredible pool of talent that’s out there in the hospitality sector looking for jobs right now. We are in the process of recruiting and the quality of people coming in is amazing,” he revealed.

Sharing his personal experience as he faced restrictions in purchasing property due to his non-citizen status, Schiff encouraged founders to be adaptable and resourceful to overcome any obstacles when starting up.

Also Read: Why startup founders should be open to pivoting anytime

Future plans

The co-living venture is currently looking to expand its operations into Bangkok and Ho Chi Minh City.

Schiff hopes gnômadic can help foreign professionals acclimatise into the local culture to ease their transition into a foreign land.

Revealing his thoughts on what the future entails for the co-living industry, Schiff remarked while it is still early days and co-living firms are in “unchartered territory”, he believes there would be an increased focus on community building in the years to come.

“The whole community aspect is very fascinating. And it is the thing that’s attracted a lot of people. People are asking ‘who am I going to live with?’ Therefore, we spend a lot of time curating our community,” he remarked.

“Before anybody moves in with us, we get to know their needs and desires so we can best serve those needs,” he said.

Schiff also shared that gnômadic, unlike conventional startups, has an asset-heavy model. Therefore, the business consists of a property management arm running alongside an operations one.

Though the firm has been self-funded till date, he shares it is seeking investments from real estate investment firms and private equity firms. However, he stressed funding remains a desire rather than a need.

—

Image Credit: gnômadic

 

The post How gnômadic is making its mark on the crowded co-living space by focusing on expats appeared first on e27.