Grexter Living acquihires i2Stay; plans to foray into Pune, Hyderabad
The transaction between Grexter and i2Stay will see a combined operation of more than 5,000 beds and the plan is to expand beyond Bengaluru.
Grexter Living, the Bengaluru based co-living services startup has acquihired i2Stay, which will expand the scale of operations of the combined entity and also enable it to move into newer cities.
According to a statement, Grexter will now add 2,000 new beds to its inventory taking the total count to over 5,000 in Bengaluru. As part of the transaction, it has taken over some built-to-suit projects which i2Stay has been engaged with.
As part of this transaction, Rajasekhar Gowrineni, CEO of i2stay, will be joining the Grexter Living team as the Managing Partner for South India.
Grexter Living co-founders: Nikhil Dosi (left) and Pratul Gupta
i2Stay, launched early last year provides affordable accommodation targeted at working professionals.
On the acquihire, Pratul Gupta, Co-Founder, Grexter Living, said, “We are extremely happy to welcome Rajasekhar on-board. Rajasekhar has been a pioneer in space-saving concepts, and through this partnership, we will be able to leverage his expertise and years of experience. We are already working on some really innovative co-living design ideas and hope to bring them to life very soon.”
Launched in January 2016 by two IIT Madras Alumni – Pratul Gupta and Nikhil Dosi, Grexter Living provides built-to-suit urban studio rooms, which caters primarily to salaried employees, fresh graduates, and techies in the age group of 18-25 years. Grexter raised a Pre-Series A investment worth $1.5 million from Venture Catalysts in 2019.
Rajasekhar Gowrineni, MD and CEO of i2Stay, said, “Co-living is a high-growth sector, and it gives me immense pleasure in joining Grexter team, reaching our services to a larger number of customers. I am excited about the opportunity and possibilities that the future holds for Grexter and we are very optimistic about the growth.”
At present, Grexter is focussing on scaling up its operations and strengthening its position as Bangalore’s fastest-moving co-living space provider. By 2020, it aims to foray into two new markets, i.e. Pune and Hyderabad.
(Edited by Saheli Sen Gupta)
