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Smartworks Coworking aims to 'scale up' business after market debut
The Gurugram-based company has added an average of 1.3 million square feet of office space each year since 2022.
'Over the past three years, we have expanded to 10 million from 6 million square feet. In the first three months of 2025 alone, we added another 1.5 million square feet, bringing our total to over 11.5 million square feet,' Neetish Sarda, managing director of Smartworks, told 'Business Standard' in a telephonic conversation.
'Given the strong potential of the Indian market, we are confident in our ability to scale further. Despite operating on a high base, we have maintained a 35 per cent growth rate over the last couple of years, and we expect this momentum to continue,' he said without elaborating on the number.
The company on Thursday listed at Rs 445.1, a near 10 per cent premium to its issue price and taking its market cap to Rs 5,067 crore. Its initial public offering (IPO) follows that by Awfis Space Solutions, which listed last year and now has a market cap of over Rs 4,662 crore. Public listings by WeWork India, Indiqube and DevX are in the works, driven by demand for co-working office spaces across markets and sectors. According to Anarock, co-working spaces were the second highest demand-generating segment for leased office spaces from January to June.
Smartworks said it seeks a 'self-sustaining growth cycle', driven by cash inflows and demand for new and Grade A office spaces, alongside co-working and flex spaces. In FY25, the company reported Rs 250 crore in rental revenue. While overall revenue grew sevenfold and cash profits tripled, adjustments under Deloitte's audit process impacted the reported financials and resulted in a net loss of Rs 63 crore in FY25, the company said.
Harsh Binani, executive director of Smartworks, said the company is expanding to 'high-performing cities' beyond India's top seven and scaling up its presence with larger buildings and increased capacity. The expansion will add to its portfolio of 54 offices in 14–17 cities in India, as well as in Singapore. 'In the new cities we're entering, we typically launch with one or two centres.'
Smartworks has a client base of around 728 companies, including Google, Larsen & Toubro, Nothing, Groww, and Ernst & Young. The shared office space provider currently offers a total seat capacity of over 2.3 lakh across its centres.
Binani noted that the company has increased its profits 3.5 times and doubled its revenue over the past two years, a momentum it intends to continue. 'We're currently growing 1.5 times faster than any other player in the market, and we expect this momentum to continue.'
With the IPO, the total offer size comprises a fresh issue of equity shares aggregating up to Rs 445 crore and an offer for sale of up to 3,379,740 equity shares by certain existing shareholders. Smartworks has allocated Rs 114 crore from the proceeds for debt reduction and Rs 226 crore for fit-outs.
Smartworks made its debut on the NSE and BSE, following the successful completion of its IPO. The company's shares listed at Rs 436.10 on the BSE, marking a premium of Rs 29.10. On the NSE, the stock opened slightly lower at Rs 435, reflecting a premium of Rs 28 per share.
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