Minimalist Hotel looks to add six properties in the next two years
Minimalist Hotel, a hotel and dorm management company run by Swashbuckler Hospitality Pvt. Ltd, is looking to expand its footprint by adding new properties across Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Goa, and the National Capital Region (NCR) by 2026, said its founder Gautam Munjal.
The company, which began operations in 2017, runs boutique properties either on management contracts for other owners or signs operational leases to run the properties. “It’s somewhere between a hybrid hotel-cum-hostel model with both private hotel rooms as well as dorm-style rooms,” Munjal told Mint.
At present, the company operates four properties. Its hotels generally combine communal living with large hotel spaces like Marriott International Inc.-run Moxy Hotels.
He said the company distinguishes itself from traditional hotels because of the common space that can foster shared experiences. It also has sub-100 rooms in each of its hotels, typically 30-40 rooms and some dorm-style beds.
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In 2024, the company saw 100% year-on-year growth, reaching ₹5 crore in gross revenue, and aims to expand into tier I and II cities, he said.
He said it will aim to grow revenue by 5x in the next two years and have about 120 rooms in its hotel portfolio, of which 90% will be rooms and 10% dormitories.
“We’d like to go deeper into each cluster we are already in, like Varanasi, Goa, Delhi-NCR and Rajasthan. We see a lot of standalone hotel successes but have not seen those models able to be replicated. We’re also trying to create a standardized framework for our hotels that can be replicated in most cities,” he said.
The company attracts various types of hotel users, including millennials and Gen-Z travellers and opened its second hotel in Varanasi in December.
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Last week, Mint reported that several hotel chains are transforming their business strategies by adopting operating leases or management contracts for quicker growth. Under an operating lease, a company rents a property from its owner and runs it as an independent entity.
In contrast, a management contract involves a hotel owner outsourcing the operational responsibilities to a third-party company while still retaining ownership of the property.
A report from Hotelivate, published in October 2024, showed a broad-based increase across both metro cities and smaller emerging markets, adding 15,231 new rooms to India’s total hotel inventory in 2023-24.
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It added that about 70% of the organized branded hotels in India charge less than ₹7,500 a night. Minimalist also operates in this segment.
The company competes with hotel brands like Bloom Hotels, FabHotels and Nuo by Justa Hotels. In the hostel business, its main competitors are Zostel, GoStops, The Hosteller, and others.
