Startups to lease 29 mn sq ft office space in 2022-24 in 6 cities; 30 pc more than 2019-21: Report

The leasing of office space by startups is expected to rise 30 percent during 2022-24 across six major cities compared to the previous three years, according to a report.

In its joint report, real estate consultant Colliers India and data analytic firm CRE Matrix said that startups are expected to lease about 29 million square feet during 2022-24 against 22.4 million square feet in 2019-2021.

The six cities tracked in the report are Delhi-NCR, Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), Bengaluru, Pune, Chennai and Hyderabad.

The demand will be led by fintech and logistics startups as they have gained momentum post-pandemic due to increased digital adoption and e-commerce boom, Colliers India said in a statement.

Increased digital adoption, availability of a deep talent pool, favourable government policies and funding options from venture capitalists are steering the growth of startups, it added.

?Increased entrepreneurship and rapid growth of startups have been one of the most remarkable trends in Indian office space," Colliers India CEO Ramesh Nair said.

Startups currently occupy 10 percent of the office space, he added.

"As startups pick up the pace, landlords need to consider the business life cycle and work preferences of the startups to capture the real estate demand from startups to drive more value," Nair said.

Abhishek Kiran Gupta, CEO & Co-founder, CRE Matrix, said that startups occupied 49.7 million square feet of office space at the end of the last year.

About 30 million square feet of office space in India is occupied by co-working or flex players and a large share of this is occupied by start-ups, he added.