Suite deal for business travellers

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This article was published 27/05/2019 (2358 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A national leading brand in the corporate housing market has opened the doors on its first two buildings in Winnipeg, officially extending the company’s reach and operation into every major Canadian city.

Founded in 2008 and based out of Montreal, Corporate Stays provides personalized residential units that offer business travellers a home-like experience that can’t be found during a long-term stay at a hotel.

As of today, they’ve opened their first two buildings LXTX and the Spot — located on the 800 block of Sterling Lyon Parkway — with a total of more than 20 units.

“I think Winnipeg started to be on the radar for us about a year ago as we tried to plan our growth into new markets for 2019. We have quite a bit of referral business going into Winnipeg, which is a sign there’s a sufficient market for our services,” said Frederic Aouad, Corporate Stays’ chief sales officer.

“With the numbers we’ve seen, the market research we have gathered, we’re extremely confident in our expansion into Winnipeg. The city has a rather dynamic and diverse economy, so it’s not riding on any one thing.”

Aouad said the clientele tends to vary widely, including construction and movie production companies, consulting and engineering firms, as well as insurance brokers.

Its bread and butter are rentals of a month or longer, he said.

While the company is beginning with roughly 25 units in the city — which are being rented out in buildings and furnished and serviced by Corporate Stays — that’s just a first step for its Winnipeg operation.

“For us, a market is not worth it until we reach 50 units. So, I see us moving into that zone very quickly, by 2020, maybe 2021 at the latest — although it might not necessarily be in the same area of the city,” Aouad said.

“All of the operational costs don’t vary greatly between 20 to 50 units. The staffing you need is roughly the same, the equipment you need to buy is the same, so it doesn’t really change much. Twenty units is just a start. We’ll be looking to expand on that.”

At the initial two buildings in Winnipeg, guests will have access to fully furnished units that feature a kitchen and in-suite laundry. The Spot will also feature a gym with free classes and a professional fitness coach.

Aouad stresses that Corporate Stays locations — in Winnipeg and around the country — fill the niche market gap between a hotel and an Airbnb option.

“We’re really catered for businesses on a month-to-month or more basis, for companies that need accommodations for long-term projects, relocations or assignments. We can provide units that are standardized, with the same service and the same layouts,” Aouad said.

“Our clientele varies. Sometimes, it might be a construction company that needs to relocate a specialist team for more than a few days, where your hotel options at a high volume of rooms and a high number of nights become extremely expensive.

“Six months in a hotel room, it doesn’t matter how beautiful that hotel is, it’s not very conducive to longer-term stays. We know that as the length of the stay increases, the value proposition of renting an apartment versus a hotel becomes stronger.”

ryan.thorpe@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @rk_thorpe