Curated Living Solutions announces its first ever brownfield acquisition in the student housing vertical in Durgapur, West Bengal

Kolkata, 01 November, 2023: JLL, the country's leading real estate consultancy firm, has facilitated a brownfield acquisition of a student housing asset for Curated Living Solutions Pvt Ltd (CLSPL), located within the NSHM Knowledge Campus in Durgapur, West Bengal. This student housing facility is spread over a 1.5-acre land and ~1 lac sq. ft. built-up structure with 766 beds. This landmark partnership is CLSPL’s first brownfield venture in the student housing vertical and will officially start operating from 1^st November 2023.

CLSPL aims to partner with colleges and universities across India to provide customised housing facilities to students. This enables colleges and universities to monetize their non-core assets and focus on education. CLSPL has collaborated with large educational institutions like Manipal Global Education Services Pvt Ltd, Vignyana Jyothi Institute of Technology - Hyderabad, AISSMS & DY Patil - Pune and MEDPG – Chennai, to manage their student accommodation.

Dileep Singh Mehta, Chairman Trustee, NSHM Academy, said, “Parents strive to give the best education to their children and at NSHM, apart from education, we are committed to provide best of the associated facilities. Partnering with CLSPL to take care of the hostel accommodation requirements was an obvious choice considering their expertise and focus on this activity. This would allow NSHM to concentrate on core academics ensuring an overall holistic student experience.”

Jai Kishan Challa, Founder & CEO, CLSPL Pvt Ltd, said, “This is undoubtedly a major milestone in our journey, and I would like to thank everyone who have contributed to this transaction. A special thanks to Divyasree Group for believing in our vision and having our back. I would also like to thank JLL for facilitating this transaction. This acquisition will add 766 beds to our ~10000 beds portfolio and will complete our foray into all major quarters of India (North, South, West and now East).

He further added, “Our real estate DNA (Divyasree Group), coupled with hospitality as the foundation of our service delivery approach and robust technology create a formidable combination. But I believe that student housing and co-living are real estate and service businesses, rather than technology-driven stories. Therefore, our growth strategy for this alternative housing platform involves both greenfield developments and brownfield acquisitions, on and off campus. By collaborating with the NSHM Knowledge Campus, all parties can focus on their core strengths and deliver the best of both worlds, resulting in long-term benefits for the students.

Cecil Antony, Chief Mentor & Managing Trustee, NSHM Academy, said, “NSHM Knowledge Campus has always been at the forefront of innovation & student centricity. As a step towards this, we are happy to partner with IVY League House – a brand owned by CLSPL, to bring world class student accommodation services to eastern India for the first time. We are sure that our students and their parents would strongly benefit from this relationship.”

This acquisition presents an opportunity for professionally managed student accommodation, shining a spotlight on the thriving educational hubs in Kolkata and its suburbs. These areas are home to numerous private institutions, whose students have an increasingly growing demand for high-quality hostel facilities.

Surekha Bihani, Sr. MD – East & Emerging Markets – India, JLL said, “We are delighted to be a part of the transformation that the student housing sector is currently undergoing. This acquisition underscores our commitment to providing modern, organized, and safe accommodations for students, while also highlighting the immense potential within the student housing segment. With approximately 12 million students in need of hostel facilities and a supply-demand gap of over 6 million beds, we anticipate a continuous increase in demand. This presents a significant opportunity for all of us to offer high-quality residential accommodations that cater to the evolving needs of students.”

Curated Living Solutions Private Limited is the Alternative Housing Company backed DivyaSree Developers Group. CLSPL forays into all forms of housing solutions including student housing, industrial housing, co-living etc. through its different brands namely Ivy League Housing (ILH), LOCL and LOCL Square. The student housing vertical of CLSPL has a presence of about 8,000 (live & upcoming) beds across the country out of the total appx. ~10,000 (live & upcoming) beds under the brand. Considering the growing allure of the concept nationally, the intent of CLSPL is to establish a pan-India offering with 100,000 beds across all major knowledge commerce and educational hubs over the next five years. Within each city of presence, their focus would be identifying the most attractive micro-markets, where the professionals & students belonging to SEC A/B socio-economic categories are present in significant numbers. CLSPL has been known as one of the best companies to work at, especially in the Alternative Premium Housing Domain in India.