Ascott has opened the first property under its new Lyf (styled as “lyf” and pronounced as “life”) co-living brand in Singapore.
Lyf is Ascott’s new co-living brand, which it says is designed for millennials and the millennial-minded, and also managed by millennials. According to Ascott, Lyf properties “enable guests to ‘Live Your Freedom’ in a dynamic environment, providing flexible communal spaces that facilitate collaboration, community building and social activities among its guests”.
The new Lyf Funan Singapore occupies levels 4 to 12 of the Funan mall, which is situated in the city-state’s civil and cultural district and comprises two office blocks and a mall, offering a variety of recreational, retail, dining and commercial options. Also within distance are City Hall MRT Station, Raffles City Singapore and National Gallery Singapore. The 279 units within the property offer a total of 412 rooms. Apartment types range from 18-sqm studio units to 105-sqm apartments with up to six rooms.
Other communal areas in the co-living property include “Connect” co-working areas that can also be transformed into zones for workshops or social gatherings; “Wash & Hang” laundromat where residents can hang out and play a round of foosball while waiting for their laundry to be done; “Bond” social kitchen and pantry where guests can prepare meals, take cooking classes and socialise; as well as “Burn”, a gym equipped with weights, kettle balls, equipment for resistance training and a human-size hamster wheel that functions as a treadmill.
The hotel group says the new property will also focus on facilitating community bonding, with events, workshops and activities organised weekly, allowing residents to plug into the local community, experience the local culture and build connections with like-minded professionals.
Lyf Funan Singapore has also developed a mobile app, which will allow guests to book rooms, make payments, check-in, and access their apartment and other facilities throughout the property. What’s more, residents can book multiple destinations with a single transaction and communicate directly with in-house staff using the app. Guests can also enjoy discounts at various shops at Funan mall by showing their mobile key.
Mindy Teo, deputy managing director of Lyf, said: “Ascott’s first Lyf property, Lyf Funan Singapore, is Southeast Asia’s largest co-living property that will shape the future of travel and accommodation.
“The booming millennial segment, which is the fastest growing travel demographic, already forms a quarter of Ascott’s customer base and is expected to grow. Our Lyf properties are specially designed to cater to millennials’ craving for social connections, collaboration and co-creation.
“We have seven more Lyf properties to be opened over the next three years. We will open Lyf in Bangkok, Fukuoka, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Cebu and Shanghai by 2022. Besides the countries where we have Lyf, we are exploring to introduce Lyf, via investment, management contracts or leases, to key gateway cities in Australia, France, Germany, Indonesia, Netherlands, South Korea and the United Kingdom.”
In addition to Lyf Funan Singapore, Ascott will continue to open three more new properties in Singapore; namely Citadines Balestier Singapore, Ji Hotel Orchard Singapore, and Citadines Rochor Singapore. The Singapore-based service residence owner and operator has also signed 24 new properties across the Asia-Pacific region.
