Blueground debuts in London and Paris
Europe: Extended-stay apartment rental firm Blueground has launched its offerings in London and Paris for the first time.
The company’s inventory is spread across different apartment buildings within a city, typically with one or two per property.
The minimum stay for its rentals is currently 30 days, however the average stay for travellers stands between five and seven months.
All services, such as room cleaning, laundry, maintenance, food shopping or key replacement, are requested via the Blueground app. This puts customers in contact with a 24/hour support team, which then contacts the building manager or a third-party service provider.
The company launched in Athens back in 2013, later opening apartments in Dubai and Istanbul.
In 2017, it made its US debut in New York, and since then it has rapidly expanded to San Francisco, Boston, Washington DC, Chicago and Seattle.
With 3,500 Blueground properties worldwide, including 15 each now in London and Paris, the firm has set its sights on growing to 250 in each by the end of the calendar year.
Speaking to Business Traveller, Blueground’s head of global expansion, Saad Cheema, said: “Our founder used to travel a lot in his job as a consultant and was sick of hotels and not having something that felt like his own apartment.
“He wanted to create something more homey with a modern aesthetic. Our apartments should look and feel like apartments, but they can be rented easily in the medium or long-term.”
“Where we’re sitting, a stylish new-build apartment block on Portugal Street in Holborn, every other flat is a regular rental and not associated with Blueground.
“It’s meant to add to the feeling of homeliness. Everyone around you didn’t arrive yesterday, there’s more of a community.
“We provide the ease of finding, booking and accessing an apartment. If you tried to rent from an agent you’d need a lot of paperwork, it can be a lot of hassle, maybe you don’t have UK credit.
“With us you get access to services but you’re not coming back to a hotel and walking through a lobby. It’s an apartment building and inside there are little touches like the throws on the bed, the colour palette, the lighting, which should all be soothing and calming,” added Cheema.
For more information, visit the Blueground website here.
