The announcement was made by Gerard Freene, Founder & CEO of Yotel and Society, during the “Global brands, tourism destinations and real estate market” conference, organized by Essentia this Thursday in Lisbon, without, however, announcing any further details about the project.
«We have a proposal to improve the rental housing market, creating a vibrant community», by implementing «hotel services in the houses where people make theur everyday living». This first Portuguese project should appear in Lisbon, where the company’s experience has been «fantastic», a «hospitable and passionate city».
Gerard Freene explains that Society «operates co-living products with hotel services, joining people who live in community and share the same values». The projects may benefit from services such as dog walking, babysitting, plumbing, or maintenance, all accessible through their own app, in a sharing economy logic.
In both the hotel and residential sectors, Gerard Greene belives that there is room to all kinds of services, and that the key is in people’s hospitality: «whoever doesn’t invest in people, will have more to lose».
First Yotel opens in 2019
In the meanwhile, the first Yotel will open in 2019 in Porto, a 30 million euro investment.
With 147 rooms, the new unit will open at Rua Gonçalo Cristóvão, in the centre of Porto, with a sky bar, terrace or rooftop. The possibility to check in without a key or to check out at self-service kiosks will be some of this unit’s innovations.