Denmark's Poshtel PopUp is setting its sights on South East Asian expansion. The hotel start-up is eyeing new development opportunities for its pop-up shipping container guestrooms.
The new shipping container suites will follow their first location in Nordhavn, Copenhagen, which recently opened in October last year. The group is currently in talks to sign franchise agreements across the globe, particularly in Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Japan and South Korea. The eco-friendly brand's first stop will be in Thailand with a 50-unit complex, which is currently being developed.
The group has said that it purchased an inventory of shipping containers not only to capitalize on the growing traveler trends in affordability, sustainability and unique experiences, but also to make a positive impact on the environment through the tourism industry. "We often see ourselves as part of a greater movement,” Kristoffer Blom, co-founder of Poshtel PopUp, told TTG Asia. "Sustainability is one of the main factors. Sustainability has moved from being a niche to a necessity. Not (simply) stickers about towels on the floor; we mean deeply embedded responsible behavior in every piece and element of the business. You can pretty much view the suites as banks of raw materials.”
Poshtel converts these containers into budget- and eco-friendly luxury guestrooms and suites and will transport them anywhere around the world. The company has also converted similar containers into utility units called The 5th Element to power these suites with electricity, water and sewage, allowing them to operate 100 percent off-grid using solar power.