CZECH REPUBLIC: Flatio, a platform for booking monthly stays online has acquired flOasis – a housing provider for remote workers.
The deal, which follows Flatio’s acquisition of NomadX in 2020, builds on the Czech company’s move into the rapidly growing digital nomad space.
flOasis was set up in 2020 by Lola Casamitjana and Kristina Kutan to make it easier for remote workers to find places to live and work abroad, concentrating mainly in Europe.
The platform has a range of unique listings, including large co-living spaces, sustainable farm stays and luxury beachside villas. Users can search by personal preferences, depending on the type of stay they want, using terms such as “chill”, “active”, and “focus”.
Radim Rezek, CEO and co-founder of Flatio, said: “We want to be the number one housing platform for digital nomads and remote workers in Europe, so when the opportunity to acquire flOasis presented itself, we went for it. flOasis is well respected in the community and shares Flatio’s vision: to empower digital nomads and remote workers to live and work from anywhere, so it made sense. flOasis has unique listings that are tried and tested by nomads and customised to remote workers, which was a huge draw. We also loved flOasis’ innovative, personalised pioneer programme.”
As part of the deal, Flatio will integrate flOasis’ 236 unique listings into its platform and plans to onboard another 1,290.
The Brno-based company will also ramp up flOasis’ innovative, pioneering program, which sees influencers pre-review stays to ensure they meet digital nomads’ needs, including strong wifi, dedicated workspaces, community, and outdoor space.
Before the pandemic, Flatio operated mainly in the Czech Republic and Hungary, catering to students, professionals, and medical travellers. However, the company has since shifted focus to digital nomads and remote workers after seeing a swell in interest during 2020.
Rezek added: “Since the pandemic, people have more freedom to live and work from anywhere. We have seen a rapid acceleration in demand, not just from traditional digital nomads but former office workers, families and executives wanting to improve their work-life balance by working from anywhere. The workation trend is here to stay, so we must continue to meet the needs of modern-day remote workers.”
The company, which has listings in more than 300 destinations, expects the acquisition will help bolster its offering in Europe. In 2021, Flatio also became the official accommodation partner of the world’s first digital nomad village on the Portuguese archipelago of Madeira.
The acquisition’s financial terms, a combination of cash and future revenues, remain undisclosed.
Demand for serviced apartments and flexible extended stays in Europe remains strong, with an expected 13,000 keys being added over the next four years, according to an HVS sector report.
