Staying simple but small has helped put Hive Student Accommodation on the front foot in the increasingly competitive inner-city apartment market, says entrepreneur and QUT Business graduate Daniel Brennan.
The 30-year-old Bachelor of Business graduate joined fellow Alumni Dominik Waldmeier and Natalie Saint-Forrester to establish the Kelvin Grove based company, Hive Student Accommodation.
The trio manage high quality, affordable student housing for ‘niche’ small-to-medium (50-150 bed) complexes built and owned by investors.
“It has been a fast-paced two years as we went from no revenue and $10,000 in seed funding to managing 500 rooms,” Mr Brennan (pictured right below) said.
“Our occupancy rates across the portfolio averaged more than 50 weeks or 96 per cent capacity.”
Within two years the company’s turnover reached $500,000, double the target the founders had set themselves.
Hive co-founder Dominik Waldmeier (pictured above left) said they set a goal of $250,000 in annual turnover in two years.
“We have been really pleased with the consistent growth Hive has experienced since starting and feel this can be directly attributed to the results we have been able to achieve for our investors and students alike,” Mr Waldmeier said.
Hive’s first purpose-built complex opened in January at 141 Kelvin Grove Road, Kelvin Grove, in close proximity to QUT and the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital.
The building was well received by students and reached over 80 per cent occupancy with a short four-week marketing campaign.
The company tailors properties to match students’ needs with rooms to let in Brisbane’s CBD, Kelvin Grove and St Lucia.
Mr Brennan said the softening demand or ‘glut’ of inner-city residential units provided unique opportunities for student accommodation operators to acquire development sites to specifically cater for student housing.
Most buildings offer fully-furnished shared accommodation units and self-contained studio apartments with access to onsite gym, common areas, study spaces, restaurants and planned events.
Figures from the Australian Government Department of Education and Training showed student enrolments increased by 2.1 percent for domestic students and 4.5 per cent for international students in 2014-2015, which placed education as Australia’s fifth largest export.
“We have a number of projects on the horizon for 2017 and are looking for developers and investors to partner with as we continue to expand on the strong brand position Hive has established within Brisbane’s student accommodation,” Mr Waldmeier said.
Media contact: media@qut.edu.au
Daniel Brennan, Hive Director, 0401 528 219 Daniel@hivepropertygroup.com.au
