* The calculations use average data for Russia
1,620,000 ₽ Starting investment
972,000 ₽ Revenue
657,000 ₽ Net profit
3-12 months Payback period
*Pictured: Space Q Hotel in Sydney, Australia
Capsule hotels are a new direction of the hotel business in Russia. Opening such an establishment is easier and cheaper than a full-fledged hotel, and you can earn up to 1 million rubles per month.
The service sector is actively developing, and it still has something to offer in terms of technology and service. One of these innovations on the Russian market is capsule hotels. The idea came from Japan. There, cell rooms became a solution to the problem of hotel occupancy. Today, such hotels are opening all over the world. And one of the main advantages is budget. Visitors save on accommodation, and it is much easier and cheaper for entrepreneurs to implement such a mini-hotel project.
Thanks to its cheapness and originality, the idea has taken root in different countries. It has been implemented in Russia since 2009. We can say that the niche of capsule hotels is vacant. Therefore, if you want to open your own hotel business, pay attention to a new type of accommodation. In the article we will look at the key points: how to implement the idea in Russian conditions, how much money to invest and how much you will be able to earn from it.
What is a capsule hotel
In essence, a capsule hotel is a set of a certain number of cells, usually about 1.5x2.0x1.3 m in size. Staying in such a cell (capsule) involves sleeping, relaxing with a book, watching TV, or working on a laptop.
Such hotels are intended for students, businessmen (business travelers), who are not particularly demanding of comfort and are not willing to overpay for amenities that they will not use. The second group for whom such hotels are suitable are budget tourists, usually young.
It should be noted that in recent years the target audience, who are especially interested in accommodation offers in capsule hotels, has tended to grow rapidly. The reason for this is the increasing mobility of the population, but, most importantly, there is less and less willingness (and opportunity) to pay for real, but unnecessary comfort, and even more so imaginary, cultivated and imposed by advertising. At the same time, capsule hotels compare favorably with hostels, first of all, in their privacy and technology.
The opening of capsule hotels as a business is quite new for Russia. The concept of capsule hotels is suitable for major transport hubs and large cities where rooms for short stays are in demand. Similar ideas are being implemented in Moscow and St. Petersburg, but are almost not represented in other cities. For example, there are no such hotels in Rostov-on-Don. Those hostels or hotels that call themselves capsule hotels, in fact, are not them. Thus, hotels with rooms of about or even less than eight square meters cannot be called capsule hotels, and hostels with bunk beds cannot be called capsule hotels, since neither of them meets the main conditions, these are compactness, privacy and high technology of rooms ( capsules).
Advantages of capsule hotels
A capsule hotel is something in between hostels and mini-hotels. At the same time, it has certain advantages over other standard hotels. The table shows the advantages of capsule hotels in terms of service and business.
| Benefits for visitors | Benefits for an entrepreneur |
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Capsule hotels allow you to get maximum income from every square meter. By renting a room of 50 sq.m., you can easily place 10-12 capsules there, equipping a food area and a bathroom. And the initial investment will be at least 1 million rubles.
Let's figure out what and how much you will have to spend to open a capsule hotel from scratch.
How to choose a room: business idea
In the megacities of Asia and Europe, capsule hotels are mostly located at airports and train stations, although sometimes the location of the capsules can be the most unexpected. For example, in Canada on Vancouver Island, you can even rent a “flying” capsule, accommodation in which costs $175. It is suspended from a tree and sways a little, creating a feeling of flight.
Recently, Canadian architects proposed a project for the Driftscape hotel with 15 capsules that would actually fly. The area of each capsule will be 19 square meters. m. They will have a bedroom and a bathroom. The walls of the capsules are planned to be made of glass, and excursions will be organized for guests, during which, while in their capsules, they can admire various views and take photos.
Since capsule hotels are a relatively new business in Russia, it is better to rent premises at or near railway or bus stations. For a capsule hotel, an ordinary two or three-room apartment is quite suitable. In a room of 15 sq. m. can accommodate 6 capsules. It is advisable that the premises have a hall where guests can relax, watch TV and read magazines, a kitchen, and a bathroom.
Capsule hotel equipment
All that is needed for a capsule hotel is sleeping cells, a minimum set of household and office equipment and bed linen.
The most difficult thing is to resolve the issue with capsule numbers. Essentially, it is a furniture frame with a mattress or a bed. When choosing, you need to consider the following requirements: lighting, socket, ventilation and sound insulation.
Therefore, the main question when implementing the project is where to get capsules for the hotel? There are three main options:
- Buy in China.
It’s easier and cheaper to order them in China. The most famous manufacturer is KOTOBUKI. The cost of 1 standard capsule with dimensions 2x1x1.25 m starts from 60 thousand rubles. The configuration can be different: with a TV, a writing table, etc. You can ask the price on sites like Alibaba.com. - Make an individual order.
Another option is to have your capsules made to order. But we hasten to warn you that you may encounter problems finding furniture makers who will take on such work, or it will cost much more. - Convert something else into a hotel.
There is a third option - get creative and equip the rooms with something suitable. For example, in Amsterdam there is a hotel with rooms made from Pacific shipping containers.
In addition to the sleeping capsules themselves, you will need to equip the premises for the bathroom and kitchen. For the convenience of visitors, equip a luggage storage facility to provide each guest with a separate locker for luggage outside their room.
Arlo Hotels, New York: for lovers of comfort
Arlo Hotels capsules are, rather, full-fledged mini-rooms , many of them are equipped with furnished terraces or even have windows into the courtyard.
Even the smallest spaces have amenities like handheld garment steamers and folding, space-saving folding tables.
But the coolest thing is that the hotel is located in the very center of New York, right on Manhattan.
It's no surprise that prices here start at $191 per night for a mini room.
Price: from $191 or 11.9 thousand rubles. per day
Where to locate capsule hotels
Possible locations for capsule hotels are the city center, train stations and airports. Location in these places always has its own target audience, its advantages and benefits. Thus, being in the city center is aimed at budget tourists and business travelers, and is justified by the close proximity of offices and historical places of the city. Train stations and airports are places where there is the greatest concentration of both tourists and businessmen (business travelers). At the same time, the requirement for increased comfort is, as a rule, the lowest, since we are usually talking about staying in a hotel for just a few hours, and the alternative can only be a more or less comfortable chair in the waiting room.
Capsule hotel 9 hours hotel, Japan
For example, the location of only a couple of dozen capsules at the new airport of Rostov-on-Don “Platov” can be considered as a very interesting and profitable business. There are two proofs of this. And both of them are full-fledged and unconditional. The first is the absence of at least any proposal. The airport in the city of Rostov-on-Don was recently built, which is called “actively developing”, which means that the lack of supply is a matter of time, and therefore the opening of a capsule hotel here is very timely and promising. Moreover, there is a second reason - this is the growing passenger flow of the new airport, which means the emergence of more and more potential clients. Also important is the possibility of renting out rooms on an hourly basis, which means more profitable operation of the hotel.
Experience in organizing capsule hotels
The trendsetters in organizing capsule hotels are the Japanese, who equip each cell with a “smart” lighting system that imitates natural light. This is important because capsules usually do not have windows, but only a small viewing window. All additional services can be provided for an additional fee. Moreover, even in extremely expensive Tokyo, the cost of living in a cell is less than $50. European versions of capsules are distinguished by the presence of small windows, as well as double beds and a high-quality audio system. The bar and shower are shared, but the cost ranges from 25 to 40 dollars per night.
The most innovative are Malay capsule hotels, aimed at a relatively young audience. Each cell is equipped with a Smart TV, which allows you to fully organize your leisure time for just $20.
The modern trend is a gradual transition from micro-cells to micro-rooms, which have everything necessary for a good rest. With low cost and ease of organization, capsule hotels today are one of the most promising types of organizing a tourism business from scratch. We will discuss below how to make money by creating your own capsule hotel.
Organizational issues in opening a capsule hotel
Be prepared to spend a lot of time setting up your business. You will have to enter into agreements with Vodokanal, Gorgaz and other service providers. You will also need to collect an impressive package of documents and survive numerous checks.
Business registration itself is quite variable. Thus, it is possible to register both as an individual entrepreneur and as a limited liability company. In terms of taxation, options are possible with both a general taxation system and a simplified, as well as an imputed taxation system. All options have both their advantages and certain features that require consideration in specific specific situations. A license is not required to open capsule hotels. OKVED codes would be “55.1. “Activities of hotels” and 55.2 and “Activities of other places for temporary residence.”
The preparatory stage will take you from 3 months. Much depends on the premises, the necessary redevelopment, communications, repairs, etc. If you want to minimize time and financial costs, select a premises that is non-residential and does not require major repairs.
If the project is implemented on the territory of the airport, the time frame may increase by 2-3 times. This is due to additional approvals and requirements for materials, contractors, design, etc.
"Air Express"
In 2009, the first capsule hotel appeared in Russia. Sheremetyevo became a pioneer among domestic airports, which provided the opportunity for passengers to wait for their flight in comfortable cell rooms. The hotel is called "Air Express". It is located right on the airport grounds. But those who dream of spending the night in a tiny capsule should be disappointed. The hotel rooms bear little resemblance to traditional Japanese cells. They are created according to European standards and are small rooms for 1-3 people, in which you can not only sit or lie, but also walk. The area of the capsules in the Air Express ranges from 7.5 to 22 square meters. In addition to the bed and luggage compartment, each room has its own shower and toilet. People who are not constrained by finances can be offered superior rooms. The establishment looks more like an economy class hotel rather than a capsule hotel. Sheremetyevo serves thousands of passengers every day, so the rooms on the Air Express are never empty. You can book them in advance by going to the hotel website. Having done this, the traveler can be sure that his night at the airport will pass in comfortable conditions.
Capsule hotel staff
The staffing table (hotel staff), in the event of opening a capsule hotel within the airport, will consist of:
- administration employees - two people (working in shifts), maids - the same two people (also working in shifts).
- Bookkeeping should be entrusted to a consulting agency or may involve an accountant hired on a part-time basis.
Requirements for personnel - experience in this field, financial integrity and adequacy of salary expectations.
Requirements for hotel guests in Japan
Any capsule-type hotel has a large capacity. The sleeping cabins in it are located in 2 tiers. We can say that the guests sleep on each other's heads, but the cramped space does not bother them. Each room is designed for one person and is closed with a fiberglass door or curtain. It is prohibited to make noise, eat or smoke in the cells.
The vast majority of guests at capsule hotels in Japan are local men. Usually these are clerks of large companies who stay late at work and prefer to spend the night near the office instead of taking a taxi to distant prefectures of the city (the services of hired drivers in Japan are more expensive than a cabin in a hotel). In addition, capsule hotels are popular among poor travelers who cannot afford rooms in expensive hotels. The third category of guests are lovers of new sensations. For such people, a night spent in a cell room is comparable to an adventure.
Women in Japan are treated as sources of fuss and noise, so they are never housed next to men. Representatives of the fair sex in capsule hotels are allocated a separate floor. But that’s not all: women are prohibited from entering the part of the building where men rest. Even if a married couple is staying at the hotel, the husband and wife will be accommodated in rooms located on different floors, and they will only be able to see each other outside the walls of the establishment.
Promotion of a capsule hotel
Capsule hotel service is a new phenomenon for the domestic market. Therefore, it is very important to promote your services. You can use various tools to advertise a capsule hotel:
- A bright sign, a memorable name;
- Sound advertising (if the hotel opens at the airport);
- Hotel website, where information about the hotel is provided and it is possible to book a capsule;
- Advertising through booking sites;
- Working with travel agencies;
- Advertising in the media;
- Advertising on social networks, with bloggers and opinion leaders;
- Reviews on tourism websites;
- Working with travel agencies.
The Inn Capsule Hotel, Tokyo, Japan
Investment in opening a capsule hotel
Let's consider the financial performance of a business with the installation of twenty capsules in the building of the Platov airport in Rostov-on-Don.
Basic (starting) investments:
- Business registration - 30,000 rubles;
- Preparing the premises - 50,000 rubles;
- Equipment costs - 1,400,000 rubles (hereinafter average figures are shown, the discrepancy may be 10-15%, which is associated with the choice of equipment of different quality);
- Purchase of office equipment, TV and cash register - 100,000 rubles;
- There may also be costs for installing and maintaining security systems - 40,000 rubles.
- I guess that's all. Let there be other expenses - 50,000 rubles.
- The total cost of basic (starting) investments is 1,620,000 rubles.
Fixed and variable expenses
Monthly expenses for the main period of operation of the capsule hotel will include:
- Personnel costs are 140,000 rubles, consisting of the salaries of two administration employees (40,000 rubles each), two maids (25,000 rubles each) and expenses for an accountant (10,000 rubles). Tax deductions for personnel wages are included in this amount;
- Purchase of consumables (linen, hygiene products, stationery, etc.) 20,000 rubles;
- Advertising expenses - 30,000 rubles;
- Rent of premises and utility bills - 100,000 rubles;
- Expenses for Internet and telephone communications - 5,000 rubles;
- Other expenses - 20,000 rubles;
Total expenses - 315,000 rubles
Revenue and net profit indicators
Let's calculate the revenue of a capsule hotel:
20 (number of capsules) x 150 (rubles per hour, cell rental rate) x 24 (hours in a day) x 0.45 (lower figure in the hotel occupancy range) x 30 (days in a month).
Revenue, with a workload of 45-50% and a cost of 150 rubles per hour, will be about 1,000,000 rubles per month, or more precisely, using our figures as an example, 972,000 rubles.
The annual revenue of the business will be 11,664,000 rubles. If we subtract expenses, we get a net profit of 657,000 rubles. Please note that these figures are given as an example. Profit generation in the hotel business is carried out, including through the provision of a number of additional services. The most popular of them:
- Providing food services to clients,
- Providing transfer services from the airport to your destination,
- Order a taxi around the city,
- Sale of souvenirs.
In this case, we will omit this possibility. The reason for this is the work of companies specializing in this activity at the airport.
Taxation.
Given these economic indicators (volume of business and annual revenue), we should talk about such a form of taxation as a single tax on imputed income (UTI) or a mixed form of taxation.
Business payback period.
As can be seen from the figures provided, the payback period for this business is quite short and will be from 3 months. In practice, successful projects pay for themselves in 6-12 months. But there are also large projects that pay off in up to 2 years.
It should also be noted that the calculations take into account the use of own (not borrowed) funds. The efficiency of this business will allow the use of borrowed resources (bank loan). At the same time, of course, profitability will decrease, and the payback period of the business will increase.
Sleepbox: for Moscow guests
The name of the hotel fully conveys its futuristic atmosphere. There are actually sleeping boxes made of wood or aluminum installed here.
Capsules are designed for one or two people.
The hotel also offers its guests free high-speed wireless Internet and tablets for public use. There are also shared toilets.
To get an impression of the capsule hotel format, you don’t have to go to another country. Sleepbox is located right in Moscow, near the Belorussky railway station. You can even take the capsule off for your lunch break; an hour of sleep will cost only 250 rubles.
If anything, it is located at 1st Tverskaya-Yamskaya street, building 27.
Price: from 3 thousand rubles. per day
