Ex-Foodpanda execs launch workspace marketplace in Singapore, Hong Kong

Deepti Sri | July 15 2021 – 2 min read

Singapore-based Deskimo announced the launch of a mobile application that offers a catalog of independent workspaces across Singapore and Hong Kong, providing companies with flexible workspace options.

Workspaces listed on the app include co-working spaces and serviced offices such as those offered by The Hive and Garage Society, Arcc Spaces, and The Executive Centre, along with alternative spaces like Furama Hotel and Changi Lounge.

Deskimo enables employees to work from a network of over 30 workspaces across Singapore. Businesses also use the platform to allow employees to work from locations closest to their homes, eliminating the need to commute to work.

The company has been admitted into the Summer 2021 batch of the Y Combinator accelerator program.

In light of the “new normal” brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic, professionals were beginning to realize that their homes may not be the most productive places to work from, said Jonathan Soh, managing director of Deskimo in Singapore.

“Many companies have given up some of their office leases in 2020 and are not looking to add these fixed costs back to their balance sheet. Deskimo is an asset-light alternative that offers a lot more flexibility to companies and their workforce,” said Deskimo co-founder Christian Mischler.

Mischler and his co-founder Raphael Cohen had previously joined hands to start hotel-booking platform HotelQuickly in 2012. The former also worked as an in-house consultant for Credit Suisse before co-founding Foodpanda, where he worked as the global chief operating officer. He was also part of the team that founded GuestReady, a short-term rental management company in Europe and the Middle East.

Meanwhile, Cohen previously worked for venture capital firm Rocket Internet as a global venture developer. He went on to become the managing director of Foodpanda in Vietnam and also founded Hong Kong-based bike-sharing platform Gobee.bike.

Deskimo plans on expanding into newer markets in the near future.