Panama-born hospitality brand Selina is bringing its ‘stay, work and play’ concept to Australian shores with the launch of Selina Central Melbourne and Selina St Kilda this week.
Targeting Millennial and Gen Z travellers, Selina aims to take advantage of the post-COVID boom in remote working and travel by offering an accommodation that caters to the lifestyle of the digital nomad.
According to a 2021 study by Gitlab, nearly 1 in 3 remote workers plan to relocate or work abroad in a post-COVID world.
“I would say that we focus on psychographic factors over demographics,” Selina Managing Partner for South East Asia, Australia and New Zealand, Gadi Hassin, told HM exclusively.
“If I had to give it an age bracket, I would say our audience is generally 25- to 34-years old. But really, it’s an audience that is defined by mindset and way of life.
“Selina is for people who prioritise experiences and human connections, have adventurous spirits and tick off their to do list on the move and have seamlessly merged work and life (and not divided them into two competing segments).”
Selina’s Melbourne properties offer budget-friendly accommodation – a mix of communal rooms and suites from $30 to $250+ per night – as well as co-working and recreational spaces including in-house cinemas, libraries, kitchens, wellness spaces, cafés and bars.
Selina Central Melbourne – located opposite Flinders Street Railway Station – includes an underground speakeasy and listening lounge, HOWM Basement Bar.
While Selina St Kilda is located close to the beach and includes a café, roof top bar and summer wellness deck.
“Melbourne is a vibrant, global city and we felt it was the perfect destination to launch Selina into the Australian market,” Hassin said.
“The two properties are very different in nature. We felt this would afford travellers the perfect mix between work and play.”
Since launching in 2014, Selina has grown to 150 properties across 25 countries in North America, South America, Europe, the Middle East and now Australia.
Hassin said the brand is aiming to expand to many more locations in the country.
“Our roadmap for Australia is to have a presence in most urban cities,” Hassin said.
“However, we also have a strong interest in regional and remote destinations. We intend to offer travellers who are part of our growing international community the opportunity to stay, work and play in a variety of locations across Australia.”