If you’ve been reading our blog, our feeds on social media, or our newsletter, you’ve seen our most recent project – which is a part of The Circus family – The Circus Living, from a site for construction close to the Spree River in Berlin. The project is growing, and we thought we’d chat with the project director, Sher Jan Singh, to find out how things are going…
Hello Sher Jan, How’s the situation going? What’s happening on The Circus Living?
I’m fine being very active working on the project. It’s a great feeling to be a part of such a project. I can use my experience and skills and gain some new ones. We are seven months away from our planned opening date; we’re on the brink of everything. The decisions must be taken at every stage, from technical concerns about the building to the color of the sheets on beds, making staff structures, and finalizing the services offered to our guests.
Everything is going exactly as expected, and we’re on time. Our website will launch soon, and sales will begin towards the end of summer. While there’s plenty of work to do, we are very excited and optimistic about our new circus house and the next phase of our plans.
What exactly is The Circus Living that is brand new in this endeavor?
Circus Living Circus Living will offer premium furnished micro-apartments. We will provide hotel-like services, much more than the standard hotel room. We will have a fully equipped kitchen with an intelligent layout that combines cooking, sleeping and living spaces, and ensuite bathrooms. There is a growing need for serviced apartments in Berlin. We thought we could offer something different in the industry by providing this accommodation style with The Circus concept of hospitality, the underlying spirit in all our projects.
This is a new area for us here in Berlin. What’s the experience like?
It’s a fascinating area of change. It’s within the city’s center but became an in-between area in the years of division. Since the collapse of the Berlin Wall and especially over the past few years, the neighborhood around Ostbahnhof station and the River has transformed into an exciting area. It hosts a variety of internationally renowned and famous creative industries and businesses, and we’re excited to join in with our brand-new office.
If you are a resident of Berlin or even go to the city, you realize that it is constantly changing. Being part of a neighborhood that is in transition and being in a position to influence it is both exciting and fulfilling.
What kinds of services ‘Circus’ style’ are guests likely to receive?
If you’ve read about the story of Circus, you can see the origins of our company. In the hostel, the hotels, the apartment building, and the present-day Circus Living, you can observe how we’ve grown together with Berlin over the last 25 years while remaining focused on the human side that is hospitality. We are welcoming visitors to our city.
The service has always been at the heart of the Circus story, along with high quality, no matter what segment we are in. In the area of serviced apartments, it has been trending toward automation – as is the case in many aspects of our lives. However, we can resist this by, for instance, creating a 24-hour concierge service, which means there will always be someone waiting to chat with and provide assistance and help. If you wish to avail of this service, we will work towards creating a sense of community about The Circus Living while viciously we will always respect guests’ privacy and space.
The project goes on. What is the next step?
We are currently developing our team while we begin to focus on the finer points. There are design choices to be made as well as the website, as I’ve mentioned that the website will go live shortly. We’re excited to reveal more information, photos, information, and more in the next few months. We are happy to welcome our initial guests to The Circus Living.