Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, KabuK Style, the company behind the HafH (Home away from Home) service, has continued to expand its network of partner facilities at a rapid pace without slowing down. The company has been working on diversifying its services in Japan by partnering with domestic transportation companies and businesses that create social infrastructure functions. As a result, the HafH service has rapidly expanded its service area, adding new locations and partners both domestically and internationally.
KabuK Style Inc. (Co-CEOs: Kenji Sunada and Ryo Osera) has been offering a subscription-based living service called “HafH (Home away from Home),” which allows users to live in various accommodation facilities around the world since April 2019.
We are pleased to announce that HafH is now available in 204 cities across 24 countries and regions, with a total of 301 facilities (186 in Japan and 115 overseas). This expansion was achieved without slowing down the pace of our facility partnerships even during the COVID-19 pandemic. We will continue to focus on diversifying our services in Japan by partnering with domestic transportation companies and other businesses for social infrastructure creation.
◼︎In just one year and four months since its launch, HafH has achieved rapid growth and expanded its network to 200 cities and 300 locations worldwide, now available for use in all ASEAN member countries.
Starting in April 2019 with 53 locations across 7 countries, HafH has rapidly increased the number of available cities and facilities, evolving into a service that allows users to stay in their preferred locations at their preferred times.
This month, 16 locations in 8 domestic cities and 9 locations in 6 overseas cities across 2 countries (Ecuador and Brunei) have been added to the network. With the addition of a new location in Brunei, HafH is now available for use in all ASEAN member countries.
As a result, HafH has surpassed 200 cities and 300 locations in just one year and four months since its launch.
◼︎List of countries and regions with HafH available locations as of July 30th, 2020
Asia Japan, Indonesia, South Korea, Cambodia, Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan, Philippines, Brunei, Vietnam, Malaysia, Myanmar, Laos
Oceania Australia
North America United States
Central and South America Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Peru
Europe Greece, Georgia, Spain
Africa Kenya, Tanzania
We are continuing to recruit partner facilities to enhance the convenience of HafH for workations, including accommodation facilities that can be used for workations, including popular resort areas both in Japan and overseas. Information on domestic and international accommodation facilities such as hotels and ryokans that support “expanding the world, changing the way we work” can be found on the HafH.com website (https://hafh.com/contact).
“Workation” is a new word that combines “work” and “vacation”. In today’s world, where you can work regardless of location, working in your favorite place reduces commuting and workplace stress, increases daily fulfillment, and improves work-life balance.
We will continue to aim for the expansion of partner facilities overseas. However, we will also carefully monitor the current coronavirus situation in each country and work with our partner facilities in each country to ensure a safe and hygienic accommodation environment.
New Coronavirus Infection Control Guidelines: https://hafh.com/topics/7567
KabuK Style CEO Kenji Sunada’s comment on current strategies during the COVID-19 pandemic:
Despite the difficulties of traveling during the pandemic, I am very pleased that we have achieved expansion into all ASEAN member countries, which served as a benchmark for us. On the other hand, it is a fact that our goal to expand our available locations to 500 cities worldwide by the end of March 2021 will be difficult to achieve with our current extension, as it requires accelerating our expansion into Europe and other regions, not just Asia including ASEAN countries.
Our company aims to “create infrastructure for a society that accepts diverse values as they are”, and while steadily expanding globally, we will focus on diversifying our services in Japan, such as our partnership with domestic transportation companies (see below) and partnerships with companies that create social infrastructure functions beyond transportation.
As a result of being forced to work from home or telework outside the office, attention has been drawn to our “workation” and “coliving” concepts that we have been promoting thus far, and from August, our support of the Go To Travel campaign offering a 35% discount has led to further membership growth. While keeping in mind that travel promotion is not encouraged in the current situation, we will continue to expand our locations and improve our quality to provide safe and secure accommodations with virus countermeasures in place.
◼︎New locations added this time [Domestic (16 additional locations)] Minato Ward, Tokyo, Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture, Miura District, Hayama Town, Kanagawa Prefecture, Hakone Town, Kanagawa Prefecture, Fujisawa City, Kanagawa Prefecture, Fujikawaguchiko Town, Yamanashi Prefecture, Okazaki City, Aichi Prefecture, Shimogyo Ward, Kyoto City, Hiroshima Prefecture, Onomichi City, Fukuoka Prefecture, Tagawa City, Kumamoto Prefecture, Aso City, Oita Prefecture, Karatsu City, Saga Prefecture, Miyakojima City, Okinawa Prefecture
[Overseas (9 additional locations)] Miaoli, Changhua, Chiayi, Kinmen (Taiwan), Cuenca (Ecuador), New York (USA), Pahang (Malaysia), Gadong (Brunei)
◼︎Multi-location living x transportation subscription services, and corporate vacation experimentation… Various initiatives by HafH towards the creation of social infrastructure
Our mission is to develop infrastructure towards achieving a society that can accept diverse values and opinions.
Recently, the diversification of workplace and work hours, such as the introduction of telework and social acceptance of side jobs (multiple jobs), has been accelerating. It has become an era where individuals can realize diverse work styles that suit themselves, not just working for a company but also choosing to be self-employed or both.
Furthermore, due to the spread of telework caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a growing interest in “workation” and “multi-location living,” where people work while staying at vacation destinations. Infrastructure is required to achieve a more location-independent lifestyle.
We at HafH are actively announcing new services in collaboration with various companies, and we are committed to advancing towards the creation of social infrastructure that can accept diverse values and opinions.
◼︎Corporate Workation Demonstration Experiment by the 5-Year Working Style Consortium
To create an environment where individual employees belonging to companies can challenge various work styles beyond telecommuting that is limited to working from home, a corporate workation demonstration experiment is being conducted by the “5-Year Working Style Consortium” in collaboration with services from five companies in three areas: “enterprise management tools” such as online conferencing systems, “places where you can work anywhere” such as coworking spaces, and “fulfilling work” including side jobs in regional areas.
Press release: “Demonstration experiment of comprehensive solution service for corporate teleworking” https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000040.000039388.html
◼︎JR West Japan Group and Business Partnership “JR West Japan x Housing Subscription Verification Test”
From September to November, we will be conducting a workation experience project titled “JR West Japan x Housing Subscription HafH,” where you can use Shinkansen and limited express trains inexpensively in Hiroshima and Wakayama. Through this verification test, we will continue to develop the housing subscription service into a subscription service that includes transportation as well.
“JR West Japan x Housing Subscription HafH – Hiroshima/Wakayama Workation Experience” official website: https://hafh.com/lp/jrw
“JR West Japan x Housing Subscription HafH – Hiroshima/Wakayama Workation Experience” press release: https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000041.000039388.html