WhyHotel, an alternative lodging service that operates pop-up hotels in newly built, luxury apartment buildings, today announced it has secured $10 Million in Series A funding. The round was led by Highland Capital Partners, with participation from Camber Creek, Revolution's Rise of the Rest Seed Fund, Mendacre, MetaProp and Geolo Capital. The funds will be used to launch new pop-up hotels, beginning with three locations in Virginia, and to continue expanding nationwide in 2019. In addition, the funding will be utilized to hire new positions across multiple areas including technology, brand, sales and human capital.

"WhyHotel provides a better product and a better customer experience to business and leisure travelers for their short-term housing needs," said Craig Driscoll, Partner, Highland Capital Partners. "The WhyHotel team has taken a leadership position in helping modern cities and leading property developers provide visitors with a more flexible and cost-effective housing option. We are proud to be partnered with the WhyHotel team on this journey."

After a series of successful pop-up hotel launches in 2018, including properties in D.C. and Baltimore, WhyHotel will now expand to Northern Virginia with locations at Ballston Quarter, Centro Arlington, and The Boro in Tysons. In partnership with the property owner, Brookfield Properties and QIC Global Real Estate, the Ballston Quarter pop-up will house up to 175 WhyHotel units and will be located at 700 N Randolph Street. The Centro Arlington pop-up, launched in partnership with Orr Partners and Weingarten Realty (NYSE: WRI) will house up to 150 WhyHotel units and will be located at 950 South George Mason Drive. Finally, The Boro pop-up, located at 8305 Greensboro Drive in the future apartment building branded as "Rise" will house up to 150 WhyHotel units in partnership with The Meridian Group and KETTLER.

"WhyHotel at Ballston Quarter will greatly accelerate the activation of our luxury residential and retail spaces," said Greg Meyer, Executive Vice President and Head of the Greater Washington D.C, Region for Brookfield Properties. "With WhyHotel onsite, we will differentiate Ballston Quarter by offering a unique hospitality amenity for residents, prospective residents and visitors, while also generating additional income for the property during our lease-up phase."

WhyHotel's new locations are strategically located with proximity to the core business districts in Arlington; The Pentagon, The Pentagon's training center, Foreign Service Institute, and DARPA. The launch of these pop-up hotels stands to positively benefit the local dining, retail and entertainment establishments with the immediate attraction of guests to the area. WhyHotel has proven success in Arlington County where it launched a highly successful pilot project at The Bartlett in Pentagon City in 2017.

"The WhyHotel concept of turning brand new, yet to be leased luxury apartment building units into temporary hotel suites has seen great success with consumers in the areas we have launched so far," said Bao Vuong, President and Co-founder of WhyHotel. "It is for that reason that we are continuing our rapid expansion to bring the WhyHotel experience to additional metros and we are grateful to have received the funding to do so."

Guests of the new WhyHotel pop-ups will enjoy modernly furnished luxury apartments. Guests will have access to the building's amenities and WhyHotel's 24/7 onsite hospitality and security staff. Residents of the brand-new apartment buildings will also benefit during WhyHotel's temporary operation with discounted room nights for friends and family, and access to the WhyHotel cleaning staff.

"With its recent pop-up hotels, WhyHotel has proven its hospitality services are well-received by residents," said David Orr, Chairman of Orr Partners. "We could not be more excited that our upcoming Columbia Pike project, Centro Arlington, will offer residents and visitors the incredible benefits of having a WhyHotel in the apartment building when we open our doors in the summer of 2019."

With an eye toward 2019, WhyHotel is currently planning for strategic development to new markets throughout the new year, with plans to expand beyond the East Coast. In addition to expansion to new markets, WhyHotel will also look to open new pop-ups in the cities they currently operate in, to create a permanent presence in the cities despite individual locations ending their temporary programs.

For more information, please visit www.whyhotel.com or view our explainer video on YouTube.

About WhyHotel 
Spacious. Innovative. Hospitality. WhyHotel operates 100 to 250 room pop-up hotels with 24/7 on-site staff in newly built, luxury apartment buildings. WhyHotel's concept provides developers with a new way to utilize units during lease-up and provides tourists/guests with a new way to travel.

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