The door-to-door service of a private airport transfer and a 24-hour on-demand concierge provision, ready to serve each and any whim, are usually the luxurious extras associated with the world's very best 5 star hotels. Yet these are the very services, alongside many other additional luxury facilities, which are being offered in today's new student accommodation.
A far cry from the student properties of old, where dilapidated, cramped conditions often came as standard, this very modern take on student 'digs' provides a much-needed evolution to the market, putting first-class living to the absolute fore of design and innovation in this growing sector.
Leading provider of luxury student property, Collegiate AC, whose message is 'Student living. Just better', has launched a range of standout university accommodation options around the UK that turn the notion of what constitutes a student property on its head, paving the way for luxurious student living.
Heriberto Cuanalo, CEO of Collegiate AC, explains more,
"Student life can be stressful, pressured, busy and adjusting to a life away from the family home, which for many is also a move overseas, is often not an easy transition. In answer to this, a student property should not only provide a comfortable and safe living environment, today it can also provide a home with a sense of community that is unique and luxurious, with a focus on lifestyle, making student living fun, exciting and a reflection of ambitions. It is through our additional extras that we add a wow to the university experience."
This new high end student accommodation is being launched in line with a growing demand in the wider world towards greater luxury. Increasing numbers of HNWIs are making the UK their home, with London at the centre of this growth in a moneyed population who demand more from their bricks and mortar.
It is for this reason that the concierge industry is booming, with IBISWorld's Business Concierge Services market research report predicting that the contribution of the sector to the economy will grow at an average rate of 4.2% annually to 2019.
In line with this, concierge recruitment in the hotel industry is also increasing by an impressive extent, with the Caterer.com Quarterly Hospitality Employment Index showing a 25% growth in such recruitment in Q4 2014, compared to the same period the previous year.
The demands of modern urban life are unavoidable: smart phones flash at every turn with an incoming communication, notifications appear from social media activity begging for unerring attention, time is undoubtedly at a premium, and this is especially true for university students. This is where the use of an on-site concierge, a service offered in many of Collegiate AC's properties, is hugely valuable, ensuring that some of the stress is taken out of student life. From top restaurant bookings to the best places to visit and help to source valuable resources and the hottest tickets in town, this service, usually the domain of the finest hotels, is now the mainstay of the finest student accommodation too.
And a 24-hour concierge service is not the only luxury being offered in today's new Collegiate AC breed of student property. Hotel-style lobbies are standard, cleaning services are a highly popular option, free high-speed broadband and Wi-Fi are a given, 50 channels are viewable via digital TV, and a Club Lounge, an ultra-luxurious feature, provides the feel of an exclusive private members' club.
Meeting the expectations of the Millennials, who are at the centre of this modern way of living, such luxurious hotel-style features make it easy to forget that you are in a student property once you step through the door of these hospitality-led living environments.
