Vita Group, a British company specialised in building and managing student residences, has decided to start its internationalisation process and has set its sights on Barcelona as the first location. With a budget of 350 million euros, the company’s European expansion will begin with the opening of two residences in the Catalan capital.

Vita Student Pedralbes is scheduled to open in September and will have 274 beds. The building has been designed by architectural firm Batlle I Roig, and will feature private study areas, dining rooms, a state-of-the-art gym, a swimming pool, lounges and common areas. Vita Student Poblenou will also open in District 22@ of the city at the beginning of 2023, with 349 beds, and the same level of facilities.

Job creation
The first Vita Group offices opened in Barcelona in January 2022 to encourage the search for opportunities, both in the city itself and throughout Spain, resulting in these two projects. The opening of these residences will create 50 direct jobs in Barcelona, and the company estimates that there will be up to 750 indirect jobs around the country.

Vita Group CEO, Mark Stott, recognised that, “It’s incredibly exciting to take the Vita Student brand into Europe and we’re confident that Barcelona will make the perfect host city thanks to its superb reputation for outstanding higher education on the international stage. Over the last three years we’ve been working tirelessly to create a proposition which truly reflects the brand in a new territory and we’re sure that Pedralbes and Poblenou will do just that for us in Spain.”

A fantastic reputation in higher education
Ioannis Verdelis, for his part, Director of International Developments,  said that, “With a fantastic reputation for higher education, attracting over 40,000 students from all over the world each year and a student population which exceeds 210,000, Barcelona is the perfect place to start our European expansion programme. Vita Student Pedralbes will showcase our deep understanding of how to create and operate outstanding student accommodation which responds to its’ residents’ needs.”

Vita Student currently has 22 centres operating in the United Kingdom, with a significant presence in London, Manchester and Edinburgh. In addition to the residences themselves, the company has also launched BTR (built-to-rent) and PBSA (purpose-built student accommodation) projects.

^{Photo: Vita Group}