New partnerships position UniLodge for post-pandemic bounce

UniLodge has signed three new partnership agreements with Australian and New Zealand universities.

UniLodge Australia CEO Tomas Johnsson said the existing sentiment within the sector will not guide the company’s long-term strategies.

UniLodge has signed three new partnership agreements with Australian and New Zealand universities as the student accommodation provider’s plans for the long-term future within the troubled sector.

While it is still uncertain when international students will be allowed to return to Australian shores to take up their studies, UniLodge Australia’s chief executive Tomas Johnsson believes the fundamentals are strong for an industry bounce-back in the coming years.

“For us the underlying fundamentals have not changed and the long-term prospects are still very strong,” Mr Johnsson told The Australian.

“There is no doubt that this year will be very difficult, however we also see growth opportunities and the opportunity to gain even greater international market share in the next 12 months and well into the future.”

The latest agreements partner the developer with The University of Sydney, La Trobe University in Melbourne, and The University of Canterbury in Christchurch as the choice accommodation provider after each held a competitive tender initiative. Mr Johnsson said the deals will ultimately help university partners reduce costs.

UniLodge is currently partnered with 12 tertiary education institutions across the region. The three new signings will bump UniLodge’s portfolio of beds up by an additional 3,000 and push its total offering across Australia and New Zealand past 30,000.

Mr Johnsson also called for a uniform approach to attracting international students back to Australia in the latter half of the year but noted the current predicament will not influence the company’s future plans.

“COVID-19 has impacted the entire world and it is easy to be affected by the current sentiment. While very real in the moment, the existing sentiment will not guide our long-term strategies,” he said.

“UniLodge is a strong believer in the sector and we will continue to reinvest. We have experienced significant growth over the past few years and were anticipating that recent market conditions would slow us down. However, we have seen the opposite in reality – there is a structural shift underway and our model provides the solution that many institutions seek to thrive.”

On Monday, Victorian Premier Dan Andrews said it is “not possible” for a revival of the international education industry in his state through 2021, citing the strain of tens of thousands of travellers on the quarantine system.

La Trobe’s vice president of strategy and development Natalie MacDonald said the new accommodation deal marks a major step forward in the university’s future plan and will help to deliver positive residential experiences for students in the coming years.