In this on-demand world in which food, entertainment, transportation and so many other things can be ordered with the touch of a button or the click of a mouse, one Los Angeles–area startup is betting that consumers will pay for what it calls "privacy on demand" — at the mall or similar busy public spaces.
Torrance, Calif.–based Soleluna Inc.’s NapinPod is a roughly 30-square-foot indoor pod comprising two private spaces, each of which may be rented by the half hour. Each space is large enough for one adult (or an adult and a child) and is equipped with a lounger sofa, charging stations for mobile devices, a reading light, a fold-down desk and a monitor offering on-demand programming.
An escape pod, rentable by the half hour
NapinPod is the concept of Alec Salemon, a former Wall Street finance executive who came up with the idea after finding himself stuck in an airport for seven hours and wishing for a private space in which to rest. Salemon bills the NapinPod as a common-area amenity that can help mall owners increase dwell time by providing visitors (whether shoppers or office workers on a lunch break) with a private space in which to recharge. The pods can be an ideal place for nursing mothers or offer employees of the mall itself someplace to spend their breaks. Each is staffed and cleaned by an on-site attendant.
The NapinPod made its mall debut in 2017 at Simon’s Del Amo Fashion Center, in Torrance. The following year the concept came to Brookfield Properties’ Fashion Show mall, in Las Vegas. Soleluna has since removed the pods from those locations to make design changes based on the information it has gathered during the rollout. In an effort to improve the user experience and operational efficiency, the company is rethinking its choice of materials and mulling some changes to NapinPod’s interior and its proprietary check-in and media systems, according to Salemon.
Real estate and other inquiries may be directed to founder and head Alec Salemon, at info@napinpod.com.
By Anna Robaton
Contributor, Commerce + Communities Today
