Mumbai Office Designer Chooses Quality Over Scale

When Robin Chhabra founded Dextrus in 2018, he saw offices stuck between two extremes: sterile corporate boxes and chaotic coworking spaces that sacrificed focus for buzz. Neither option honored how people actually work best.

Chhabra, who previously worked at international architecture firms, wanted to create something different. "We felt the need to create a high-quality office space that people would love coming to and getting to work," he says.

At Dextrus centers across Mumbai, design isn't about Instagram moments. It's about the details most people never notice but always feel: rubber gaskets that block sound between rooms, carefully planned air conditioning ducts, and lighting designed to reduce brain fatigue throughout the day.

"While aesthetics are important, we also spend a lot of time working on the 'boring' details," Chhabra explains. "The details are often the things that make the difference."

Each Dextrus location connects to its neighborhood through Indian art and craftsmanship. At Lower Parel, embroidered fabric art honors the area's cotton mill history. The BKC location features Gond art celebrating the mangroves that once grew there. These aren't decorations; they're reminders that workspaces should feel rooted in place.

The company deliberately avoided the coworking industry's obsession with rapid expansion. While competitors raced to open new locations, Dextrus focused on making each center profitable and sustainable. They turned down aggressive price competition in favor of clients seeking long-term stability.

That approach attracted major enterprises. Welspun ONE, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Sumitomo, and Harvard Business School all chose Dextrus for extended contracts. These clients value infrastructure built to last a decade, not just a lease cycle.

The Ripple Effect

Dextrus proves that restraint can be a business strategy. By choosing depth over breadth, the company weathered market downturns that crushed competitors chasing growth at any cost. Their focus on quality created natural resilience.

The impact extends beyond balance sheets. Employees working in Dextrus spaces report feeling less fatigued and more focused, thanks to acoustic planning and air quality systems most offices skip. Local artists gain consistent work creating pieces that give each location its character.

When offices prioritize human comfort over cost-cutting, everyone wins: workers stay healthier, businesses retain talent longer, and communities see their cultural heritage woven into modern workspaces. It's a reminder that the best infrastructure is often invisible until you experience its absence.

In an industry obsessed with disruption, Dextrus found success in an old-fashioned idea: building things properly takes time, and quality compounds.