French temporary staffing specialist Proman has just completed another takeover. It has acquired the Dutch company Timing, thus confirming its place among the top 10 global players. Experts at AURIS Finance, an M&A consultancy, give their analysis.
The acquisition of Timing is the largest in Proman’s history. Although the amount of the transaction has not been disclosed, the French temporary employment specialist is taking over the Dutch number 3, a group with 830 permanent employees and a turnover of €830 million. With this new acquisition, Proman aims to double its revenues to €6 billion by 2025.
A family success story
Headquartered in Manosque since its creation in 1990, the Provence-based group initially grew organically in France. From 2012, Proman began to expand outside France. First in Monaco, then in Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Canada, and Luxembourg. Proman is now present in sixteen countries and generates 40% of its business internationally. It has 700 branches worldwide, 400 of which are in France. In 2022, the group expects to have achieved a turnover of €3.2 billion, an increase of 25% compared to the previous year. This compares with a market average of 11%.
A combination of organic and inorganic growth
The group embarked on its international adventure at the instigation of Roland Gomez, the founder’s eldest son. Between 2010 and 2019, the group acquired nearly ten family businesses abroad. In January 2020, Proman acquired the Agilitas Group, a temporary employment agency operating in Belgium, the Netherlands, Poland, and Croatia. The group is now the fourth largest in Europe. It employs 3,200 permanent staff and 100,000 temporary staff working for 45,000 client companies every day.
Independence and proximity
For each new acquisition, Proman follows the same recipe: acquire companies that operate in a similar way to the parent company, i.e. with family ownership and a large network of branches. Proman also insists on the independence of its business: for example, it insists on “not being dependent on a single sector of activity or a single client”. The French specialist’s clients are diverse, and the jobs offered to temporary workers cover a wide range of sectors, including construction and public works, industry, nuclear power, pharmaceuticals, the automotive industry, and hospitality. Moreover, no single client accounts for more than 3% of the group’s business.
A trend towards concentration
Whether owned by a family holding company or by investment funds, the trend today is towards concentration in the temporary employment sector. In June, the American fund Bain Capital acquired House of HR, a Belgian company specialising in temporary staffing. A few months earlier, Adecco of Switzerland acquired Akka Technologies, a family-owned French group specialising in engineering, innovation, and services consulting. At a time when mergers and acquisitions are on the wane, the temporary staffing sector remains resilient and dynamic.
Get the support you need
Family-run businesses are no strangers to success, as demonstrated by the rapid rise of Proman, which in ten years and through a series of acquisitions has become the fourth largest temporary employment agency in Europe. Thanks to their sector expertise, the specialists at AURIS Finance are in a position to assist you with all your M&A operations.
