Japanese staffing giant Recruit Holdings (6098: JP) has acquired a majority stake in UK-based Hotspring Ventures Ltd, also known as Wahanda, a hair and beauty booking website that operates in the UK, Germany, Lithuania, Switzerland, and Austria.

Recruit previously held a 10% stake in the company, but earlier this week acquired a further 70% stake for a total consideration of £112.5 million (USD 170.3 million).

The staffing firm owns a similar site, Hot Pepper Beauty, in Japan.

Wahanda CEO and founder Lopo Champalimaud commented: “With its Hot Pepper Beauty business in Japan, Recruit has a wealth of experience in this space and understands how to scale our business. Our ambitions are aligned and the capital investment, expertise, and knowledge that Recruit provides will enable us to continue on our growth trajectory, truly cementing our position as the leader in our field.” 

Since its IPO in October 2014, Recruit has made no secret of its ambition to become the largest staffing firm in the world over the next five years. The company has a substantial war chest, which it has used to make staffing industry-related acquisitions in Australia and through its Advantage brand in the US.

However, to date, the company has not made any staffing acquisitions in Europe. Prior to the acquisition of Wahanda, the only other acquisition by Recruit in Europe was a German online restaurant booking business.