London-based international recruitment firm Staffgroup announced improved financial results for the year ending 31 December 2013, with revenue rising to £42.5 million, up by +24% from £34.2 million in 2012. 

The company reported gross profit of £11 million, equating to growth of +18% from £9.3 million last year. Operating profit for the year rose by +15% to £2.6 million, up from £2.3 million a year ago. Compared with 2012, the split between contract and permanent recruitment was 63% and 37%, respectively, against 61% and 39%, respectively, last year.     

Mark Znowski, Managing Director of Staffgroup commented on the results: “We have seen plenty of evidence of positivity in economies that we operate in and are well positioned to take advantage of this.  The past two years has seen us invest significantly in our infrastructure to support the sales efforts, having the short term negative impact on profitability we believe is necessary to develop our business towards our longer term aim of growing to £100 million turnover and £5 million of profit.”

Revenue derived from the UK fell during the year by -13% from £7.9 million in 2012 to £6.9 million last year. Across the EU revenue rose to £28.8 million, equating to year-on-year growth of +21% from £23.8 million in 2012, while non-EU revenue rose by +166% to £6.8 million up from £2.6 million last year.

Staffgroup provides both interim and permanent staffing within the technology, engineering, finance, and energy sectors internationally through its Eurostaff Ltd, Eurostaff GmbH, and Earthstaff businesses.

Eurostaff GmbH opened in February 2012 and contributed £1.8 million in revenue and £873,000 in gross profit in 2013. The business, with its focus on the key economies of mainland Europe, received significant investment and opened a new office in Berlin during the year. The German market now accounts for 29% of Staffgroup’s revenue. 

Looking forward to 2014, the company expects revenue to exceed £50 million. Mr Znowski stated: “We are proud of being a group of recruitment businesses that has grown in a primarily organic way. To ensure that we can maintain this, we continue to invest in the Learning and Development programme that saw our 2013 ‘Rookie Intake’ break every company record going and we are excited about what we are going to achieve in 2014, which has started well ahead of expectations.”