Part of the Vedior Group
In 2002, Ma Foi set up their first overseas office in Dubai. "In terms of turnover, we were number one in India then, with 600 people working for us. Whenever we travelled abroad we noticed that the staffing industry over there was quite evolved. It also made business sense to have offices abroad. Deputing 10 people in the United Kingdom is equivalent to deputing 100 people in India!"
After understanding how the overseas market worked, they had two choices: either to go for an initial public offering, or to look for a global, strategic partnership. "The IPO market was down and volatile then. So, we decided to go for a strategic partnership with global majors. Giants like Manpower, Adecor and Vedior were also looking at the Indian market."
"Vedior (the world's leading specialist staffing company from the Netherlands) was much below the two in terms of turnover, but it allowed us much more flexibility. It was a multi-brand company and called itself a federation and corporation. Because it is a federation, a lot of entrepreneurs become a part of it. We run the show and they support us. We had 270 shareholders, plus the VCs, then. It was a majority partnership with 76 per cent held by Vedior and 24 per cent by us. Today, we hold 18 per cent.
With Vedior's support, Ma Foi set up offices in the United Arab Emirates, the UK, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Oman, the United States, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Thailand, Hong Kong, China, and Malaysia.
The Indian market and the world market
"India is still an evolving market; it is still not a mature market though a lot more clarity has emerged in the last five years. In terms of legality, it is clearer too. On the other hand, the European and the US markets are quite mature. It will take another decade or so for the Indian market to evolve fully."
"People are slowly getting comfortable with temporary staffing in India too. In a country like France, almost 80 per cent of the staffing is on temporary basis. People mostly work on contract. But in India, there is a stigma attached to temporary jobs."
Image: Ma Foi has been giving back to the society through its corporate social responsibility intiatives.
Also read: Why Africa is where the future lies
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