Sodexo India - a subsidiary of the French facility and food services management company - has turned a Rs 2,000 crore business on its 25th year of existence in the country. In spite of COVID-induced sorption that impacted its operations in 2020, its business has bounced back, a top company official told Business Today.
According to Rohit Bahety, Country President and Chief Financial Officer of the company, after shrinking by 25 per cent in 2020, Sodexo posted Rs 1,750 crore revenue in FY21. “Since then, our business is on rise”, he said. While office operations were severely hit since the first COVID wave hit the country in March, 2020, Sodexo’s higher exposure in managing manufacturing facilities, compared to office management, helped it tide over the crises faster.
Additionally, the company’s interests in sectors like healthcare, project management and facilities management hedged its business against lockdowns. The company ventured into areas like medical equipment servicing in India four years ago. Currently, it is working with nearly 400 government-owned hospitals in West Bengal.
Buoyed by the back-to-office trend and greater awareness among corporates about hygiene and better facilities to retain their workforces, Bahety now expects Sodexo’s India business to surge to Rs 3,500 crore by FY2024-25. According to him, in the last three years, its revenue has grown by 15 per cent CAGR (compound annual growth rate).
“Further, managing canteens and student residences are a core part of our business. With the educational institutions opening up, we are witnessing massive jump in the number of students, which is expected to boost our business”, he said.