Quess Corp acquired Randstad India

Quess Corp, an integrated business service provider owned by Thomas Cook India has signed a deal to buy Sri Lankan arm of human resource provider Randstad India for an undisclosed amount. This acquisition of Randstad India Pvt. Ltd will strengthen Quess position as a leading provider of integrated HR solutions across staffing, permanent recruitment, executive search and recruitment process outsourcing.

The acquisition will strengthen Quess position as a leading Pan Asian player serving clients across South Asia, Middle East and South-East Asia. The acquisition is subject to statutory and regulatory approvals. Headquartered in Colombo, Randstad Lanka is one of the top five HR Services providers in Sri Lanka with a workforce of over 400 employees and having several Fortune 500 clients.

Bengaluru based Quess Corp has presence across five segments namely, global technology solutions, industrial asset management, integrated facilities management, people, services and logistics, and growth businesses group. It has pursued an aggressive acquisitions strategy, buying around 10 companies across different geographies and businesses for an estimated Rs 200 crore in the last five years.

In June this year, it acquired a 49 percent stake in Transfield Services WLL, which operates in the oil & gas market in Qatar and the Indian facility management business of American multinational Aramark, which operates in hospitality and healthcare facility management. Other companies that it acquired includes Canada based staffing firm Brainhunter Companies.

Thomas Cook India Acquires Kuoni Group

Travel major Thomas Cook India backed by billionaire investor Prem Watsa Fairfax Financial Holdings has acquired Swiss Tourism major Kuoni Travel business in India and Hong Kong for Rs. 535 crore. Post the acquisition, both India and Hong Kong travel businesses will become subsidiaries of Thomas Cook and would function independently.

The Kuoni brand is licensed to Thomas Cook for one year in India and for five years in Hong Kong. All other brands of Kuoni such as SOTC, SITA and Distant Frontiers are transferred with the businesses. The acquisition is expected to help Thomas Cook to enhance its offerings on inbound, outbound, and corporate travel. Brands of Kuoni, especially SITA is strong in inbound offerings.

Kuoni was founded in 1906 and entered India in 1997 by acquiring SOTC Tours, which was one of pioneers of foreign tours in the country. Three years later, it took over SITA World Travels, a specialist inbound tours. SITA is said to be the largest inbound tour operators in India and with this acquisition, Thomas Cook can move up to the top rank in the inbound market.

In January this year, Kuoni had announced that it will exit its tour business in India and other parts of the world to focus on its core business as a service provider to the travel industry and governments, making it largely a B2B player. With the sale of its tour operations in India and Hong Kong, the company has completed the sale of its outbound business.