CPL acquires Swedish recruiter

Irish recruitment specialist CPL Resources has expanded its overseas presence via the acquisition of Swedish recruiter, European Human Resources, for an undisclosed sum.

The Dublin-based company — which two months ago warned that trading conditions in its core markets remain “very challenging” — has bought the Stockholm-headquartered business due to its recruitment activities in the engineering and construction sectors; areas currently thriving in Scandinavia.

European Human Resources also mainly deals with contract/temporary placements, which grant it regularly strong revenue streams.

The purchase also gives CPL — which has operations in Germany, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Bulgaria and the Czech Republic — an additional source of multilingual staff. The company is a prime mover in placing workers in call centres on behalf of some of the country’s largest multinationals.

“This partnership allows us deliver on our strategy to replicate our existing business model in new geographies,” said CPL chief executive Anne Heraty, adding that the deal represents a further step in CPL’s strategy of extending the group’s international footprint.

In January, CPL published a strong set of first-half figures, including a near-30% year-on-year rise in group revenue. Pre-tax profit, on a like-for-like basis, was up by 17% at €4.53m, with operating profits up by 27% and both earnings per share and the interim dividend per share up by 20%.

Despite this, management warned that “very significant uncertainties” remain in its principal markets.

“Although we expect to maintain our position in those markets, we don’t anticipate that those markets themselves will grow significantly in the near future.

“As a consequence, it’s not possible to forecast future performance with any certainty,” said chairman John Hennessy in January.