UK and Ireland recruitment services provider The Blomfield Group plans to expand its presence nationally and internationally, now that global recruitment giant Vedior has increased its holding in the company from 18% to 70%.

“We want to expand geographically and by sector,” Blomfield board member Keith Robinson told Recruiter. Robinson is also managing director of Origin HR, a Blomfield subsidiary that specialises in graduate recruitment and HR outsourcing.
Blomfield’s other subsidiaries are Joslin Rowe Associates, Joslin Rowe Temporaries, executive search company Firth Ross Martin, and executive front office recruiter JR Selection.

Future international expansion is likely in both temp and perm recruitment, with Hong Kong, India and Poland seen as among the potential targets for expansion.
“It’s easier to do that with a partner like Vedior, which has a presence in 43 countries,” said Robinson.
Vedior’s increased stake in Blomfield, for which no price has been revealed, “works for both of us”, Robinson said. Vedior wants to move into higher-margin markets such as financial services and managed services that Blomfield now serves. Blomfield benefits from the injection of funding, with what Robinson described as “no interference, no rebranding and no one crawling all over us” – all hallmarks of Vedior’s preferred relationships with subsidiaries.

Two seats on Blomfield’s board will be held by Vedior executives Zach Miles, chief executive, and Brian Wilkinson, zone manager for operations in a number of countries including the UK and Ireland. Miles has been on Blomfield’s board for three years, since Vedior bought its 18% stake in the smaller group.

The remaining 30% of the privately-owned Blomfield Group is owned by its management. James Wellesley Wesley, managing director of Bridgewell Securities, says that leaving 30% in the hands of “relevant ongoing management” is standard Vedior practice. A typical Vedior pre-agreement would then give management shareholders the right to sell their shares to Vedior “over the medium term”.
The Vedior deal was announced on 7 April.