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MARKET500.euT h e m a g a z i N e f o r e U r o p e ’ s f a s T e s T g r o w i N g c o m p a N i e s
the 500 fastest growing companies
exclusive european ranking
award winner
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opinion | profiles | management | human resources | technology | investment | lifestyle
p. 18
The association’s
primary goal is to
develop a European
network of high-
growth companies
to provide a forum
for the exchange of
experience, the deve-
lopment of new busi-
ness possibilities, as
well as recommendations to the EU on
how to improve the framework for growth
and more employment. The association
aims to offer its experience and ideas to
European and national policy-makers in
order to improve the general business
conditions which should encourage more
growth and employment. In other words,
the group does not want to get tied
down in discussions about the employ-
ment situation, but rather to take concrete
measures for the creation of more jobs.
Fortune 500 and Fortune 1000, for
example, are both well established and
recognised measures of business perfor-
mance. Large companies in the US are
proud to have the accolade of being
among the 500 or 1000 top firms in the
country, not only to enhance their prestige
but also to attract investment. However,
size is only one, and a rather static, indi-
cator of success.
With Europe’s 500, the annual listing
of Europe’s top fast growing compa-
nies, we wanted to take a more dynamic
approach to measuring success by iden-
tifying companies that have shown growth
in employment as well as turnover as job
creation is a particularly critical issue in
Europe today.
We research small and mid-sized compa-
nies in 28 European countries (the 25 EU
member states, plus Switzerland, Iceland
and Norway) and invite them to submit
their turnover and employment data for
the three previous fiscal years. Once the
data are verified, these fast growing, job-
creating companies are ranked to find the
top 500 who form the annual listing. The
winners are honoured at an awards cere-
mony and gala dinner held in a different
European city each November (in Vienna
2006). Over the years a number of compa-
nies have qualified for more than one
listing by demonstrating sustained growth
over four or more years, but only two firms
– both Italian - have won each year since
the first listing in 1996, meaning they have
sustained continuous growth since 1992.
The 2006 Europe’s 500 listing reveals for
the first time an impressive number of
new winners from Eastern Europe and the
Baltic states.
Of course the Europe’s 500 Listing does
not exist merely to allow entrepreneurs to
pat each other on the back and congra-
tulate each other on winning the “Oscar”
of entrepreneurship. As a Europe-wide
network of the strongest growing compa-
nies, they aim to exchange experience as
well as seek new business opportunities
and pass on the benefit of their expe-
rience and best practice to European
and national policy-makers to help create
better conditions for more growth and
employment. These entrepreneurs do not
only want to discuss employment; they
also want to do something to create more
paid job opportunities in Europe.
This last aim coincides directly with the
EU’s Lisbon Agenda, which aims to make
Europe the most dynamic knowledge-
driven economy in the world and to create
more and better jobs by 2010. Of course
everyone wants this – politicians, organi-
sations and also clever unions. Europe’s
500 provides the evidence that it is these
fast growing companies which are at
the forefront of job creation in Europe
– witness the nearly 150,000 new jobs
created by the 2006 Europe’s 500 winners
over the past three years.
Also, as Chairman of Schoeller Industries,
which has more than 2,000 employees
(www.schoellergroup.com), I am convinced
EntrEprEnEurs on thE Growth track Europe’s 500 – Entrepreneurs for Growth was founded in 1996 and publishes the annual Europe’s 500 Listing, bringing together the strongest growth companies.
�
letter from the President e u r o p e ’ s � 0 0
Martin Schoeller,
President of Europe’s 500
continued on page 80
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�
e d i t o r ’ s n o t e
Where can you
find succes-
sful European
companies?
Who are they?
Why are some
compet i to rs
growing faster
in other coun-
tries than in
your own? Do you know any mid-sized
European companies? How many firms
do you know abroad? There are so many
questions we might ask ourselves about
this new market: Europe. Most entrepre-
neurs are experts in their local market
but it is more difficult to know about
the pan-European corporate world. Of
course, we can get information about the
most important corporations every day
in the leading media, but it remains hard
to find a real pan-European one which
is not American or related to a particular
European country.
A pan-European business approach
Market500.eu aims to help you, our
readers, better understand this complex
and multi-cultural market through in-depth
business stories and articles. In addition,
our columns aim to provide to strong
opinions and analysis in order to promote
European ideas for stronger entrepre-
neurship. While covering high-potential
emerging markets such as India, China
or Brazil, we clearly highlight the amazing
performance and potential of European
companies. We also focus the positive
effects EU enlargement is having on
European economic growth rates.
A Strategic Partnership
Our access to the most successful
European companies is our strength,
thanks to our exclusive partnership with
Europe’s 500, officially publishing their
ranking of fast growing European compa-
nies. We also participate in Europe’s 500
key events throughout Europe, captu-
ring the essence and outcomes as a
real pan-European media channel. In a
reflection of the needs of leading entre-
preneurs and companies across Europe,
market500.eu, the publication and the
website, aim to be interactive. Our online
portal provides information ranging from a
quarterly survey of leading entrepreneurs
to a company listing. In addition, a new
version of the European Business Portal
will be rolled-out this spring.
Let the entrepreneurial spirit spread
around Europe as fast as it can.
Raphael Dana
rdana@market500.eu
CrEa
tin
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nEw
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bu
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76growth is east
68case study:Barceló
2�gameloftaward winner
90yachting
europe’s 500ranking 18
7 7
c o n t e n t s
no01 January / February / March 2007
Letter from the President 3
Editor’s note 4
Entrepreneur’s Survey 8
Defining the trends of 2007
Highlights 11
Press review
Top 10 predictions in 2007 16
EuroPE’S 500 rAnking
Introduction 19
Listing 22
Winners’ profiles
Award Winner No 1 - Gameloft 23
No 2 Avion Group 27
No 3 Assystem 30
No 4 CPL 33
No 5 Spreadshirt 37
No 8 Webhelp 39
No 13 Centric 40
No 14 Puma 43
No 17 ntercentros Ballesol 45
No 21 Ryanair 46
No 22 New Wave Group 48
No 26 DC Holding 51
No 30 EngroTUS 52
opinion Editor 54
MAnAgEMEnt
Focus
Managerial pitfalls to avoid 56
Learning
CEO-Collaborative Forum 61
HuMAn rESourCES
recruitment
Finding the right players 64
tECHnoLogY
ideas
Europe 2.0 66
CASE StuDY
Barceló group
Family succession 68
EuroPE’S 500
European growth Summit
2007 Growth is East 76
A short history of Europe’s 500 78
Policy framework for
growth and jobs 79
inVESting
the Mid-Cap way
Investing in a medium-sized
European company 82
A selection of European
small and mid-cap investment funds 84
LiFEStYLE
Yachting
16th Monaco Yacht Show 90
Hot products
A high-tech, stylish selection
for a winter full of colour 96
8
s u r v e y trends
How would you define your company’s
prospects for 2007?
o Bullish
o Confident
o Average
o Worried
o Pessimistic
Are you worried about the growing
strength of the Euro?
o Yes
o No
o It does not affect me
Are you worried about political risk in
2007?
o Yes
o A little bit
o No
o It does not affect me
Do you believe there will be a global
economic recession by the end of the
year?
o Yes
o Probably
o No
o It does not affect me
Do you expect the real estate market to
decline in 2007?
o Yes, for sure
o Probably
o 50% chance
o I do not think so
o No way
o It does not affect me
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CC_MB_213x280_NCTime_Market500 16.11.2006 14:32 Uhr Seite 1
Dear readers,
We invite you to interact with us in each
issue of market500.eu through the
“Entrepreneur Survey“. Your participation
will help us better understand you, your
views and the latest business trends
across Europe.
Dedicated to the most successful busi-
nessmen, the survey is fast and easy to
use directly through our website (www.
market500.eu, click on “Survey”). Our
survey has only 5 questions and takes
less than one minute to complete.
If one of the subjects captures your inte-
rest or if you have a trend you would like
us to investigate in a future survey, please
contact survey@market500.eu.
Our first survey aims to capture the
general trends for 2007 through the
following questions:
EntrEprEnEur’s survey
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11
h i g h l i g h t s
nutricosmetics trend
An increasing number of companies
worldwide are targeting the fast-growing
nutricosmetics industry products that aim
to provide beauty “from within” creating
their own product lines. A recent survey
by Klein & Company values the global
nutricosmetics market at $1 billion. The
company says this figure is set to double
over the next five years. Nutricosmetics
are taken orally to improve health and
beauty.
The market has already seen serious inno-
vation, such as the partnership between
L’Oreal and Nestlé and their Inneov line
of nutritional supplements for hair and
skin, and German cosmetics company
Christine Schrammek with its dermaneu-
trics range targeting skin ailments. The
survey pinpoints skin care as the main
market, but those for hair, nail and sun
care are growing.
However not all countries are picking
upon the trend. In the USA, according to
Carrie Mellage from Klein & Company,
potential customers are used to buying
their healthcare products from pharma-
ceutical companies and are sceptical of
beauty companies.
visa cards in bulGaria
Bulgaria was the fastest growing market
for Visa bank cards in Europe according
to data from July to September 2006. Visa
Bulgaria said that the number of cards
issued in the country increased by 74%,
reaching the amount of 890,000 at the
end of the period.
Bulgarians consumers are also using their
Visa cards more and more often for trade
transactions. Nearly one million payments
in trade centres were completed this
way by the end of September 2006, a
185% increase from September 2004
to September 2005. Bulgarians carried
out 5.2 million transactions through Visa
cards between September 2005 and
September 2006.
Romania, which entered the EU at the
same time as Bulgaria, also increased its
number of Visa cards by 38%.
mcae market europe 2006
Last September, 01consulting released a
report called MCAE Market Europe 2006.
According the report, the MCAE Market,
which grows at 15% annual rate, repre-
sents almost €1 billion. It is one of the most
attractive segments of the PLM market
with strong and solid future development
prospects and has been recording a
steady growth for the last 30 years.
This report ranks the top 11 software
vendors in Europe, through several
criteria and provides analysis per industry
and country, spotlighting current trends.
The report highlights the fact that a few
mergers and consolidations should be
expected in the near future as bigger
vendors lag in technology development,
preferring to acquire existing techno-
logy that has been validated by smaller
vendors.
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supporting your business objectives through performance improvement
and knowledge transfer programmes.
building an influential community around your company and your brand
through cross marketing and strategic association.
supporting your processes with expert meeting, conference, and
incentive travel management knowledge.
With 300 staff delivering projects for small to medium sized companies
and Fortune 500 clients, across 5 continents, MCI is a full-service agency
with a world of experience. We are convinced that our solutions are
powerful in retaining the attention of, and building strong relationships
with, target audiences as well as improving their performance.
In today’s high speed
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MCI Corporate 213x280:Layout 1 12/8/06 6:32 PM Page 1
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12
h i g h l i g h t s
audemars piGuet awards
Last November in Geneva, Swedish CEO
Mårten Mickos of MySQL AB, a software
enterprise, received the “Changing Times
Award” from famous Swiss watchmaker
Audemars Piguet. This prize was created
to recognize the European entrepreneur
whose private company has had the
biggest impact on the largest number of
people over the last three years.
MySQL develops and supports a family
of high-performance, affordable data-
base products. The “Next Gem Award”,
another prize from the watchmaker, was
awarded to Icera, a pioneer in wireless
soft modem platforms for next generation
mobile phones and wireless terminals.
This prize rewards the company that
shows the most promise for the future.
chip sales
As global sales of
s e m i c o n d u c t o r s
reached $225.1 billion
for the first 11 months
of 2006, 9.4% more
than for the same
period in 2005, sales in Europe were up
4% to $3.7 billion in November 2006,
according to the Semiconductor Industry
Association (SIA). Those in the Americas
declined by 0.5% to $4 billion, while Asia
Pacific grew by 4.4% between to reach
$10.8 billion, with Japan showing a 2.6%
rise to $4.25 billion. Despite its results,
Europe remains the poorest performer in
2006, with year to year sales to November
up only 4.3% to $3.7 billion. Asia Pacific
grew at the strongest pace, up 15% to
$10.8 billion, with chip sales up 6.6% in
the Americas to $4 billion.
biorefinery research
At the end of October, the European
Conference on Biorefinery Research,
which aims to present industrial perspec-
tives on current and potential opportuni-
ties for and synergies between European
stakeholders, took place in Helsinki,
Finland. This conference concluded that
the Finnish forest-based industry should
expect growing demand for biomass-
based, non-food products. Considering
the situation, the government has decided
to strengthen research into this area,
most specifically into the development
of second-generation biofuels. As a
first step, the Finnish Funding Agency
for Technology and Innovation (Tekes)
has started a Europe-wide ERA-Net
programme called Woodwisdom-Net,
together with seven other European coun-
tries. Furthermore, it is preparing a new
‘BioRefine’ technology program, to begin
in 2007.
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07-10 MARKET 500 E.U 24.1.2007 15:54 Page 1
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the aim market
Owned and operated by the London Stock
Exchange, AIM is the world’s leading
market for smaller growing companies.
These range from young venture capital
businesses to more established busi-
nesses searching for finance and liqui-
dity to expand their operations. Since
1995, more than 2,500 companies have
joined, raising more than $4.5 billion. AIM
companies come from 37 sectors and 26
countries. 25% of international companies
are in the mining sector, the next largest
being the oil and gas sector followed by
finance. As of early October 2006, some
350 new companies had been admitted
and the junior market has seen a vast
increase in the number of US companies.
new investment for hymite a/s
With a total of €€9 million, the Danish-
German technology company Hymite
A/S has announced closure of its
Series Preferred B financing. Among
the new investors are TVM Capital,
InnovationsKapital, Dansk Kapitalanlaeg,
Vaekstfonden and IVS. These new invest-
ment are intended to strengthen the sales
organisation of the company and build
up its manufacturing infrastructure with
the use of external foundries. Hymite A/S
supplies advanced wafer level packaging
products for electronics, micromecha-
nical and optoelectronics components.
Chief executive officer Claus Jorgen
says that the company will be able to
consolidate its position in the flourishing
LED (Light Emitting Diodes) and MEMS
(Microelectromechanical Systems)
markets: “With key customers in both
high-brightness LED and MEMS, our wafer
level packaging solutions have proven
their potential in high volume, high growth
[…]. New requirements from the markets
such as a smaller footprint and higher
performance are bringing business in our
direction. Wafer level packaging is a clear
industry trend and we are supporting this
with a low-cost, reliable solution that adds
value for customers.”
h i g h l i g h t s
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Market-07:Mise en page 1 19.1.2007 11:17 Page 1
16
p r e s s r e v i e w red herring
To continue with their
tradition of annual
predictions started
three years ago,
journalists of the Red
Herring, an American
magazine speciali-
sing in technology
industry and innova-
tion, have put forth
their forecasts for 2007 (vol. 4, No 1).
In this special issue, journalists came
with 10 specific events or developments,
whether good or bad, that they feel will
likely happen in 2007. Next year, a score
box will be run on how well they did!
Brain gets Wired
2007 will see advances in cures for
depression or blindness thanks to elec-
trical devices implanted in their head
or eye. The first company to watch is
Medtronic, which has built a “brain pace-
maker” delivering electrical pulses to treat
depression and obsessive-compulsive
disorder. On blindness, Europe-based
Intelligent Medical Implants has been
working on an electrode implanted in the
retina to help blind people see light and
simple patterns.
Attack of the Mobile Virus!
In 2007, people will fall victim of a global
cell phone virus attack. With the increasing
use of VoIP programmes, among other
things, mobile phones will be affected
by computer viruses. Nevertheless, the
multitude of current operating systems
could reduce their impact, but only in the
beginning.
Mega Buyouts
In 2007, private equity will enter the tech
sector. 2006 already saw mega-buyouts
between firms, the next year could be
the one where everything is possible.
Among other possibilities, keep an eye on
EMC, leader of hardware storage, Dell,
the computer maker, or Internet giant
Yahoo!.
tV grab
In 2007, look for Google to invade the
world of TV advertising. The on-line
ad king used to boast of wanting to
be everywhere advertising is and has
already jumped from the on-line world
and established itself in newspapers
and radio. “Google becoming a TV ad
broker isn’t a predication; it is a foregone
conclusion.”
nanotech Will Heat up
2007 will be the year of nano deve-
lopments -- a revolution in the scien-
tific world. Indeed nanotechnology, will
be present in medicine under nanotech
cancer drugs, but we might also use it in
water filtration. Nevertheless, this techno-
logy will be certainly submitted to more
regulation, a fact companies have to know
to succeed in this field.
SoX gets a Makeover
In 2007, SOX will be less burdensome,
at least for micro and small companies.
In fact, to keep US stock exchanges
attractive the Securities and Exchange
Commission (SEC) will have to reduce
IPOs if it does not want to see companies
going public abroad.
HD-DVD and Blu-ray: DoA
In 2007, the war between HD-DVD and
Blu-Ray will almost lose its senses. As
consumers will not be able to choose
between two incompatible formats, the
trend towards Internet downloading
(without any physical support) will be
confirmed. Hewlett-Packard and Apple
have already launched a device for this
purpose.
rollins Booted out at Dell
2007 will not be kind to Kevin Rollins. In
fact, Dell’s chief executive officer is at the
head of a firm that has been accumulating
bad results for a few years and which
has been recently dethroned by its main
competitor, Hewlett-Packard. His next
mistake may well cost him his job.
Solar gets Simpler
2007 will be the year of “solar”. The solar
industry is coming to maturity thanks to
the impending end of a worldwide shor-
tage of solar-grade silicon. Lower prices
and easier access will enable more and
more people to be equipped with solar
technology. Mergers and consolidations
within the solar industry will also boost
the market.
new Year, new Jobs
In 2007, new needs will create new types
of activities. First, there will be a need for
people to bring online social networking
to those over 50. Secondly, after the
boom of YouTube, the next user-gene-
rated content website might be about
games, revealing the talents of new
games makers. Thirdly, the expansion
of solar technology will put solar finance
specialists on top.
“10 prEdiCtions for 2007”
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To participate in
the ranking, these
companies must be
based in Europe,
that is to say in the
European Union and/
or European Free
Trade Area (EFTA).
Public and private
companies can
compete, but must have been created
before 2003 and meet various criteria.
They must not have had more than
5,000 employees in 2002, and not less
than 50 in 2005. Growth is measured by
turnover progression and the equivalent
number of full time employees.
The ranking uses the Birch Index, by David
Birch, Director of Neighbourhood and
Regional Change at the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology (MIT), to measure
employment growth. This index weighs
absolute and relative job growth by
industry and company size in order to
determine the real employment genera-
tion of each company.
The key findings of this 2006 edition are
the following:
geographically, the five largest European
countries represent 59% of the 500 fastest
growing companies. But Central and
Eastern Europe surprisingly rank before
the Nordic countries, showing the poten-
tial of this region. The Baltic countries
together are 10% of the overall sample.
Germany ranks first in number of compa-
nies in the top 500, despite its sluggish
GDP over the last three years. Its ranking
proves that its Mittelstand is still doing
well. The UK, which has strived economi-
cally over the course of the same period,
is ranked a distant second, just before
France.
Despite their nationality, companies with
fast growth rates are finding their greatest
growth opportunties beyond their home
market, exporting and thus capturing
market shares abroad.
Sector-wise, IT services have the lion’s
share (23%) of the sectors, showing
the maturity of information technologies
and their “rippling effect” throughout the
economy. Once infrastructures are set up
and running, companies willing to leve-
rage them are blossoming and gaining
ground fast.
Remarkably, the other sectors are rela-
tively equal, holding between 5 and
7% of the total. This shows that fashio-
nable sectors such as biotechnology
Europe’s 500 “european Growth” is not an oxymoron“Entrepreneurs for Growth”, a Belgian not-for-profit organization which represents 2,000 entrepreneurs, has published its Europe’s 500 ranking of fast growing companies. This ranking, supported by Microsoft and KPMG, is built from data provided mainly by companies, which declare their turnover and number of employees for 2002 and 2005. Their performance is analysed over a three-year period.
19
ranking e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0
Breakdown by stock exchange and average 2005 turn-over
Number of companies Percentage
Average turn-over (EUR m.)
EURONEXT (Paris, Lisbon, Amsterdam, Brussels) 38 31% 174.5
British Stock Exchange 23 19% 382.2German Stock Exchange 14 12% 694.0Italian Stock Exchange 7 6% 1143.7Austrian Stock Exchange 5 4% 878.9Swedish Stock Exchange 5 4% 145.1Other 5 4% 469.0Swiss Stock Exchange 4 3% 820.1Norwegian Stock Exchange 4 3% 160.6Greek Stock Exchange 4 3% 225.0NASDAQ 3 2% 572.7Spanish Stock Exchange 3 2% 925.0
Irish Stock Exchange 3 2% 1649.9Icelandic Stock Exchange 3 2% 636.6
Total 121MA
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20
e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0 ranking
and healthcare are not producing more
fast-growing companies than traditional
sectors such as automotive, for example.
It is thus possible to succeed in almost
any economic sector, although textiles
and chemicals are below 2%.
Services represent nearly 46% of the
overall sample, thus confirming the
positioning of Europe in the worldwide
economy.
As for financing, 4 of the top 5 companies
are currently listed, but most of them (73%)
are not. Growth financing is thus mainly a
matter of private equity (3i Group being
cited as an active investor in the sample,
with CVO and Intercentros Ballesol) and
other private means of funding.
Euronext is the stock exchange which is
the most represented in the sample, with
38 companies. The impact of the launch
of Alternext, created to offer a relay of
financing to mid-sized and high-growth
companies, will probably increasingly
be seen in the future editions of the
challenge.
The average turnover of Europe’s 500
companies per stock exchange varies
significantly. Nordic stock exchanges
and Euronext have the lowest average,
whereas small (Ireland, Switzerland) and
Southern markets (Italy, Spain) seem to
have a higher threshold. In a context of
stock exchange convergence, it is inte-
resting to see that further consolidation
could have an impact by easing the finan-
cing on companies situated in markets
with higher admittance criteria.
The only Eastern and Central Europe
stock exchange represented is Budapest
(one company), which proves that local
financing mechanisms still need to be
found. The fact that venture capital
firms are massively investing in this area
should boost exits and thus may promote
local stock exchanges. The NYSE and
NASDAQ welcome only four compa-
nies from Europe, which shows that the
attraction of the American markets tends
to be limited.
Overall, this 2006 edition of Europe’s
500 shows that not only can European
companies achieve high growth, just like
their American and Asian counterparts,
but also that they offer successful alterna-
tives to dominant models. DoubleCoffee
(DC Holding) offers high-quality coffee,
as opposed to the Starbucks model
of multiple flavours added to American
coffee. Puma proposes fashionable and
trendy footwear where Nike and Reebok
compete to offer only sports shoes.
Webhelp successfully provides call
centre services when the trend towards
contracting with low-cost outsourced call
centres in India seems irreversible.
Gameloft comes back to the roots of
video games, where the pleasure of the
customer is key, whereas Eletronic Arts
and other American and Asian video
game makers offer merely technical
prowess and visually impressive scenes.
EngroTUS reverses the trend of low-cost
and cut-throat retailing by putting forward
its values and the quality of its products,
challenging the Wal-Mart assumption that
customers always want lower prices and
nothing else.
Europe can thus be a source of valuable
examples for those who think outside the
box.
Cyril Demaria
cdemaria@market500.eu
Sector breakdown of the Europe 500’s companies
23%
7%
7%
6%
6%6%6%
6%
6%
5%
4%
4%
4%
3%3% 4%
IT Services
Biotech/Health
Consulting
Transport/Logistics
Steel/Metals
Automotive
Support Services
Consumer Goods
IT Manufacturing
Construction/Real Estate
Food/Beverages
Retail
Energy/Mining Utilities
Financial/Legal Services
Tourism
Other
Geographical breakdown of the Europe 500’s companies
21%
13%
11%9%
6%
8%
6%
5%
5%
4%
3%2%2%2%3%
Germany
UK
France
Italy
Spain
CEE
Nordic
Belgium
Austria
Greece
Netherlands
Ireland
Switzerland
Baltic
Other
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safehost_market 3.1.2007 17:10 Page 1
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e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0 listing
1 Gameloft SA France IT - Manufacturing www.gameloft.com 44994 2 Avion Group Iceland Transport, Logistics www.aviongroup.com 25634 3 Assystem France IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.assystem.com 22872 4 Cpl Resources Plc Ireland Consulting, Management S www.cpl.ie 20622 5 Spreadshirt AG Germany Retail www.spreadshirt.net 19800 6 EVN AG Austria Energy, Mining, Utilities www.evn.at 13480 7 Kögun HF Iceland IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.kogun.is 11453 8 Webhelp France IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.webhelp.fr 9860 9 Groupe Open SA France IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.groupe-open.com 9101 10 pharmexx GmbH Germany Consulting, Management Services www.pharmexx.de 8436 11 Integrated Cleaning Management Ltd United Kingdom Support Services www.icmltd.uk.com 7417 12 Q-Cells AG Germany Energy, Mining, Utilities www.q-cells.com 6407 13 Centric Netherlands IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.centric.nl 6015 14 Puma AG Rudolf Dassler Sport Germany Textiles, Clothing, Footwear - Manufacturing www.puma.com 5770 15 Intec Telecom Systems Plc United Kingdom IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.intecbilling.com 5137 16 Marquard & Bahls AG Germany Energy, Mining, Utilities www.mbholding.de 5108 17 Intercentros Ballesol SA Spain Support Services www.ballesol.es 4680 18 Mears Group Plc United Kingdom Support Services www.mearsgroup.co.uk 4460 19 I. K. Hofmann GmbH Germany Consulting, Management Services www.hofmann.info 4102 20 United Internet AG Germany IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.united-internet.de 4066
Rank Company Company Business Sector Website Birch Index Headquarters
2�
winner’s profile e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0
Transform your mobile
phone into a video
game station; that is
the target of Gameloft.
With Qualcomm intro-
ducing its BREW
technology in Europe,
even 3D games will
soon be accessible on
compatible phones.
The winner of the Europe’s 500 challenge
develops, markets and sells video games
for mobile phones, using Java and BREW
technologies. At its creation in 1999,
Gameloft – then a subsidiary of Ubisoft
Entertainment – focused on the develo-
pment of games for mobile phones, the
Internet and digital television.
Gameloft was a bit too early for the market.
Following its merger with Ludigames in
February 2002, Gameloft took the oppor-
tunity to focus exclusively on the mobile
gaming market. “One of our main strengths
was that we had a very strong shareholder
basis, willing to invest on the long term.
This has allowed us to be able to wait for
the market to switch to Java/BREW compa-
tible mobile phones,” says Alexandre de
Rochefort, CFO of Gameloft.
This move proved to be successful and
has allowed it to expand dramatically
since then. Gameloft is now developing
40 new video games through 6 studios in
the US, Canada, Romania, France, Japan
and China. “Our key differentiator was the
choice of doing everything by ourselves.
gameloft sakey facts & figuresranking: 1st | industry: Software | turnover growth (2002-2005): 1,460% | Employment growth (2002-2005): 2,307% | Listed (Paris), with a market capitalisa-tion of EUR 0.29 billion
MEzzaninE ViEw on successGameloft is proof that until the game is over, there is hope for success. Weathering the storm of mobile gaming, it emerges as number 1 in Europe – on top of both the ranking and its sector.
AWARD
1Methodology
The Europe’s 500 search process combines a unique mix of proactive
targeting and searching for the best companies.
The methodology used comprises four key phases:
• Compilation of the universe
• Selection of initial list
• Independent review
• Selection of the final Europe’s 500
Compilation of the universe
Europe’s 500 researches, targets and pre-selects high-growth companies
from across the 28 countries covered.
These companies are invited to confirm their nomination and agree to all data..
In addition, spontaneous nominations are sought through media announce-
ments and third party organisations.
Selection of initial list
Upon closure of the nomination process (15 July 2006), all data is analysed
and a first list of companies that meet all seven criteria established.
independent review
Company data as submitted by the Nomination Form may be verified with
the legal auditor, on an as needed basis. Checks are also carried out with
national experts who visit selected nominated companies to independently
review their application. At this stage a company may be rejected from the
initial list, if a review raises doubts about the company’s eligibility.
Selection of the Final Europe’s 500
Companies which qualified for the initial list and passed the verification
process are ranked according to their Birch Index. The top 500 Birch scores
define the final Europe’s 500.
ranking
The Europe’s 500 focuses on employment creation. Companies which have
successfully met the criteria and verification process are ranked according
to their growth performance via the David Birch Employee Growth Index.
This index focuses on employment creation combining both relative and
absolute growth and is used to rank and quantify the companies’ perfor-
mance.
The Europe’s 500 growth performance Birch Index represents:
the absolute difference in employment between the upper (End 2005)
and
the lower (End 2002) reference year
multiplied by
Employment in the upper reference year
divided by
employment in the lower reference year.
Example: if a company grew its employment from 200 employees in 2002 to
800 employees in 2005, the Birch index would be:
= (800-200) x (800/200) = 600 x 4 = 2400
EuropE’s 500 listinGEurope’s only independent, pan-European Listing of high growth, job-creating companies.
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continued on page 32
This was the only way to deliver and
guarantee the quality of our products,”
says Alexandre de Rochefort.
The force of the company lies in the
agreements it has signed with more than
130 mobile operators throughout the
world, covering 65 countries. This means
that Gameloft has to adapt each title it
produces to the specifications of the hand-
sets and the mobile operators. Thanks
to these partnerships, subscribers can
download games on their mobile phone.
90% of mobile games are purchased
through mobile phone operators. “Our
past growth was fuelled by the signature of
new partnerships every week and growing
market share. Going forward, it should be
based only on market share growth, which
will normalise our growth rate, but never-
theless stay in the high double digits,” says
Alexandre de Rochefort.
With a turnover of EUR 47 million in
2005, some 70 million for 2006 and
110 million in 2007, Gameloft is number
2 worldwide for mobile gaming, and
number 1 in Europe. It remains a small
player in the video game market,
which has seen a wave of consoli-
dation recently with editors acquiring
studios. To face this movement and
finance its high fixed costs and invest-
ments in human capital the company
25
winner’s profile e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0
has disposed of jeuxvideo.com, to only
focus on mobile gaming. This extra
cash will allow Gameloft to compete
with Jamdat Mobile, which was recently
acquired by the American leader of the
video game sector Electronic Arts (EA)
for USD 100 million.
The company so far offers 80 titles,
costing EUR 3 to 5, over 600 hand-
sets and is capitalising on branding
(notably with Ubisoft Entertainment) and
franchise agreements to develop games
which could attract a target wider than
its traditional teenager customer base. Its
next titles draw directly from successful
TV sitcoms, reality shows and movies
such as “Lost”, “Desperate Housewives”,
“Mission Impossible”, “Open season” and
“Newport Beach”. Users download some
100,000 games per day from Gameloft
and 25 of the company’s titles have gone
over the 1 million downloads mark.
Through mobile phones, Gameloft can target
the dream audience of Sony, Nintendo and
Microsoft: the general public, which so far
has mainly remained out of reach. By 2008,
it is expected that 2.5 billion customers will
own a mobile phone supporting the down-
load of video games.
Will Gameloft be able to defy the highly
cyclical video game sector by further
growing? The fact that its customer base
is free to use any mobile phone, unlike
Sony Playstation or Microsoft X-Box
customers who are stuck to their hard-
ware, should soften the cycles. However,
its successes are still conditioned by the
franchising and branding agreements it
can sign, thus competing head to head
with EA which has locked in key sports
franchises.
Michel Guillemot has learned from his 20
years at UbiSoft Entertainment, a leading
French game developer and editor that
he created with his four brothers. He
knows how to manage the ups and downs
of a challenging but rewarding market.
Back in 1986, the personal computer
was hardly a gaming platform and non-
compatible machines were king.
These platforms required the adaptation
of each title and the ability to provide
“game play” to players, as graphical
and sound features were basic. Fast
forward 20 years, same questions and
same answers, but Guillemot has desi-
gned his company to face such chal-
lenges, recruiting talent worldwide, even
at the expenses of his gross margins.
Developers accounted for 2,100 of the
2,400 total staff in 2006.
Gameloft perceives its staff as its main
asset. After a massive recruitment effort
(+200% in 2004, +160% in 2005), it is
willing to capitalise on its production base
to develop its products. The expected
rhythm of recruitment is thus a maximum
25% in 2006 and 5 to 10% in 2007.
C.D.
Hofburg, Vienna, 24 November 2006,
Michel Guillemot, President and CEO of Gameloft
(France) receives the Europe’s 500 Champion of Growth
award bestowed on the No. 1 company for 2006.
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7EUR Millions Source: Datastream
Gameloft PAR (11/28/2003 - 11/27/2006) Datastream
Volume
004 05 06
0.50
1.00
GFT-FR
SBF 120
220.0%
200.0%
180.0%
160.0%
140.0%
120.0%
100.0%
90.0%
60.0%
Gameloft’s summarised profit and loss statement (2001-2005)
EUR (millions) 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006Sales 3 3 10 23 47EBIT (67) (16) 6 6 2Net Income (67) (17) 2 2 1
Source: Thomson One Banker
Logi(sti)CaLLy secondAvion has transformed a national symbol of insular independence into a global logistics services force, taking over competitors and streamlining entire industries.
27
winner’s profile e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0
Avion Group
was formed in
January 2005
to invest in the
transportation
industry. The
C o m p a n y
controls an
international
network of air
and sea transportation companies provi-
ding transportation solutions.
The mother company is dedicated to
investments, aircraft trading and asset
management. Its three divisions are:
Eimskip (shipping and logistics), Air Atlanta
(aviation services) and Excelairways &
Star (charter and leisure).
Avion is focusing on aviation services,
and has been striving to be a premier
aVion group (hf. Eimskipafélag Íslands)key facts & figuresranking: 2nd | industry: Business Logistics | turnover growth (2002-2005): 627% | Employment growth (2002-2005): 570% | Listed (Reykjavik), with a market capi-talisation of EUR 0.6 billion
AWARD
2
See Beyond HistoricalPerformance
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Copyright© 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Limited trading as Standard & Poor’s. All rights reserved. The analytic services and products provided by Standard & Poor’s are the result of separate activities in order to preserve the independenceand objectivity of each analytic process. Each analytic product or service is based on information received by the analytic group responsible for such product or service. Standard & Poor’s has established policies and procedures to maintain theconfidentiality of non-public information received during each analytic process. S&P and Standard & Poor’s are trademarks of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. which are registered in the United States of America and other countries and inwhich all rights are reserved. Analytic services and products provided by Standard & Poor’s are the result of separate activities designed to preserve the independence and objectivity of each analytic process. Standard & Poor’s has establishedpolicies and procedures to maintain the confidentiality of non-public information received during each analytic process.
To learn more, visit www.sandpfundservices.com or access fundratings and analysis free of charge at www.funds-sp.com
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28
e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0 winner’s profile
outsourcer for cargo
and passenger
customers, covering
key components of
the value chain such
as aircrafts, crew,
maintenance and
insurance services. It is also focusing on
engineering and airport handling services.
Its charter and leisure businesses are
divided between airline and aviation
(providing chartered airline services) and
tour operating (booking and charter seat
broker services). Shipping, logistics and
supply chain management services for
domestic and international customers
complete the offering.
Avion owns Eimskip, which is the oldest
Icelandic shipping company. This
company is a national symbol, as it was
widely associated with Iceland’s fight
for independence. There were 14,000
company, or 15% of the population. The
date of its creation is a national holiday
in Reykjavik.
Even though the company was created in
Iceland, Avion has a global reach through
its 174 locations worldwide. It opened its
first Chinese operations in 2004. It has
9,500 employees and operates 30 aircraft
and 30 vessels.
To further expand, the company went
public on 20 January 2006 as the largest
initial public offering on the Iceland Stock
Exchange. It is the fourth largest company
listed on the ICEX. Its progression has
been based on acquisitions of profitable
companies which could prove to be
complementary in the strategy of Avion,
the latest being Star Airlines (France) and
Kosmar Holidays (Greece).
The approximate organic growth for 2006
was 36%, from USD 1,400 million (EUR
1,069 million) to USD 1,900 million (EUR
1,451 million). The EBIT increased by
67% from USD 61 million (EUR 46 million)
to USD 102 million (EUR 78 million). This
proves that the industrial logic of this
investment group is working well, leve-
raging synergies between its portfolio
companies. Avion believes it will be able
to sustain a high level of growth going
forward, capitalising on the trend it has
identified and targeting mid-sized assets.
C.D.
Avion believes it will be
able to sustain a high
level of growth going
forward, capitalising on
the trend it has identified
and targeting mid-sized
assets.
Avion Group (HFEIM) stockprice evolution in 2006
S
45.0
42.5
40.0
37.5
35.0
32.5
30.0
01.04.06 01.07.06 01.10.06
ource: Iceland Stock Exchange
Avion Group’s summarised profitand loss statement (2001-2005)
Fiscal year ends on 31 Dec.for 2003 and 2004, and 31 Oct. for 2005
Source: Thomson One Banker
EUR (millions) 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Sales N/A N/A 187 363 1,130EBIT N/A N/A (-12) 11 65Net Income N/A N/A (-12) 10 33
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Market 16/01/07 12:29 Page 1
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�0
e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0 winner’s profile
As s y s t e m
(formerly known
as Assystem
Brime) provides
c o n s u l t i n g ,
advisory and
services in the
field of engi-
neering. It is
active in the
following sectors: aeronautical and spatial
(28%); automotive (13%); energy and
nuclear (10%); technologies and systems;
network and telecom; facilities; indus-
tries; and pharmacies. In 2005 Assystem
opened a new office in Shanghai and
acquired Inbis in the UK and Atena in
Germany. It created Assystem France.
Assystem (then Atem) was created in
1966 as an engineering and high-tech
consultancy company, mainly dedicated
to the French market and its nuclear
activities. In 1994, it absorbed its nuclear
subsidiary Alphatem, and the group listed
in 1995. When difficulties affected nuclear
markets in the 1990s, Assystem started to
develop itself along other vertical markets
and geographic regions. To do so, it
acquired companies and accelerated
its expansion in 2003 by merging with
Brime Technologies, a small consultancy
focused on ERP integration and high-tech
consulting.
Assystem decided to dispose of ERP
integration to focus its positioning on
technological expertise. The group has
managed a development program which
has transformed it into a strong compe-
titor for Altran and Alten in the low-
end R&D subcontracting market. To go
beyond its French reach (70% of sales),
the company addressed the German and
British markets in 2005. That year, the
Group booked EUR 568 million in sales
(up 10.3% organically), with a total of
8,290 staff members. It is now active in 16
countries worldwide. In 2005, international
sales reached 29% of total revenues, and
34% in 1H06.
Its expansion throughout Europe and
overseas should further fuel the growth
of the company, leveraging its client
portfolio and its solid expertise in multiple
areas. Thanks to its project orientation
and its R&D focus, Assystem has deve-
loped the capacity to impose itself as
aCing, BooMing, consultinGAssystem has been able to differentiate itself in a business that is fast commoditising: consulting. Technological expertise and opportunistic developments form the matrix of its development.
a specialist, and is thus able to add
process and products engineering to the
value chain.
The Group published its 3rd quarter 2006
figures, which were well above expecta-
tions with sales at EUR 159.3 million, up
18.4% organically, but partly conditioned
by a one-off effect (part of revenues
came from projects successfully closed
in advance). France grew by 17.3% orga-
nically and international operations by
20.5%. The group disposed of its Spanish
and Canadian operations. 2006 sales
approximately reached EUR 675 million
and are expected at EUR 736 million
in 2007, with an EBIT of EUR 41.1 and
EUR 48.5 million respectively. Net results
should reach EUR 24.3 and EUR 31
million respectively.
Assystem is still clearly positioned as a
recruiter in France (+11.7% for the first
9 months vs. organic growth of 10.9%),
which points to improved confidence in
the progression of its margins in that
region.
The company, as a high-growth busi-
ness, has room to improve (integration of
IT systems and cash management). Its
stock price has varied wildly on the pros-
pect of acquisitions, as well as on difficul-
ties with profit warnings. However, having
delivered stellar performance, could its
ability to reach new levels lead this chal-
lenger to the top spot next year?
C.D.
Source: Datastream
0.40
0.20
00.4 0.5 0.6
Assystem - PAR (11/28/2003 - 11/24/2006)
SBF 120SY.FR
170%
160%
150%
140%
130%
120%
110%
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
Assystem’s summarised profit and loss statement (2001-2005)
EUR (millions) 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Sales 120 148 163 465 568EBIT 11 8 (42) 18 41Net Income 7 2 (47) 7 27
Source: Thomson One Banker
assystem sakey facts & figuresranking: 3rd | Industry: Consulting | turnover growth (2002-2005): 283% | Employment growth (2002-2005): 276% | Listed (Paris), with a market capitalisation of EUR 0.32 billion
AWARD
3Source: Datastream
0.40
0.20
00.4 0.5 0.6
Assystem - PAR (11/28/2003 - 11/24/2006)
SBF 120SY.FR
170%
160%
150%
140%
130%
120%
110%
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
Assystem’s summarised profit and loss statement (2001-2005)
EUR (millions) 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Sales 120 148 163 465 568EBIT 11 8 (42) 18 41Net Income 7 2 (47) 7 27
Source: Thomson One Banker
�1
winner’s profile e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0
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21 Ryanair Holdings Plc Ireland Transport, Logistics www.ryanair.ie 3739 22 New Wave Group AB Sweden Textiles, Clothing, Footwear - Manufacturing www.nwg.se 3632 23 Caffè Nero Group Plc United Kingdom Tourism, Leisure, Gastronomy - Services www.caffenero.com 3545 24 Wincor Nixdorf AG Germany IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.wincor-nixdorf.com 3484 25 SIA Elvi Latvia Retail www.elvi.lv 3233 26 DC Holding AS Latvia Tourism, Leisure, Gastronomy - Services www.doublecoffee.com 3192 27 BCW Group Plc United Kingdom Financial Services, Legal Services www.bcwgroup.com 3069 28 Ferretti Group Italy Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.ferrettigroup.com 3046 29 Nuova Pansac SpA Italy Chemical, Plastics - Manufacturing www.nuovapansac.com 3000 30 EngroTUS d.o.o. Slovenia Retail www.tus.si 2915 31 Bechtle AG Germany IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.bechtle.com 2868 32 ILIOTEC Solar GmbH Germany Energy, Mining, Utilities www.iliotec.de 2663 33 International Power Plc United Kingdom Energy, Mining, Utilities www.ipplc.com 2492 34 Conergy AG Germany Energy, Mining, Utilities www.conergy.de 2415 35 Götz-Gebäudemanagement West GmbH & Co KG Germany Support Services www.goetz-dienste.com 2367 36 RPS Group Plc United Kingdom Consulting, Management Services www.rpsgroup.com 2288 37 Alumil Milonas - Aluminium Industry SA Greece Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.alumil.com 2286 38 Metrovacesa Spain Construction, Real Estate www.metrovacesa.es 2225 39 Inspecs Group Plc United Kingdom Textiles, Clothing, Footwear - Manufacturing www.inspecs.com 2178 40 Sécuritéfrance France Support Services www.securifrance.com 2154 41 Schoeller Industries GmbH Netherlands Chemical, Plastics - Manufacturing www.schoellergroup.com 2129 42 Sophos United Kingdom IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.sophos.com 2113 43 DCC Plc Ireland Consulting, Management Services www.dcc.ie 1974 44 Sword Group France Consulting, Management Services www.sword-group.com 1973 45 Dynafix Group BV Netherlands IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.dynafix.com 1972 46 GN Store Nord A/S Denmark IT - Manufacturing www.gn.com 1881 47 Mariella Burani Fashion Group SA Italy Textiles, Clothing, Footwear - Manufacturing www.mariellaburani.com 1879 48 Ranger SpA Italy Automotive - Manufacturing www.ranger.it 1862 49 AT&S Austria Technologie und Systemtechnik AG Austria IT - Manufacturing www.ats.net 1828 50 IAWS Group Plc Ireland Food, Beverages - Manufacturing www.iaws.com 1770 51 Holroyd Howe Ltd United Kingdom Support Services www.holroydhowe.co.uk 1745 52 Andritz AG Austria Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.andritz.com 1733 53 Cisalfa Sport SpA Italy Retail www.cisalfasport.it 1713 54 Scanfil Oyj Finland IT - Manufacturing www.scanfil.com 1656 55 Coloplast A/S Denmark Biotechnology, Health www.coloplast.com 1648 56 Fonebak Plc United Kingdom IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.fonebak.com 1633 57 April Group France Financial Services, Legal Services www.aprilgroup.com 1564 58 Photel Communications Inc (Teleperformance Hungary) Hungary IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.photel.hu 1512 59 Soitec France IT - Manufacturing www.soitec.com 1500 60 Phonak Holding AG Switzerland Biotechnology, Health www.phonak.com 1499 61 Naturex France Food, Beverages - Manufacturing www.naturex.com 1487 62 Normaction SA France IT Services, Information and Communcation Technologies www.normaction.com 1480 63 Bennet SpA Italy Retail www.bennet.com 1462 64 C1 Group Germany IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.c1-group.de 1446 65 Axon Group Plc United Kingdom Consulting, Management Services www.axonglobal.com 1396 66 Teltonika UAB Lithuania IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.teltonika.lt 1331 67 Össur Hf Iceland Biotechnology, Health www.ossur.com 1320 68 Umeco Plc United Kingdom Support Services www.umeco.com 1286 69 Dreams Plc United Kingdom Retail www.dreams.co.uk 1250 70 Fast Search & Transfer ASA Norway IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.fastsearch.com 1226 71 Esterbauer & Windisch Personalservice GmbH Germany Support Services www.esterbauer-windisch.de 1224 72 Joyéria Tous Spain Retail www.tous.es 1197 73 Engineering Ingegneria Informatica SpA Italy Consulting, Management Services www.eng.it 1179 74 Grupo ISN Spain Support Services www.grupoisn.com 1129 75 Ipte NV Belgium IT - Manufacturing www.ipte.com 1123 76 CompuGROUP Holding AG Germany IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.compugroup.de 1120 77 Plantasjen ASA Norway Retail www.plantasjen.no 1118 78 Palfinger AG Austria Automotive - Manufacturing www.palfinger.com 1113 79 Creston Plc United Kingdom Consulting, Management Services www.creston.com 1073 80 Straumann Holding AG Switzerland Biotechnology, Health www.straumann.com 1059 81 Creditinfo Group Ltd Iceland Financial Services, Legal Services www.creditinfo.com 1050 82 Aliplast NV Belgium Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.aliplast.com 1047 83 S&B Industrial Minerals SA Greece Energy, Mining, Utilities www.sandb.com 1041 84 SII France Consulting, Management Services www.sii.fr 1041 85 Europastry Spain Food, Beverages - Manufacturing www.fripan.com 1025 86 ITS SEEVIA Group France IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.itsseeviagroup.fr 1022 87 Omega Pharma Belgium Biotechnology, Health www.omega-pharma.be 986 88 Cistoca d.o.o. Slovenia Support Services www.cistoca.si 939
Rank Company Company Business Sector Website Birch Index Headquarters
Capitalising
on the
boom of the
“European
tiger”, CPL
Resources
has made
e m p l o y -
ment its
bread and
butter. The Group’s provides employment
services, specialising in the placement
of candidates in permanent, temporary
and contract positions. CPL also offers
human resources consultancy services.
The Group focuses on the areas of tech-
nology, accounting and finance, sales,
engineering, light industrial, healthcare/
pharmaceutical, and office administration.
Created in 1989, the company has fully
benefited from its home country boom,
but its success does not only lie on macro-
economic reasons. CPL went public in
1999 and benefited from the boom in tech
recruitment specialists. It then diversified
into finance, accounting and manufactu-
ring. After 2001, the recruitment services
slowed down, but CPL started to offer its
clients payroll administration, workforce
management and performance develop-
ment services.
CPL Resources was able to react fast and
refocus itself to face the market needs.
This was done without any slowdown in
growth and CPL has even been able to be
the best-in-class in profit generation. With
41% in fee growth converted to a profit
growth of 83% before tax, CPL has even
beaten the analysts’ predictions by 12%.
CPL’s force comes from its ability to
generate fees from permanent place-
ments (53%) and temporary placements
(47%) whether in IT, finance or telecoms.
The company generated 9% of its fees
from its outsourced services to large
fuLL throttleCapitalising on the advent of the “knowledge economy”, CPL Resources has become a role model for human resources management.
CpL resources pLCkey facts & figuresranking: 4th | industry: Business Training and Employment Agency | turnover growth (2002-2005): 279% | Employment growth (2002-2005): 687% | Listed (Dublin), with a market capitalisation of EUR 0.2 billion
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EUR Millions Source: Datastream
CPL Resources (Dublin)DUB (11/28/2003 - 11/24/2006Datastream
Volume
004 05 06
2.00
4.00
D Q5 DBIRELAND SE OVERALL
1000.0%900.0%800.0%700.0%600.0%500.0%400.0%300.0%200.0%100.0%
0
CPL Resource’s summarised profit and loss statement (2002-2006)
EUR (millions) 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006Sales 27 52 74 105 148EBIT 1 2 3 5 11Net Income 1 1 2 5 9
Fiscal year ends on 30 June Source: Thomson One Banker
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accounts. The forecast for 2007 is an 18%
growth in fees at EUR 33.8 million and a
15% growth in profits at EUR 12.2 million.
The number of CPL Resources consul-
tants has increased by 18%, from 145
to 171, over 6 months. Its ability to leve-
rage its model also shows that the fees
generated per consultant have increased
from EUR 55,000 to EUR 77,000. In 2006
it approximately reached 180 and EUR
80,000 per consultant.
CPL has thus succeeded in imposing
itself in the recruitment landscape, taking
on Adecco, Hays or Michael Page. It is
now a dominant player in the IT, telecoms,
finance, engineering, pharmaceutical and
office support verticals. The company has
built its business on attention to customer
relationships, refunding clients who are
not satisfied within the first six months
of hire. It is now targeting
managed services and the
high-end executive search
and selection business.
The company is thus posi-
tioned to be a market leader,
holding a 10% share of a very
fragmented market, and has
the firepower to make acqui-
sitions to further strengthen
its position. Its cash reserves
are EUR 21.3 million, which
the company is increasing
regularly. In March 2006 CPL
acquired Nursefinders in the UK. Over
the next three years, its CEO Anne
Heraty aims to expand to Britain and
Eastern Europe, where GDP is growing
fast and recruitment is following. This
should pave the way for further impres-
sive growth for CPL.
C.D.
EUR Millions Source: Datastream
CPL Resources (Dublin)DUB (11/28/2003 - 11/24/2006Datastream
Volume
004 05 06
2.00
4.00
D Q5 DBIRELAND SE OVERALL
1000.0%900.0%800.0%700.0%600.0%500.0%400.0%300.0%200.0%100.0%
0
CPL Resource’s summarised profit and loss statement (2002-2006)
EUR (millions) 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006Sales 27 52 74 105 148EBIT 1 2 3 5 11Net Income 1 1 2 5 9
Fiscal year ends on 30 June Source: Thomson One Banker
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e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0 winner’s profile
CPL has thus succeeded in
imposing itself in the recruitment
landscape, taking on Adecco,
Hays or Michael Page.
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89 D. Masoutis SA Greece Retail www.masoutis.gr 921 90 Kago-Kamine-Kachelofen GmbH & Co Deutsche Wärmesysteme KG Germany Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.kago.de 916 91 Avl List GmbH Austria Automotive - Manufacturing www.avl.com 895 92 Mellon Collection Services SA Greece IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.mellongroup.com 894 93 Banco Pastor SA Spain Financial Services, Legal Services www.bancopastor.es 888 94 Heisterkamp Transport Netherlands Transport, Logistics www.heisterkamp.nl 871 95 BI-LOG AG Germany Consulting, Management Services www.bi-log.de 852 96 Reiwag Facility Services GmbH Austria Support Services www.reiwag.at 830 97 Süd-Chemie AG Germany Chemical, Plastics - Manufacturing www.sud-chemie.com 812 98 Novabase - S.G.P.S. SA Portugal IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.novabase.pt 812 99 Plaisio Computers SA Greece IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.plaisio.gr 809 100 ClinPhone Group Ltd United Kingdom Biotechnology, Health www.clinphone.com 796 101 Aircom International United Kingdom IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.aircominternational.com 763 102 paragon AG Germany Automotive - Manufacturing www.paragon-online.de 759 103 msg systems AG Germany IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.msg-systems.com 759 104 Zollner Elektronik AG Germany Transport, Logistics www.zollner.de 754 105 Inoplast France Automotive - Manufacturing www.inoplast.fr 747 106 Eurofins Scientific France Biotechnology, Health www.eurofins.com 747 107 IMO Momentenlager GmbH Germany Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.imo.de 743 108 Peyber Hispania Empresa Constructora SL Spain Construction, Real Estate www.peyber.es 740 109 Ted Baker Plc United Kingdom Retail www.tedbaker.co.uk 721 110 Town & Country Haus Lizenzgeber GmbH Germany Construction, Real Estate www.franchisepartnerschaft.de 683 111 Parrot France IT - Manufacturing www.parrot.biz 673 112 Società Cattolica di Assicurazione - Società Cooperativa Italy Financial Services, Legal Services www.cattolicaassicurazioni.it 655 113 Interhyp AG Germany Financial Services, Legal Services www.interhyp.de 647 114 Redur SA (Group) Spain Transport, Logistics www.redur.es 626 115 SICK AG Germany Automotive - Manufacturing www.sick.com 601 116 De Vizia Transfer SpA Italy Construction, Real Estate www.deviziatransfer.it 596 117 Panda Software Spain IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.pandasoftware.com 596 118 Business & Decision France Consulting, Management Services www.businessdecision.com 594 119 Fontana Pietro Italy Automotive - Manufacturing www.fontana-group.com 591 120 Societa Servizi Socio Culturali Cooperativa Sociale Onlus Italy Support Services www.sssc.it 587 121 FOKAS AVE SA Greece Retail www.fokas.gr 583 122 TM Software Iceland IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.t.is 582 123 Zaklady Drobiarskie Kozieglowy Sp Z O O Poland Food, Beverages - Manufacturing www.zd-kozieglowy.pl 581 124 Beluga Shipping GmbH Germany Transport, Logistics www.beluga-group.com 578 125 Buongiorno SpA Italy IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.buongiorno.com 573 126 TANDBERG Television ASA Norway IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.tandbergtv.com 552 127 PC-Ware Information Technologies AG Germany IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.pc-ware.com 548 128 Bitzer Kühlmaschinenbau GmbH & Co. Holding KG Germany Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.bitzer.de 532 129 Central Trust Plc United Kingdom Financial Services, Legal Services www.centraltrust.co.uk 531 130 Esprinet SpA Italy IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.esprinet.com 527 131 Wolfson Microelectronics Plc United Kingdom IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.wolfsonmicro.com 516 132 Brain Force Holding AG Austria IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.brainforce.com 513 133 North Midland Construction Plc United Kingdom Construction, Real Estate www.northmid.co.uk 513 134 Passage Fitness NV Belgium Tourism, Leisure, Gastronomy - Services www.passagefitness.com 500 135 Sinfonika Slovenia IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.sinfonika.eu 489 136 Kraft Malerwerkstätten GmbH Germany Construction, Real Estate www.arta.de 479 137 Grupo Pevafersa Instalaciones Spain Energy, Mining, Utilities www.pevafersa.com 462 138 buw Unternehmensgruppe Germany Consulting, Management Services www.buw.de 461 139 Direct Wines Ltd United Kingdom Retail www.laithwaites.co.uk 455 140 Poas Mantenimiento SI Spain IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.poas.net 453 141 SDL Plc United Kingdom IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.sdl.com 451 142 Vanco United Kingdom IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.vanco.com 449 143 BrainLAB AG Germany Biotechnology, Health www.brainlab.com 444 144 Poco Holding GmbH Germany Retail www.poco.de 443 145 Mürdter Dvorak lisovna, spol.s.r.o Czech Republic Automotive - Manufacturing www.muerdter.cz 432 146 The Listening Company Ltd United Kingdom Consulting, Management Services www.listening.co.uk 409 147 Forez s.r.o. Czech Republic Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.eurographics.de 404 148 EUROGRAPHICS AG Germany Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.forez.cz 404 149 Precimed SA Switzerland Biotechnology, Health www.precimed.com 401 150 innocent Ltd United Kingdom Food, Beverages - Manufacturing www.innocentdrinks.co.uk 400 151 Option Belgium IT - Manufacturing www.option.com 400 152 Huntleigh Technology Plc United Kingdom Biotechnology, Health www.huntleigh-technology.com 393 153 Tandberg ASA Norway IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.tandberg.net 392 154 FreeSoft Plc Hungary IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.freesoft.hu 389 155 Reichhart Logistik Gruppe Germany Transport, Logistics www.reichhart.net 388 156 Creganna Ltd Ireland Biotechnology, Health www.creganna.com 386 157 Typsa Spain Consulting, Management Services www.typsa.es 378
Rank Company Company Business Sector Website Birch Index Headquarters
thE right motto(http://www.spreadshirt.com)Spreadshirt leverages a simple idea with modern tools – and it works. Far from the go-go days of business concepts, this shoebox start-up proves that execution is key to success.
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Spreadshirt, a
German upstart,
has made it simple
for everyone to
design and market
their own t-shirts.
Capitalising on the
p e r s o n a l i s a t i o n
trend, Spreadshirt
offers its clients a
simple way to use the tools that it has set
up: through the Internet. The concept goes
beyond simple slogans to be printed on t-
shirt. Spreadshirt supports the marketing
and sales of the t-shirts designed by its
visitors. In that way, everyone can design
t-shirts and Spreadshirt takes care of the
sales and commissioning.
Spreadshirt was conceived as a low-cost
t-shirt retailer, enabling visitors to leverage
a simple retail law: get paid upfront, pay
the suppliers in 30
days. In that respect,
the two founders,
Lukasz Gadowki and
Matthias Spiess, laun-
ched the company
without capital. As a
typical Internet start-
up, they did it from
their university dorm room. Unlike typical
Internet start-ups, they did it from Leipzig
(Germany) and in 2002, after the Internet
bubble burst.
More than 200,000 visitors have desi-
gned t-shirts online and are marketing
them through Spreadshirt’s channels
(“shops”). Spreadshirt proposes an inte-
grated service to its visitors, from shirt
production management, to shipping and
even customer service. The company
has signed partnerships with small- and
medium-sized businesses to help them
offer this option on their website and
customise t-shirts for their customers.
The company has been profitable since its
inception and its turnover has progressed
from EUR 60,000 in 2002 to EUR 8.3
million in 2005. It has now subsidiaries
in the US, France and Canada, and is
progressively launching other customi-
sable products such as coffee mugs.
To support its growth, Spreadshirt has
knocked on the door of one of the most
famous venture capital firms in the US:
Accel Partners. The fund has invested a few
million to offer Spreadshirt the opportunity
to support its target: double its sales every
year, and thus compete with other persona-
lisation specialists such as CafePress.
C.D.
spreadshirtkey facts & figuresranking: 5th | Industry: retail | turnover growth (2002-2005): 13,733%Employment growth (2002-2005): 9,900% | Not listed, backed by private equity firms
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158 Elite Service Partner A/S Norway Support Services www.elite.as 377 159 First Call Global Solutions United Kingdom IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies n/a 375 160 Zucchetti Italy IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.zucchetti.it 369 161 Tsakos Energy Navigation Ltd (TEN Ltd) Greece Transport, Logistics www.tenn.gr 364 162 Melexis NV Belgium Automotive - Manufacturing www.melexis.com 355 163 BWT AG Austria Energy, Mining, Utilities www.bwt.at 354 164 ICOS Vision Systems Corporation NV Belgium IT - Manufacturing www.icos.be 350 165 Formel D GmbH Germany Support Services www.formeld.com 348 166 HiQ International Sweden IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.hiq.se 344 167 Altea SpA Italy IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.alteanet.it 334 168 CVO Group Hungary Support Services www.cvogroup.com 333 169 Michielsens Kranen NV Belgium Transport, Logistics www.michielsens.be 331 170 Boss Media AB Sweden IT - Manufacturing www.bossmedia.se 324 171 Der Beck GmbH Germany Food, Beverages - Manufacturing www.der-beck.de 318 172 GL Trade SA France IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.gltrade.com 315 173 Advanced Digital Broadcast Holdings SA Switzerland IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.adbholdings.com 315 174 Environmental Waste Controls Plc United Kingdom Support Services www.ewc.eu.com 310 175 Waterman Group Plc United Kingdom Consulting, Management Services www.waterman-group.co.uk 310 176 Laboratoires Arkopharma SA France Biotechnology, Health www.arkopharma.com 305 177 Pankl Racing Systems AG Austria Automotive - Manufacturing www.pankl.com 305 178 Neurones France IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.neurones.net 302 179 Faktab Finans AB Sweden Financial Services, Legal Services www.faktab.se 299 180 JSC Salinta Lithuania Chemical, Plastics - Manufacturing www.salinta.lt 298 181 Eltete Ltd Finland Transport, Logistics www.eltete.com 294 182 Realtime Technology AG Germany IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.rtt.ag 294 183 Raiffeisen Informatik GmbH Austria IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.raiffeiseninformatik.at 291 184 Atlanta Capital Consulting GmbH Germany Financial Services, Legal Services www.atlanta-capital.de 289 185 Testo AG Germany Automotive - Manufacturing www.testo.de 287 186 Capelle France Transport, Logistics www.transports-capelle.com 285 187 Serono SA Switzerland Biotechnology, Health www.serono.com 283 188 Cavotec Group Netherlands Energy, Mining, Utilities www.cavotec.com 281 189 Etnoteam Italy IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.etnoteam.it 278 190 Grainger Trust Plc United Kingdom Construction, Real Estate www.graingertrust.co.uk 277 191 Systeam AB Sweden IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.systeam.se 277 192 South Lakeland Caravans Ltd United Kingdom Tourism, Leisure, Gastronomy - Services www.southlakeland-caravans.co.uk 274 193 Solucom France IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.solucom.fr 268 194 Westcoast Ltd United Kingdom IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.westcoast.co.uk 264 195 Opera Software ASA Norway IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.opera.com 260 196 B.B.R. Service Srl Italy Support Services www.bbrservice.com 260 197 MCI Group Holding SA Switzerland Consulting, Management Services www.mci-group.com 253 198 Sipro Sicurezza Professionale Srl Italy Support Services www.grupposipro.it 249 199 Jahn GmbH Germany Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.jahngmbh.de 244 200 Workcenter Servicios Globales De Documentacion SA Spain Retail www.workcenter.es 243 201 Wavelight AG Germany Biotechnology, Health www.wavelight.com 242 202 ACP Gruppe Austria IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.acp.at 240 203 Cuddy Group United Kingdom Construction, Real Estate www.cuddy-group.com 238 204 Walkers Shortbread Ltd United Kingdom Food, Beverages - Manufacturing www.walkersshortbread.com 237 205 Degetel Group France IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.degetel.com 236 206 Sunways AG Germany Energy, Mining, Utilities www.sunways.de 232 207 Roularta Media Group NV/SA Belgium Media www.roularta.be 231 208 Komsa Kommunikation Sachsen AG Germany IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.komsa.com 228 209 Muehlbauer Holding AG & Co KGaA Germany Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.muehlbauer.de 226 210 TQ-Systems GmbH Germany IT - Manufacturing www.tq-group.com 224 211 ADVA AG Optical Networking Germany IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.advaoptical.com 224 212 Optisport Exploitaties Netherlands Tourism, Leisure, Gastronomy - Services www.optisport.nl 220 213 Formula Servizi Società Cooperativa A Responsabilità Limitata Italy Support Services www.formulaservizi.it 219 214 Control Risks Group Holdings Ltd United Kingdom Consulting, Management Services www.control-risks.com 218 215 Grupo Tecnologico e Industrial GMV SA Spain IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.grupogmv.com 218 216 Ferri Elettroforniture Srl Italy Energy, Mining, Utilities n/a 211 217 Ikm Gruppen AS (Incl. Ikm Laboratorium AS) Norway Energy, Mining, Utilities www.ikm.no 211 218 Proservia France Consulting, Management Services www.proservia.fr 209 219 Iris Cleaning Services SA Belgium Support Services www.iris.be 208 220 Isra Vision Systems AG Germany Automotive - Manufacturing www.isravision.com 203 221 Cadtech Iberica S.A. - Grupo CT Spain IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.ctgrupo.com 203 222 Epsilon Net SA Greece IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.epsilonnet.gr 202 223 XAPT Hungary Kft Hungary IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.xapt.com 200 224 Medical and Health Science Centre UD Hungary Biotechnology, Health www.dote.hu 200 225 Devoteam France IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.devoteam.com 199 226 Chiltern International Holdings Ltd United Kingdom Biotechnology, Health www.chiltern.com 198
Rank Company Company Business Sector Website Birch Index Headquarters
Webhelp is
an offshore
call centre
p i o n e e r .
O l i v i e r
Duha and
F r é d é r i c
J o u s s e t
c r e a t e d
Webhelp in
2000, operating a French online portal that
provides a live, human-assisted Internet
search service. The market is a busi-
ness-to-business, web-based customer
support solution delivered in real time,
supported by human chat.
The two founders identified the potential
that outsourcing call centres in cheaper
areas was offering. The company employs
3,300 staff, 2,400 in Morocco, 250 in
Romania and 550 in France. Its target is to
deliver quality services to its customers,
large French and international compa-
nies. It is the only ISO 9001-2000 certified
call centre in France.
According to its President Frédéric
Jousset, Webhelp’s success is attribu-
table to its positioning in a high-growth
market that has benefited from new
technologies. “Historically, the 250,000
people who were working in customer
relationship were based in France. Today,
there are 20,000 in North Africa,” among
them Webhelp’s staff, says Jousset.
This has fuelled its growth, their revenues
having tripled over the course of the last
three years. The company aims to continue
this trend for the next three years. This
explains how the company raised a total
of EUR 15 million, through venture capital,
expansion and LBO rounds in 2000, 2001
and 2005. Alven Capital, Europatweb, Jet
Innovation, Avenir Finance and Barclays
Private Equity are the company’s financial
backers. The company plans to reach a
turnover of EUR 60 million this year and
continue this trend.
“This growth is sustainable, as the funda-
mentals (growing market, attractive posi-
tioning, increasing brand awareness,
quality of the team) are getting stronger,”
declares Jousset. On the French market,
which counts 200 companies, Webhelp
has progressed from 50th place in 2003
to 14th in 2005, and 4th in 2006. They
expect to be second in 2007, behind
French leader Teleperformance. “Beyond
this progression, a lot of sectors should
open to outsourcing of client relationship
management under deregulation and
competition in the public sector, health,
electricity, et cetera,” says Jousset.
Jousset mentions three main challenges to
managing growth: staff, processes and finan-
cial resources. As a high-growth business,
Webhelp has chosen to “over dimension
its management team since the beginning”
when planning its growth. Processes are
key at Webhelp, as they are outsourcing call
centres with an ISO level of quality.
Jousset’s advice to entrepreneurs is “think
big”, and make your company scalable in
order to be ready for growth. Then “involve
the staff in the growth challenge by giving
them a financial incentive. […] Details are
key and execution is critical. […] Luck is
also important, and we must admit that we
had some in our development.”
C.D.
offshorE buoySurfacing in the top ten of the ranking, Webhelp proves that outsourcing and offshoring can rhyme with quality. The stock exchange lighthouse is in sight.
webhelp sakey facts & figuresranking: 8th | industry: IT Services | turn-over growth (2002-2005): 973% | Employment growth (2002-2005): 580% | Not listed, backed by private equity companies
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Centric was
created in
1991 by
G e r a r d
Sander ink
a n d
weathered
the 2001-
2002 crisis
w i t h o u t
any losses. This simple fact shows how
stable and resilient the performance of
this company, dedicated to IT services,
is. Centric is debt free, and finances all
its developments with its own resources.
It has reinvested all profits in the busi-
ness, which has further generated growth.
According to Centric IT Director Karim
Henkens, “this has given Centric the
ability to make independently its own
choices.” Not only has the company
remained independent, but it has also
avoided fundraising from third parties.
Its strategy has been to spread its activi-
ties between the profit (financial services
and wholesale) and not-for-profit sectors
(local government, housing associations).
Its turnover is evenly generated by these
two markets. This gives real stability to the
company, and if the economy declines,
the resilience of the not-for-profit sector
will buoy the company.
Centric has also developed multiple lines
of business, from software development
(vertical markets or custom made) to
infrastructure, including consultancy, IT
Solutions, e-business, software enginee-
ring, systems integration, managed ICT
services and training. Centric is thus able
to design, develop, maintain, implement,
and, if necessary, run the software it
supplies.
To grow, the company has applied
the same stability focus and prudent
approach. It has taken over competitors
who went bankrupt and thus financed
its acquisitions only at the best price
possible. The company made acquisi-
tions amounting to EUR 350 million in
2005 and EUR 600 million in 2006. This
has been one of its largest moves and it
aims to grow at a rate of 10 to 15% per
year at least, mostly organically.
“We do not plan to go on the stock
exchange or change our strategy and
call banks to finance us. We want to
develop by ourselves and remain free to
make our own choices,” says Henkens.
This also saves a lot of time and allows
the management to focus on challenges,
such as integrating the acquisitions (inte-
grating small acquisitions can represent
a lot of work). Finding the right mana-
gement can also be difficult, as some
acquisitions come with an adequate
staff, and others not.
According to Henkens, the high growth
of Centric has been a “coincidence”.
“Our target is to build long-term, stable
and sustainable growth.” In that respect,
Centric has been very cautious in its inter-
national expansion. It took Centric three
years to go to Belgium; it is now using
that approach as a blueprint for its inter-
nationalisation. Norway, Germany and
Switzerland are now on the radar.
Henkens’s advice to entrepreneurs would
be to “take the steps that you think you
can handle. If it is not financially possible,
then do not do it.” Planning is also crucial,
especially before the acquisition, not afte-
rwards.
Centric now has 7,200 employees, but
40% of the time of the management
is spent with customers. According to
Henkens, this is what allowed Centric to
be so successful. The management is
able to listen to and understand custo-
mers. By meeting 10 customers per
month, the management has a deep
knowledge of the market.
C.D.
Centrickey facts & figuresranking: 13th | Industry: IT Services | turnover growth (2002-2005): 55% | Employment growth (2002-2005): 107% | Not listed
Centric’s profit and loss statement (2001-2005)
EUR (millions) 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Sales 215 228 235 274 353Net profit 11 9 14 16 23
Source: Centric
Find out how you measure up against the bestin Europe by submitting your company
for the 2007 Europe’s 500 Listing – the only independent pan-European ranking of highgrowth, job-creating companies across all
business sectors.
Europe's 500 - Entrepreneurs for Growth is a pan-European associationof high growth entrepreneurs which advocates measures to improve
business conditions for growth and jobs at EU and national level
www.europes500.com
Any small and mid-sized company headquartered in one of the 25 EUmember states, plus Switzerland, Norway and Iceland, can apply to beconsidered. Nominations are free and without obligation.
Altogether, the high growth companies that qualified for the 2006Europe’s 500 Listing:
• created some 150,000 new jobs across Europe
• increased their turnover by €36.9 billion
• recorded an impressive average annual job growth rate of 16% overthree consecutive years.
Supported by
Europe’s 500 winning companies receive significant media exposure giving recognition to their achievements, helping to motivate and reward staff and attract investment. The winners arehonoured at an Awards Ceremony and Gala Dinner held in a differentEuropean city each November.
2007 Europe’s 500 Listing
Gain visibility, recognitionand market share…
To register your interest and to be alerted when nominations for2007 open in April, please e-mail your contact details to listing@europes500.com
Is your company one of Europe’s high growth,
job-creating champions?
Published by Entrepreneurs for Growth
1 0 t h A n n i v e r s a r y 1 9 9 6 - 2 0 0 6
2455 E500 ad 1bis :2455 - AD 2007 LISTING 12/8/06 6:23 PM Page 1
a stELLar revolutionBuilt on prudence and independence, Centric has set itself up for
meteoric performance. It is a gravity centre for European IT Services, through consolidation.AWARD
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227 Flamel Technologies SA France Biotechnology, Health www.flamel.com 197 228 Local Contract Hire & Leasing Ltd United Kingdom Transport, Logistics www.1car1.com 194 229 Real SA Poland Food, Beverages - Manufacturing www.realsa.pl 189 230 Gestión Técnica de Montajes y Construcciones GTM SA Spain Construction, Real Estate www.gtmsa.es 189 231 Incanto Group Srl Italy Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.incantodivani.com 186 232 Fortakas Lithuania IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.fortakas.lt 185 233 Etud Integral France Automotive - Manufacturing www.etud-integral.fr 184 234 Corporación Alimentaria Guissona Spain Food, Beverages - Manufacturing www.cag.es 180 235 Chipidea-Microelectronica SA Portugal IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.chipidea.com 179 236 Putzteufel Reinigungsgesellschaft mbH Austria Support Services www.putzteufel.at 176 237 Forum Media Group GmbH Germany Media www.forum-media.com 173 238 Arthur McKay & Co Ltd United Kingdom Construction, Real Estate www.arthur-mckay.com 173 239 Radiall SA France Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.radiall.com 172 240 Delcam Plc United Kingdom IT - Manufacturing www.delcam.com 172 241 Group Rovi Spain Biotechnology, Health www.rovi.com 170 242 Econcern BV Netherlands Energy, Mining, Utilities www.econcern.com 169 243 HP Pelzer Group Germany Automotive - Manufacturing www.pelzer.de 169 244 Avanquest Software France IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.avanquest.com 168 245 SILIKO d.o.o. Slovenia Chemical, Plastics - Manufacturing www.siliko.si 166 246 Sturm Holding GmbH Germany Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.sturm-gmbh.de 165 247 Korres SA Greece Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.korres.com 164 248 Wenglor Sensoric GmbH Germany IT - Manufacturing www.wenglor.de 164 249 Lynn`s BEST GmbH Germany Biotechnology, Health www.Lynns-BEST.de 160 250 GTG Gummidichtungstechnik GmbH & Co KG Germany Automotive - Manufacturing www.gtg-group.com 159
251 Ioniki Sfoliata SA Greece Food, Beverages - Manufacturing www.ionikigr.com 159
252 Inter Contract Wbc s.r.o. Czech Republic Textiles, Clothing, Footwear - Manufacturing www.intercontract.cz 154 253 Micronic Laser Systems AB Sweden IT - Manufacturing www.micronic.se 152 254 Alternative Networks Plc United Kingdom IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.alternativenetworks.com 152 255 Sigma Pharmaceuticals Plc United Kingdom Biotechnology, Health www.sigpharm.co.uk 152 256 PAA Laboratories GmbH Austria Biotechnology, Health www.paa.com 151 257 Loacker Recycling GmbH Austria Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.loacker.at 149 258 MarketXS Netherlands IT Services, Information and Communication technologies www.marketxs.com/ 149 259 Cramer United Kingdom IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.cramer.com 148 260 M. J. Eriksson A/S Denmark Construction, Real Estate www.mjeriksson.dk 148 261 Jokey Plastik GmbH Germany Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.jokey.com 148 262 Clarkson Evans Ltd United Kingdom Construction, Real Estate www.clarksonevans.co.uk 147 263 MetalCom-R Ltd Hungary IT Services, Information and Communications Technologies www.metalcom.hu 145 264 Ognibene SpA Italy Automotive - Manufacturing www.ognibene.com 144 265 Johann Dettendorfer Spedition Ferntrans GmbH & Co KG Germany Transport, Logistics www.dettendorfer.de 144 266 Athinaiki Bed Mattress Manufacturer SA (Media Strom) Greece Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.mediastrom.gr 143 267 Spoldzielnia Mleczarska Ostroleka Poland Food, Beverages - Manufacturing www.sml-ostroleka.pl 142 268 Simon, Kucher & Partners GmbH Germany Consulting, Management Services www.simon-kucher.com 142 269 Native Instruments Software Synthesis GmbH Germany IT - Manufacturing www.native-instruments.com 142 270 Thomann Germany Retail www.thomann.de 141 271 Mindjet GmbH Germany IT - Manufacturing www.mindjet.de 141 272 mG miniGears SpA Italy Automotive - Manufacturing www.minigears.com 140 273 ACTANO GmbH Switzerland Consulting, Management Services www.actano.com 139 274 Rödl & Partner Germany Financial Services, Legal Services www.roedl.de 137 275 IQ Intelligentes Ingenieur Management GmbH Germany Consulting, Management Services www.iq-nbg.de 136 276 Loyalty Partner GmbH Germany Consulting, Management Services www.loyaltypartner.com 132 277 Tubacex Spain Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.tubacex.com 131 278 Arkitema K/S Denmark Construction, Real Estate www.arkitema.dk 128 279 Mobile Ambulante Pflegepartner GmbH & Co KG Germany Biotechnology, Health www.mobile-ambulante-pflegepartner.de 126 280 GEALAN Formteile GmbH Germany Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.gealan.com 123 281 Prodrive Holdings Ltd United Kingdom Automotive - Manufacturing www.prodrive.com 122 282 Schreiner Group GmbH & Co KG Germany IT - Manufacturing www.schreiner-group.com 122 283 Soflog-Sofembal France Transport, Logistics www.soflog.fr 122 284 I.R.I.S. Belgium IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.irislink.com 122 285 Callataÿ & Wouters Belgium IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.cw-thaler.com 120 286 Italtrans SpA Italy Transport, Logistics www.italtrans.com 119 287 Harlekin Spiel- u. Unterhaltungsautomaten Betriebs GmbH Germany Consumer Goods - Manufacturing n/a 118 288 Bruder Straubinger Gebäudereinigung GmbH Germany Support Services n/a 116 289 Hör Technologie GmbH Germany Automotive - Manufacturing www.hoer-technologie.de 116 290 Allando Trailways A S Estonia Transport, Logistics www.allando.com 115 291 Comoli Ferrari & C. SpA Italy Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.comoliferrari.it 115 292 Euroskilt AS Norway Transport, Logistics www.euroskilt.no 114 293 Odyssey Asset Management Systems SA Luxembourg IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.odyssey-group.com 112 294 Freedom Finance Plc United Kingdom Financial Services, Legal Services www.freedomfinance.co.uk 112 295 PSW automotive engineering GmbH Germany Automotive - Manufacturing www.psw-konstruktion.de 110 296 Thomas & Piron SA Belgium Construction, Real Estate www.thomas-piron.com 109
Rank Company Company Business Sector Website Birch Index Headquarters
thE roaring 2000s
Sport and fashion are converging and redesigning an entire industry under new marketing rules. This cat, or Puma, is landing on its paws and racing to grab market share.
��
winner’s profile e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0
Add fashion to
footwear and
you will get a
big cat in your
growth engine.
Puma has
r e d e s i g n e d
itself from a
typical sports
footwear manu-
facturer to a fashion and luxury footwear
brand with four collections per year.
Puma designs, manufactures and
markets sporting goods, mainly footwear.
Its activities are organised around three
divisions: footwear, apparels and acces-
sories. The footwear department designs,
manufactures and markets mainly sports
shoes. The apparel department is dedi-
cated to the production and marketing of
sportswear-related articles. The accesso-
ries department focuses on luggage and
other sports-related goods. The Group
operates and sells in Europe, North and
Latin America, Africa and Asia.
The company has shown 39% average
yearly growth since early 2001, with a
leading position in the upscale market. Its
brand is its main asset and the company
has shown an impressive capacity to build
upon it and be associated with cham-
pions and events. Even though highly
dependent on the European market for its
sales (62% in 2005), Puma has room to
expand in North America, where Nike and
Reebok are leading the pack, and Asia,
which is strong prospect.
Is the big cat able to hold its breathe and
continue to run as fast? Analysts appear
to doubt it: they lowered their forecasts
and do not count on double digit growth
rates for earnings going forward (as
gross margins are declining). However,
the company still has some assets and
expects double digit growth in sales in
2007, notably with an organic growth rate
above 15%.
Will Puma make it to the 2007 ranking
and improve its positioning? With Asia
growing above 100%, the US at almost
50% in Q3 2006, and Europe at 10%, the
prospects are good. But currency move-
ments and high marketing and distribu-
tion costs are putting some pressure on
the management. If customers are loyal
to the brand, Puma will be able to show
its claws and aggressively catch a greater
market share.
C.D.
puMa agkey facts & figuresranking: 14th | Industry: Footwear | turnover growth (2002-2005): 95% | Employment growth (2002-2005): 113% | Listed (Frankfurt), with a market capitali-sation of EUR 4.58 billion
Source: Datastream
Puma - FRA (11/21/2003 - 11/17/2006)Datastream
Volume04 05 06
PUM - FF
DAX 30 PERFORMANCE
270.0%
250.0%
230.0%
210.0%
190.0%
170.0%
150.0%
130.0%
110.0%
90%
Puma’s summarised profit and loss statement (2001-2005)
In EUR (millions)2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Sales 598 910 1274 1530 1778EBIT 61 127 266 372 409Net Income 40 85 179 257 286
End of fiscal year: 31 MarchSource: Thomson One Banker
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Rank Company Company Business Sector Website Birch Index Headquarters
Capital ising
on aging.
C r e a t e d
in 1980,
Intercentros
Ballesol is
dedicated
to providing
h o s t i n g
s e r v i c e s
to retirees, mainly through the building
and management of residences. Starting
in Madrid and Valencia, the company
soon expanded to Andalusia, Aragon,
Asturias, Catalonia, Castilla-Leon, Galucia
and Murcia. The company offered 5,000
places for retirees at the end of 2005 and
plans to grow it organically to 7,000 by the
end of 2007.
The positioning of the company is rather
upscale, with high-quality service (on
average 65 employees for 100 retirees),
guaranteed by solid training and a perma-
nent medical team based in each centre.
The cost of a retiree is roughly EUR
22,000 per year.
This success was partially funded by
the private equity firm 3i, which bought
20% of the company in 2001 for EUR 18
million, and Morgan Stanley (through its
subsidiary Lar). It also counts the foun-
ders (35%) and the Hermandad Nacional
de Arquitectos (18%). This has fuelled
the growth of the company, from a yearly
turnover of EUR 20 million in 2001 to EUR
50 million in 2005 and approximately EUR
70 million in 2006.
The Spanish Law on Dependency, in
which the Spanish Government will invest
EUR 26 million until 2015 to help depen-
dent elders, will probably be an active
supporter of Grupo Ballesol’s develop-
ment. To offer an attractive profile, the
company does not exclude some targeted
acquisitions, thus playing a consolidation
role in a very fragmented market (15
companies control less than 2% of the
market).
The company is now looking to offer an
exit path to its private equity backers and
gain new support, probably from Spanish
insurance groups (Santa Lucia is said to
be in advanced negotiations), to further
develop. The company is targeting a
listing on the Spanish Stock Exchange
within two to four years.
C.D.
aging and enjoyinG itRetiring can be a luxurious experience, even more so if the resi-dence is comparable to a four star hotel in the number two desti-nation in the world for tourism.
intercentros BaLLEsoLkey facts & figuresRanking: 17th | Industry: Services | Turnover growth (2002-2005): 138% | Employment growth (2002-2005): 260% | Not listed, backed by the private equity firm 3i
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297 Semcon AB Sweden IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.semcon.se 109 298 HPS Ltd Hungary Consulting, Management Services www.hps.hu 108 299 Vitronic Dr.-Ing. Stein Bildverarbeitungssysteme GmbH Germany IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.vitronic.de 107 300 Ecm (Vehicle Delivery Service) Ltd United Kingdom Transport, Logistics n/a 105 301 Msource Medical Development Belgium Biotechnology, Health www.msource-cro.com 105 302 Eckert & Ziegler Strahlen- und Medizintechnik AG Germany Biotechnology, Health www.ezag.de 105 303 Volz Luftfilter GmbH & Co KG Germany Energy, Mining, Utilities www.volzfilters.com 102 304 Groupe Silicomp France IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.silicomp.fr 102 305 Altia Consultores SL Spain IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.altia.es 102 306 Coffee Connection SA Coffeeway Greece Tourism, Leisure, Gastronomy - Services www.coffeeway.com 100 307 Fokas Odysseus SA Greece Retail www.fokas.gr 100 308 Bogdol Verwaltungs- und Immobilien GmbH Germany Support Services www.bogdol-dienstleistungen.de 100 309 Michel Baule SA France Chemical, Plastics - Manufacturing www.baule.com 100 310 NV Joris Ide Belgium Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.joriside.be 99 311 Defim SpA Italy Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.defim.com 99 312 Geoffrey Robinson Ltd United Kingdom Construction, Real Estate www.geoffreyrobinson.ltd.uk 98 313 Bott Ltd Germany Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.bottltd.co.uk 98 314 Ridderikhoff Groep BV Netherlands Support Services www.ridderikhoff.com 97 315 SMI SpA Italy Food, Beverages - Manufacturing www.smigroup.it 97 316 GENESIS Pharma SA Greece Biotechnology, Health www.genesispharma.com 97 317 MorphoSys AG Germany Biotechnology, Health www.morphosys.de 97 318 P to P IT Consulting Sweden IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.ptop.se 96 319 Soft Computing France IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.softcomputing.com 94 320 Qbranch AB Sweden IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.qbranch.se 94 321 Seissenschmidt AG Germany Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.seissenschmidt.de 92 322 Protecta SA Greece Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.protecta.gr 91 323 Ajkai Elektronikai Gyarto Es Szolgaltato Korlatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag Hungary Automotive - Manufacturing www.ajkaelektron.hu 91 324 CASON Engineering Plc Hungary IT - Manufacturing www.cason.hu 90 325 Fussl Modestraße Mayr GmbH Austria Retail www.fussl.at 89 326 Parcours SA France Transport, Logistics www.parcours.fr 89 327 Ceuta Healthcare Group Of Companies United Kingdom Biotechnology, Health www.ceutahealthcare.com 89 328 Autonomy Corporation Plc United Kingdom IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.autonomy.com 88 329 Samhammer AG Germany IT - Manufacturing www.samhammer.de 88 330 Schmack Biogas AG Germany Energy, Mining, Utilities www.schmack-biogas.com 87 331 QUMAS Ireland Financial Services, Legal Services www.qumas.com 87 332 Eiffel Netherlands Financial Services, Legal Services www.eiffel.nl 87 333 Econet Spain Consulting, Management Services www.econet.es 86 334 Futbol Club Barcelona Spain Tourism, Leisure, Gastronomy - Services www.fcbarcelona.com 86 335 Brack Electronics AG Switzerland IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.brack.ch 86 336 Expo Biro Slovenia Tourism, Leisure, Gastronomy - Services www.expobiro.si 82 337 LM IT Services AG Germany IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.lm-ag.de 81 338 Artizian Catering Services Ltd United Kingdom Support Services www.artizian.co.uk 79 339 Doppstadt Calbe GmbH Germany Energy, Mining, Utilities www.doppstadt.com 79 340 Przedsiebiorstwo Produkcyjne Uslugowo-Handlowe Poland Food, Beverages - Manufacturing www.prosper.biz.pl 78 341 Beko Holding AG Austria IT - Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.beko.eu 78 342 Cobra Beer United Kingdom Food, Beverages - Manufacturing www.cobrabeer.com 76 343 Przedsiebiorstwo Wielobranzowe Eltar Sp Z O O Poland Construction, Real Estate www.eltar.com.pl 76 344 Kloiber GmbH Germany Transport, Logistics www.kloiber.com 76 345 Artwork Systems NV Belgium IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.Artwork-Systems.com 75 346 JSC Dzintars Latvia Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.dzintars.lv 74 347 Prigo d.o.o. Brezovica Slovenia Transport, Logistics www.prigo.si 74 348 Soudal NV Belgium Chemical, Plastics - Manufacturing www.soudal.com 73 349 Amlin Plc United Kingdom Financial Services, Legal Services www.amlin.com 73 350 Siac Butlers Steel Ltd Ireland Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.siacbutlers.ie 72 351 Reinsch Speditions- und Kontraklogistik Germany Transport, Logistics www.reinsch-spedition.de 71 352 Labor L+S AG Germany Biotechnology, Health www.Labor-LS.de 71 353 Grenkeleasing AG Germany Financial Services, Legal Services www.grenkeleasing.com 70 354 L A International Computer Consultant Ltd United Kingdom Consulting, Management Services www.lainternational.com 70 355 E.C.S. Electronics BV Netherlands Automotive - Manufacturing www.ecs-electronics.nl 70 356 Axesor, Grupo Infotel Spain Consulting, Management Services www.axesor.es 69 357 Empire Direct Plc United Kingdom Retail www.empiredirect.co.uk 68 358 Xsil Ltd Ireland IT - Manufacturing www.xsil.com 67 359 Drukkerij Verstraete NV/SA Belgium Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.verstraete.be 66 360 Plan-Net Services Plc United Kingdom IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.plan-net.co.uk 65 361 Hirsch Servo AG Austria Chemical, Plastics - Manufacturing www.hirsch-gruppe.com 65 362 Arginta Lithuania Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.arginta.lt 64 363 Prangl Gesellschaft mbH Austria Transport, Logistics www.prangl.at 63 364 BUG Computer Components AG Germany IT - Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.e-bug.de 63 365 Restaurants At Work United Kingdom Tourism, Leisure, Gastronomy - Services www.restaurantsatwork.co.uk 62 366 Cassis SA Belgium Retail www.cassis.be 61
continued on page 50
�6
e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0 winner’s profile
Ryanair is defying the law
of gravity through low
fares. The Irish cowboy
has successfully
imported low-cost air
travel, following in the
footsteps of Southwest
and Jetblue in the United
States: While most of
the American airlines
were under bankruptcy protection in the
United States, low-cost airlines defied
the sector, growing fast at the expense of
incumbent airline operators, and opening
new routes. Ryanair operates from 16
European bases (Ireland, UK, France,
Sweden and Italy), bringing together 123
airports and 366 routes.
The strength of the Group does not only
lie in its ability to make its bookings grow
in a very competitive market – even Air
France KLM is looking to open a low-cost
alternative -- but also to diversify its income
from other sales such as hotel bookings,
car rentals, etc. In Q2 2006, the company
even surprised analysts by reporting better
results than expected.
The company has shown a 34% average
yearly growth rate since early 2001
using aggressive marketing techniques.
Profitability is exceptional, ranging from
18% in 2005, despite high gas prices,
to 24% in 2001, when the cost of oil was
lower. The company is said to have the
lowest breakeven load point of the sector
and has the luxury of setting its own prices
in a context of growing traffic.
The Irish airline not only grows organically,
but also plans to expand aggressively. It
thus offered to buy its national competitor
Aer Lingus for EUR 1.48 billion a year ago,
in a move which shocked the sector. Aer
Lingus was only listed for a few days and
Ryanair bought 20% of it in a week to posi-
tion its hostile takeover bid. Even though
the offer is not expected to succeed, this
shows that Ryanair is willing to pursue not
only organic growth opportunities, but also
acquisitions going forward.
C.D.
Low Cost, flyinG hiGhRyanair has shown that low cost is more than just a fad, and that operating under budget constraints can make an entire industry move towards efficiency
ryanair pLCkey facts & figuresranking: 21st | industry: Airlines | turnover growth (2002-2005): 171% | Employment growth (2002-2005): 113% | Listed (NASDAQ), with a market capitali-sation of EUR 7.57 billion
Source: Datastream
Ryanair - DUB (11/21/2003 - 11/17/2006)Datastream
Volume
04 05 06
RYA DBIRELAND SE OVERALL
190.0%
170.0%
150.0%
130.0%
110.0%
90.0%
70.0%
50.0%
Ryanair’s summarised profit and loss statement (2001-2005
EUR (millions) 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Sales 624 843 1074 1337 1693EBIT 192 295 276 353 413Net Income 150 239 207 267 307
End of fiscal year: 31 MarchSource: Thomson One Banker
0
10.00
5.00
Source: Datastream
Ryanair - DUB (11/21/2003 - 11/17/2006)Datastream
Volume
04 05 06
RYA DBIRELAND SE OVERALL
190.0%
170.0%
150.0%
130.0%
110.0%
90.0%
70.0%
50.0%
Ryanair’s summarised profit and loss statement (2001-2005
EUR (millions) 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Sales 624 843 1074 1337 1693EBIT 192 295 276 353 413Net Income 150 239 207 267 307
End of fiscal year: 31 MarchSource: Thomson One Banker
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e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0 winner’s profile
Even the autumn heat
wave which has
affected Europe hardly
slowed down New
Wave’s growth rate.
Analysts have lowered
their projections, but it
seems that the warm
garments of the highly
successful brands of
the Group will still be in high demand at
the end of the year.
The Swedish group has an original distri-
bution model, combining a business-
to-business and retail approach. Its
business-to-business division is specia-
lised in the marketing of promotional
clothes, shoes, gifts and textiles. New
Wave designs, purchases, stores and
markets promotional wear and gifts.
The Group also sells products using
its brands and other licensed trade-
marks to retailers, notably sports and
footwear retailers. New Wave’s brands
are Clique, Harvest, Grizzly, Craft,
Seger, Mac One, DAD and Umbro. After
acquiring Joman Workwear in 2004, a
maker of high-quality work clothes, the
Group acquired Dahetra and Orrefors
Kostaboda in 2005.
The company has shown a 44% average
yearly growth rate since the early 1990s,
focusing on quality clothes and special
niches, rather than on fashion like H&M,
Zara or Mango. Its production is located
in Asia, and New Wave sells in 15
countries, mostly in Nordic countries,
Germany, Benelux and Italy. “The best
margins are achieved in Italy,” says
CEO Torsten Jansson. This proves that
New Wave’s business model is not only
adaptable but very successful outside
of Nordic countries.
Jansson attributes New Wave’s success
to its corporate culture, where people
“want to do their best”. These “soft
values” are key to achieving and maintai-
ning such a high level of growth. In that
respect, finding the right people is the
main challenge that Jansson has identi-
fied over the years and he has spent a lot
of time on it. “It’s a constantly changing
business, as it is a high growth environ-
ment. You have to like it to succeed in
this kind of company.” Client focus is
also key: it is important to take care of
existing clients and grow with them.
Its growth potential is well appreciated
by the market, as it is trading at a 20%
premium based on market capitalisa-
tion/EBITDA, but still at a 10% discount
based on its P/E multiple as its earnings
per share grow faster than for its peers.
“We still have a low market share, with
a lot of space to grow organically in the
North of Europe, but also in Asia and the
US,” says Jansson. “Selective acquisi-
tions may help as well.”
C.D.
surfin’ swedenNew Wave Group could have been a band of blond Swedish pop singers, but once again, the revolution comes from marketing, design and selling – this time in the clothing industry.
�9
new wave group aBkey facts & figuresranking: 22nd (59th in 2004) | industry: Clothing and Accessories | turnover growth (2002-2005): 77% | Employment growth (2002-2005): 179% | (Stockholm), with a market capitalisation of EUR 2.94 billion
Source: Datastream
New Wave Group ‘B’ STO (11/21/2003 - 11/17/2006)Datastream
Volume
004 05 06
0.50
NEW AB - SK
AFFARSVARLDEN GENERA
270.0%
250.0%
230.0%
210.0%
190.0%
170.0%
150.0%
130.0%
110.0%
90%
New Wave’s summarised profit and loss statement (2001-2005)
EUR (millions) 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Sales 140 186 207 253 337EBIT 15 20 23 28 33Net Income 9 11 15 17 22
End of fiscal year: 31 MarchSource: Thomson One Banker
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367 Interware Plc Hungary IT - Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.interware.hu 60 368 Gold Club Slovenia Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.gold-club.si 60 369 Valor Consultants France Consulting, Management Services www.valor.fr 59 370 Opacmare SpA Italy Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.opacmare.com 58 371 Llentab AB Sweden Construction, Real Estate www.llentab.se 58 372 MR Datentechnik Vertriebs - u Service GmbH Germany IT - Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.mr-daten.de 57
373 Errecinque Srl Italy Automotive - Manufacturing www.errecinque.it 56 374 Sadiel SA Spain IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.sadiel.es 55 375 Luoman Oy Finland Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.luoman.fi 55 376 Independent Specialist Technology Ltd United Kingdom IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.1stsoftware.com 55 377 Breyer Gebäudereinigung GmbH Germany Support Services www.k-breyer.de 55 378 Antica Ditta Marchisio SpA Italy Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.mattioligioielli.it 54 379 Koopman Holding BV Netherlands Transport, Logistics www.koopman.nl 54 380 Loch Fyne Restaurants Ltd United Kingdom Tourism, Leisure, Gastronomy - Services www.lochfyne.com 54 381 denkwerk GmbH Germany IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.denkwerk.com 53 382 G2 C Environnement France Consulting, Management Services www.g2c.fr 53 383 Maschinenbau Silberhorn GmbH Germany Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.maschinenbau-silberhorn.de 52 384 In Tech Medical France Biotechnology, Health www.intech-medical.com 52 385 ILOG SA France IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.ilog.fr 52 386 Prolainat France Food, Beverages - Manufacturing www.prolainat.com 51 387 Mürdter Dvorak nastrojarna, spol.s.r.o. Czech Republic Automotive - Manufacturing www.muerdter.cz 51 388 Technosert Electronic GmbH Austria IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.technosert.com 51 389 B.V. Gerritse Groep Netherlands Construction, Real Estate www.gerritse.nl 50 390 Stichting Sint Maartenskliniek Netherlands Biotechnology, Health www.maartenskliniek.nl 50 391 Hickman Industries Ltd United Kingdom Construction, Real Estate www.national-hickman.com 50 392 Central Telecom Uk Ltd United Kingdom IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.central-telecom.co.uk 49 393 Dino Lift Oy Finland Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.dinolift.com 49 394 Creuzot Michel SA France Financial Services, Legal Services www.mcreuzot.com 49 395 Dibaq-Diproteg SA Spain Food, Beverages - Manufacturing www.dibaq.com 49 396 CS Trans s.r.o. Czech Republic Transport, Logistics www.cstrans.cz 47 397 Hiolle Industries France Support Services www.hiolle-industries.com 47 398 Scaltel AG Germany IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.scaltel.de 47 399 Kistenpfennig AG Germany IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.kuki.de 46 400 3 Step It Oy Finland IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.3stepit.com 45 401 Strama-MPS Maschinenbau GmbH & Co KG Germany Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.strama-mps.de 44 402 TTTech Computertechnik AG Austria IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.tttech.com 42 403 SCP Holding BV Netherlands IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.scpartners.com 41 404 Soc De Transports Routiere International France Transport, Logistics www.prevoststri.com 41 405 Eustema SpA Italy IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.eustema.it 41 406 Sabaf SpA Italy Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.sabaf.it 41 407 S & L Mediengruppe Germany Consulting, Management Services www.slmedien.de 41 408 Doll Fahrzeugbau GmbH Germany Automotive - Manufacturing www.doll-oppenau.com 41 409 Endress + Hauser Wetzer GmbH & Co KG Germany IT - Manufacturing www.wetzer.endress.com 40 410 Primavera Business Software Solutions SA Portugal IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.primaverabss.com 40 411 Targetti Sankey SpA Italy Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.targetti.com 39 412 Autointermediates Ltd t/a UKIP Media & Events United Kingdom Media www.ukintpress.com 38 413 nicko tours GmbH Germany Tourism, Leisure, Gastronomy - Services www.nicko-tours.de 38 414 Adu Oktatási Központ Hungary Education, Training - Services www.adu-csepel.hu 38 415 Version One Ltd United Kingdom IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.versionone.co.uk 37 416 Tilman Belgium Biotechnology, Health www.tilman.be 37 417 M and M Direct Ltd United Kingdom Retail www.mandmdirect.com 37 418 Contec Steuerungstechnik u. Automation GmbH Austria IT - Manufacturing www.contec.at 36 419 i-level Ltd United Kingdom Consulting, Management Services www.i-level.com 35 420 NexTReT Spain IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.nextret.net 35 421 Newsphone Hellas SA Greece IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.newsphone.gr 35 422 StatPro Group Plc United Kingdom IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.statpro.com 35 423 S2M Société De Mécanique Magnétique France Automotive - Manufacturing www.s2m.fr 34 424 Compin France Transport, Logistics www.compin.com 34 425 Sum France Automotive - Manufacturing www.sum76.fr 34 426 Syncera BV Netherlands Consulting, Management Services www.syncera.nl 34 427 Gebr. van ´t Hek BV Netherlands Construction, Real Estate www.vanthek.nl 33 428 KDL Trans NV Belgium Transport, Logistics www.kdltrans.be 32 429 Automobiles Dangel France Automotive - Manufacturing www.dangel.com 32 430 Trepesch GmbH Germany Support Services www.trepesch.de 32 431 Optima Srl Italy Food, Beverages - Manufacturing www.mec3.it 32 432 ARCONT IP Slovenia Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.arcont-ip.si 31 433 Emailvision France IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.emailvision.com 31 434 BSC Praha, spol. s.r.o. Czech Republic IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.bsc.cz 31
Rank Company Company Business Sector Website Birch Index Headquarters
Latvia, with a population of 2.2
million and situated between
Russia, Estonia and Lithuania,
is a challenger to the United
States, at least in the coffee
chain market. Double Coffee is
the largest chain in the Baltic
area and is the local answer
to Starbucks. However, Nick
Ustinov, the CEO of Double
Coffee, remains modest with what
appears already as a success. “Success
is something we will be referring to after
four or five more years of operations. Do
not forget we are only four years old, so
it’s a little bit too early to speak about
‘success’.”
Nick Ustinov and Sergei Pushnoy founded
Double Coffee in September 2002 in
Riga, and rapidly extended their reach to
Lithuania and Estonia. “The factors which
have helped us to achieve that, besides
the hard work we have invested, could be
being in the right place at the right time.
The market was ready for a chain of high-
level service coffee shops,” says Ustinov.
This explains the rapid development of
Double Coffee, with now 45 shops cove-
ring the Baltic region.
The company grew to 457 employees in
2005, with a turnover of EUR 4.6 million
in Latvia. The potential for further growth
is high. “The only way to ensure proper
expansion from our point of view is to
look at new European markets. The Baltic
region is too small and we don’t see much
expansion possibilities here,” explains
Ustinov.
The competition is rising. Italian Illy has
also identified the need for a high-quality
coffee chain and is rolling out its 120
Espressamente Bars in Western coun-
tries. However, Double Coffee is targe-
ting a different region. “Our geographical
location allows us to easily manage the
Ukrainian market. We see a lot of potential
there. At the beginning of 2007 we will
open our first outlet in Belarus as well.
The plan is to open over 80 coffee shops
in Ukraine and Belarus in next the next 4
to 5 years,” declares Ustinov.
Double Coffee offers 50 different types of
coffee, as well as cakes, cocktails, break-
fast and snacks. The company is willing
to deliver quality and an atmosphere to its
customers. “There are many challenges
of course, and they differ from country to
country,” says Ustinov. The main preoccu-
pation of the management is thus to ensure
this quality by always bringing on board
good employees and excellent locations.
Double Coffee is first and foremost proof
that when there is a challenge and the will
to rise to it, then there is room for success.
Ustinov’s advice to would-be entrepreneurs
is “...never give up, of course, the main
asset in any business is the will to achieve
something and to do something. If you
do not have a ‘battery’ powerful enough
to finish the job, you will never achieve
anything - neither in growth or your life.”
C.D.
thE LatVian alternativeCoffee? Yes, a Latvian one. Synonymous with quality, in a world where Nespresso has imposed this beverage as a luxury, Double Coffee is master of the Baltic region. Europe next?
dC hoLding a/s (“double Coffee”):key facts & figuresranking: 26th | industry: Retail | turnover growth (2002-2005): 2,500% | Employment growth (2002-2005): 700% | Not listed
51
winner’s profile e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0
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continued on page 53
52
e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0 winner’s profile
Slovenia, population
2 million, has a fast
growing retailer
ranked in the top
30 of Europe’s 500
fastest growing
companies. The
company opened its
first store in 1989,
the year the Berlin
Wall fell. Since then, EngroTUS has
grown with a unique motto: customer
satisfaction. In a country still belonging
to former Yugoslavia, where customers
had to line up to buy meagre supplies of
goods and food, this has been a revol-
utionary policy.
The mission statement of the company is
as simple as the execution can be compli-
cated: “to offer customers a wide range
of products at the best possible value,
high-quality goods and kind service.” The
group started as a retailer, but soon also
became the owner of its shops and deve-
loped shopping malls to offer an all-in-one
location for shopping. Planet Tuš, in Celje,
offers 3,500 m² of shopping space, 45
shops and 8 cinema halls.
To achieve these targets, the company
puts the quality of its relations with its
employees and customers first. The social
aims of the company are even mentioned
explicitly on its website to show that
EngroTUS is committed to its stakehol-
ders, as a non-listed company: “We would
like to create a flexible system for indivi-
duals as well as our business.”
Learning from Western retail marketing
techniques, EngroTUS has developed its
own private label for goods: Aneta and
Tus. This allows EngroTUS to capture
further value from the sale of products by
colonising the value chain.
EngroTUS believes its path to success is
made of:
1. an ambitious investment strategy
2. a reasonable level of debt
3. the import of best practices from
abroad and adapting them to the local
environment
4. the recognition and adaptation to
regional distinctiveness by caring for the
local needs of customers
5. an openness to ideas which are emer-
ging from within the company.
These principles have helped this retailer,
addressing a market the size of a city in
other countries, to achieve a turnover of
EUR 453 million in 2005.
C.D.
sustainable rEtaiLMaking retailing synonymous with best in class stakeholder manage-ment seems to have been the aim of EngroTUS. The pay out? Triple digit growth and a ranking at 30th.
Engrotus d.o.o.key facts & figuresranking: 30th | industry: Retail | turnover growth (2002-2005): 105% | Employment growth (2002-2005): 109% | Not listed
5�
listing e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0
435 Gruppo Manni HP Italy Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.gruppomanni.it 30 436 HMS Networks AB Sweden IT Services, Information and Communcation Technologies www.hms.se 30 437 Transports Logistique Services SA Belgium Transport, Logistics www.tls-be.com 30 438 Barkawi & Partner GmbH & Co KG Germany Consulting, Management Services www.barkawi.com 28 439 Phönix SonnenStrom AG Germany Energy, Mining, Utilities www.SonnenStromAG.de 27 440 Vetreria Etrusca Srl Italy Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.vetreriaetrusca.it 27 441 Occasio d.o.o. Slovenia Tourism, Leisure, Gastronomy - Services www.sonchek.com 27 442 Scilm SpA Italy Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.scilm.it 27 443 Ind.I.A. SpA Italy Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.arteferro.com 26 444 Omr SpA Italy Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.omrspa.com 25 445 Agricultural Poultry Cooperative Of Arta Llc Greece Agriculture, Fisheries n/a 25 446 Haas & Czjzek - Prvni Porcelanova Manufaktura v Cechach, spol. s r.o. Czech Republic Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.haasczjzek.cz 25 447 Comptoir Vendeen De L´Artisan Plombier France Construction, Real Estate www.covap.fr 25 448 Keros Ceramica SA Spain Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.keros.com 25 449 Kürt Hungary IT Services, Information and Communcation Technologies www.kurt.hu 25 450 UC4 Software GmbH Austria IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.uc4.com 25 451 SBB Accountants & Adviseurs Belgium Financial Services, Legal Services www.sbb.be 24 452 Modus Group Ltd United Kingdom Construction, Real Estate www.modusgroup.com 24 453 G.S.E. Ground Support Equipment Srl Italy Transport, Logistics n/a 23 454 Janavalo Oy Finland Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.janavalo.fi 23 455 Mediteam/Visit Ambulante Pflege GmbH & Co KG/FPB Aktiengesellschaft Germany Biotechnology, Health www.mediteam.de 23 456 NICOMATIC France IT - Manufacturing www.nicomatic.com 22 457 William Cox Ireland Ltd Ireland Construction, Real Estate www.williaamcox.ie 21 458 Logos Group Italy IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.logos.net 21 459 Stagecoach Theatre Arts Plc United Kingdom Education, Training - Services www.stagecoach.co.uk 21 460 ATEME France IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.ateme.com 21 461 Era A.S. Czech Republic IT - Manufacturer www.era.cz 20 462 ConSol Software GmbH Germany IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.consol.de 20 463 SIV.AG Germany IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.siv.de 20 464 Unicer - Distribuição De Bebidas SA Portugal Food, Beverages - Manufacturing www.unicer.pt 19 465 Roxtec AB Sweden Chemical, Plastics - Manufacturing www.roxtec.com 19 466 B&T SpA Italy Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.dorelan.com 19 467 Karl Krestel Gastronomische Betriebe eK Germany Tourism, Leisure, Gastronomy - Services www.sudhausnuernberg.de 18 468 Autostop SA Greece Automotive - Manufacturing www.autostop.gr 18 469 Okregowa Spoldzielnia Mleczarska W Sokolowie Podlaskim Poland Food, Beverages - Manufacturing www.osmsokolow.pl 17 470 AUBEMA Crushing Technology GmbH Germany Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.aubema.com 16 471 B + S Ingenieur AG Switzerland Construction, Real Estate www.bs-ing.ch 16 472 Technocover Ltd United Kingdom Support Services www.technocover.co.uk 16 473 IBITEC AB Sweden IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.ibitec.se 15 474 Izoterm - Plama D.D. Slovenia Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.izoterm-plama.si 15 475 Bruyerre SA Belgium Food, Beverages - Manufacturing www.bruyerre.be 14 476 Nabaltec GmbH Germany Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.nabaltec.de 14 477 Pieron GmbH Germany Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.pieron.de 13 478 Zech Gruppe Austria Construction, Real Estate www.zechfenster.com 13 479 Alacer Mas SA Spain Retail www.alacermas.com 12 480 ANAGNOSTARAS Bros SA Greece Construction, Real Estate www.anagnostaras.gr 11 481 Sinfo Pragma Spa Italy IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.sinfopragma.it 10 482 Ifr France France IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.ifr.aero 9 483 Cybit Holdings Plc United Kingdom IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.cybit.co.uk 9 484 Tibard Ltd United Kingdom Textiles, Clothing, Footwear - Manufacturing www.tibard.co.uk 9 485 Dragenopharm Apotheker Püschl GmbH Germany Biotechnology, Health www.dragenopharm.de 8 486 Agrico SA Poland Food, Beverages - Manufacturing www.agrico.com.pl 8 487 Alessanderx SpA Italy Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.magniflex.com 7 488 Riviere Transports France Transport, Logistics www.riviere-transports.fr 7 489 United Labels AG Germany Retail www.unitedlabels.com 6 490 Sulpasteis - Comércio e Industria Produtos Alimentares Congelados, Lda Portugal Food, Beverages - Manufacturing www.harrowhouse.com 5 491 Harrow House International College (Swanage) Ltd United Kingdom Education, Training - Services www.sulpasteis.com 5 492 Videor Technical E. Hartig GmbH Germany IT Services, Information and communication services www.videortechnical.com 5 493 Bertin Technologies France Biotechnology, Health www.bertin.fr 5 494 UNIMERCO GROUP A/S Denmark Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.unimerco.com 5 495 SAS De Buyer Industries France Steel, Metals - Manufacturing www.debuyer.com 3 496 Itesoft France IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.itesoft.com 3 497 Coremain SL Spain IT Services, Information and Communication Technologies www.coremain.com 3 498 Akaba SA Spain Consumer Goods - Manufacturing www.akaba.net 2 499 Housing Cooperative Nasz Dom Poland Construction, Real Estate www.naszdom.radom.pl 2 500 Hologram Industries France IT - Manufacturing www.hologram-industries.com 1
Rank Company Company Business Sector Website Birch Index Headquarters
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e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0
In this year’s Europe’s 500, we see
the resurgence of the IT sector in
Europe. Web 2.0 is here to stay. It
shows us that while IT and consul-
ting are considered a sector apart,
they have become an integral part
of every organization, from “old
economy” sectors such as trans-
portation and agriculture, to new
economy stalwarts such as biotech.
IT and consulting companies make up
the lion’s share of the companies on the
list. European companies, however, are
active across a wide spectrum of sectors,
most notably, biotech, engineering and
the automotive sectors.
The geographical diversity of the compa-
nies that make up this year’s list is a clear
representation of Europe as a whole, with
the five largest economies making up
more than 60% of the list and bringing in
65% of 2005 turnover. The new members
of the community to the East and others
are a varied lot, although many demons-
trate some strong characteristics in terms
of productivity per employee and job
growth.
Germany remains the heavyweight with
109 companies and EUR 25 billion (26.8%
of the total) in sales in 2005. The UK
with its 72 companies comes second,
although its sales at EUR 12.5 billion
come in just below Italy whose 44 compa-
nies turned over EUR 13 billion. French
companies number 55, more than Italy’s,
yet their sales lagged behind the UK’s at
just under EUR 5 billion. Ireland, although
only having 9 (1.8%) companies in the
list, came in punching above its weight
with EUR 6.7 billion, representing 7% of
total sales.
The Europe’s 500 growth companies seem
to be debunking much of the conven-
tional wisdom about the malaise of many
of its members, most notably Germany,
France and Italy. It seems entrepreneurs
in biotech, IT, and service businesses of
all kinds have picked up the slack left by
many of the family-owned manufacturers
facing the fiercely competitive pressure of
the emerging economies of Asia.
Entrepreneurs from these countries have
decided that their comparative advan-
forGinG ahEadAnalysing the trends in Europe’s fast growth
tage lies in their expertise in sectors such as
biotech, electrical engineering or specialty
machinery. Other areas in which we see high
growth rates is in the design and production
of automotive and alternative energy tech-
nologies, as well as in consumer and luxury
goods. Alongside these companies have
appeared growing numbers of consulting and
IT firms catering specifically to these sectors
and drawing on the same human capital to
develop and expand.
The key ingredient to the success of these
companies, whether in life sciences, enginee-
ring, IT or consulting, seems to be the rich
human and intellectual capital available to
them. Although much has been said about the
ailments of the educational establishment in
Europe and more definitely needs to be done
to improve the risk taking nature of today’s
European university students, we continue
to see cutting edge European firms. It is by
harnessing these strengths that Europe’s 500
growth companies will be able to profit in
today’s global economy and become tomor-
row’s leaders.
Daniel J. Macias
dmacias@market500.eu
5�
e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0 Opinion editor
The geographical diver-
sity of the companies that
make up this year’s list is
a clear representation of
Europe as a whole.
ENTREPRENEURS:
STARTYOURENGINES
The Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO) – for entrepreneurs only – is a global community that enriches members’ lives through direct peer-to-peer learning, connections to experts and once-in-a-lifetime experiences. EO is the catalyst that enables entrepreneurs to learn from each other, leading to greater business success and an enriched personal life.
We are the catalyst that enables Europe’s top entrepreneurs to learn and grow.
A global networkEO has chapters in eight European countries and 6,400 members in 41 countries worldwide.
For more information on EO or to apply for membership, visit www.eonetwork.org or call +1.703.519.6700. +49 30 280 998 31
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56
m a n a g e m e n t focus
In all likelihood a majority of small-
and medium-sized enterprise
owners and decision-makers have
asked themselves at least once “do
we really need to grow?” Asking
“what if we do not?” is not so
frequent. Neither all businesses nor
all entrepreneurs want to grow or
are capable of doing so. However,
in today’s flat and “small” world,
in a progressively more extensive global
community where the central differential
factor in comparison with other precedent
times of profound paradigmatic change
are the challenges that arise from the
speed of change and the level of inter-
connectivity, two main issues come into
view as possible consequences. One is
the most likely increase of the relative
vulnerability of the business vis-à-vis its
current and potential competitors as well
as in the eyes of its customers. The other
is the higher probability of a progressive
decline of the firm’s ability to respond
to market signals and innovate, thus es-
tablishing a negative dynamic that may
well lead to its exit from the market.
There are no identical companies.
Nevertheless, all businesses face the
same type of problems which go beyond
their size or their stage of growth, and
all are subject to big transformations as
they evolve. Companies may grow or
not, get into a high-growth period, expe-
rience transitory crises and stop growing,
and then grow again and experience
decline, more than once during their life
cycle. Also many companies spend long
periods in a stagnant or static situation.
A stagnant situation does not generate
any value, employment or wealth whatso-
ever. But it might well be an opportunity
for many companies to seek and find a
possible path to future growth. The fact
that a company shows low growth or no
growth during a long period of time does
not necessarily mean that it is not capable
of growing again in the future.
Whatever happens the reasons for not
growing may be multiple, ranging from
the lack of ambition of their owners or
decision-makers, to unfavourable condi-
tions in the market or segment where the
firm operates, or a limited management
team or the pressure of competition, etc.
Stagnancy cycles can be present in any of
the stages of development of a company.
But “not moving” during a lengthy period
of time may ultimately mean putting the
whole project on the edge of collapse (as
may be the case for a young company),
or to enter a stage of progressive decline
while others take advantage of the oppor-
tunities in the market (as may be the case
for more established companies).
The real problem with no growth or low
growth is that it is not a good strategy
in the long run. For most companies the
growth challenge is there to stay. There
is no a “supernatural” force that allows
a firm to grow and survive over time. In
practice firms have to be able to make
progress and grow if they intend to stay
in the market. Frequently this challenge
may develop into a reality check between
“grow or exit”, or even “grow for not
exiting”, depending on the firm’s context
and peculiarities.
Still for many young and established firms,
the “grow-or-go” trade-off, far from being
a di-lemma, can be —under determined
circumstances— an opportunity to study
an exit option through a sale process well
before being forced to “go” with low or no
sustaining GrowthSome managerial pitfalls to avoid *
57
focus m a n a g e m e n t
value at all. While there are many unambi-
guous reasons to grow, there may also be
many reasons to sell (often not sufficiently
distinguished or explicitly assumed by
the decision-makers involved). In the end
there is no such trade-off as grow or go
(or sell): if firms mean to grow, they should
be able to grow well, and if they mean to
sell, they should be able to sell well, but
what they should never do is both not
grow and not sell.
If we turn our attention to the manage-
rial challenges specifically connected to
high growth, we see that it is not only
tough to achieve but extremely difficult
to maintain. Leaving aside environmental
conditions, growth success is greatly
influenced by internal factors such as
strategy, access to resources, leadership
style and management approaches and
performance. While there is no unique
managerial approach to address this type
of problem, it is clear that high growth
calls for the need to accomplish substan-
tial transformations in structures, systems
and competences to deal with the high
complexity that is triggered in the organi-
zation as a result of this.
The literature on high growth firms’ attri-
butes and performance, particularly
focussing on the internal factors directly
affecting their capability to generate and
sustain fast growth, reveals that these
companies are especially effective in
addressing many of these difficulties. This
ca-pability is generally linked to factors
primarily associated with the profile of
their founders or management teams,
with particular business practices, with
specific organizational and culture attri-
butes of the firm, and with people mana-
gement. A first insight is that leading
a firm to rapid growth can be seen as
a management challenge equivalent to
other managerial challenges that deci-
sion-makers may face along a specific
development path.
In the end, sustainable and profitable
growth has little to do with management
fads and trends at certain points in time.
The observation of the experience of
many entrepreneurial firms in light of
high-growth forums and networks all over
Europe and much of the existing research
in the field point out the importance of
keeping focus on the creation of value
for shareholders, employees and clients
if companies want to meet their growth
dreams and sustain it over long periods
of time.
High-growth entrepreneurs know well how
to decipher the signals they receive from
their employees and their customers and
respond to their needs and wants. This
in turn leads to the creation of higher
value in the long run. They are masters in
combining a focused strategic business
approach with the ability to move fast
enough to take advantage of business
growth opportunities and address those
problems that may be a threat to the
firm’s sustainability in the long run. To
achieve it they pragmatically assess what
the existing businesses can deliver and
what level of management attention they
need, and they are simultaneously able
to perform a clear-headed assessment
High-growth entrepre-
neurs know well how
to decipher the signals
they receive from their
employees and their
customers and respond
to their needs and wants.
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* A full version of this article, “The ‘growth dream’: Challenges and managerial pitfalls to avoid” by Juan Roure and Luis Segurado, is to be published in Entrepreneurship in the Netherlands: Ninth Edition, EIM Business & Policy Research, 2006 (currently in press).
58
m a n a g e m e n t focus
of the opportunities that exist to enter
new businesses and to evaluate whether
these opportunities fit the firm’s existing
resources and capabilities.
However, while there are many good
examples of highly dynamic entrepreneu-
rial companies that have been able to
generate and sustain rapid growth, and
even to do so in a profitable manner, the
real story is they are the exception, not the
rule. The growth challenge takes place on
a continuum and companies move along it
at different speeds as a result of their stra-
tegic choices, the impact of the industry
structure or a combination of both. But in
any case, from an entrepreneurial mana-
gement perspective, it is as important to
recognize where the company actually is
along this development continuum as to
identify the kind of transformations that are
required at the personal and the organiza-
tional level to deal with the stage of growth
in question.
While it can be said that many exis-
ting businesses can not grow forever,
the perception is that a great number
of companies (often more than would
be desirable) are not able to achieve
their full growth potential. The observa-
tion, knowledge and information exchange
between high-growth firms in different
programs, forums and networks of entre-
preneurial dynamic en-terprises such as
the European Growth Plus Association or
the Entrepreneur of the Year Award, as
well as the contributions of some specific
research work and surveys based on diffe-
rent entrepreneurial firms, reveal that there
seem to be some managerial pitfalls that
may have an impact on the ability of firms
to follow the path to growth generation and
sustainability. Some of the observed highly
interconnected managerial deficits mostly
have to do with the lack of entrepreneu-
rial ambition, the lack of focus, the lack
of an internalized opportunity screening
process, the lack of a proactive growth-
driven approach to funding, the lack of a
superior management team, the lack of an
active governance system, and the lack of
a flexible approach for implementing new
growth options and ownership structures.
The chances for success of new growth
initiatives in any company are very
complex even when they are based on
the best business ideas. To accomplish
this successfully, high potential compa-
nies should move on a more conscious
self-assessment of managerial growth-
related fronts. They should start by asking
themselves how powerful their ambition
is to make that dream real, how focused
their business is while selectively explo-
ring new growth options, how effective
the tool in place to systematically screen
these opportunities on a regular basis is;
how completed and balanced the current
management team for growth is, how
active the governance process that adds
value to the strategic choices is; and
how flexible they are to approaching new
growth options other than organic growth
as well as different ownership structures
to implement them.
The real challenge for every company to
sustain growth over time lies in the ability
of either would-be directors or existing
corporate directors of growth firms to
avoid these managerial pitfalls and to
disseminate knowledge and best prac-
tices. In this sense the next Europe’s 500
Growth Summit to be held in May 2007
at IESE Business School in Barcelona is
certainly a promising platform to exchange
and gain knowledge and information on
these as well as other related topics
from high growth “practitioners” in Europe
directly. It will be also a good opportunity
to debate once more the importance of
quality entrepreneurship at the public
and private levels. Examples include how
to increase the social recognition of high-
growth entrepreneurial role models and
their contributions, how to further increase
the current alignment of policy-makers
and key social agents to lead the cultural
change needed, and how to enhance the
direct public support of entrepreneurial
high-growth networks and associations
in order to increase both the value of
the networks themselves and the value
and advice their members receive at all
levels (for example training in high-growth
practices, formal and informal forums of
“high growers”, mentoring and funding
sources, business transition and trans-
fers, local support services, corporate
(and family) governance, corporate entre-
preneurship, etc.).
Because of their real contribution to
employment and wealth creation, dynamic
entrepreneurial firms have become them-
selves a target of public policy agenda
of many countries in Europe. Others are
increasingly the object of policy-makers’
intention to integrate them as a signifi-
cant component of their entrepreneurship
policy. But entrepreneurial companies
can also be a highly effective tool to
spread a more conducive culture toward
entrepreneurship in society. In this regard
there still seems to be a long way to
go for both private and public layers in
terms of the building of the necessary
“intangible” infrastructure to bring cultural
change to fruition along with the more
“tangible” infrastructure already in place
in the policy agenda of many countries.
Exchanging knowledge, experiences and
information between high growth peers
appears to be a highly valuable tool in
attaining this decisive goal of continuing
cultural change.
Juan Roure
jroure@market500.eu
Because of their real
contribution to employ-
ment and wealth creation,
dynamic entrepreneurial
firms have become
themselves a target of
public policy
JUIN
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61
Learning m a n a g e m e n t
V irtually every
profession has a
support network;
an opportunity
to exchange
i n f o r m a t i o n ,
contacts, and
ideas; a chance
to compare notes
and worry aloud.
But top CEOs need something more—a
multilateral, mutually duty-bound group of
peers with whom they can talk frankly and
express ideas they might not be ready
to share with their senior management
teams. And these peers must be trus-
tworthy and discreet, experienced and
committed. A tall order? Perhaps.
But CEO-Collaborative Forum (CEO-
CF) founder Dave Darsch has done it
anyway. And done it well. His CEO-CF
groups bring together the chief execu-
tives of high growth companies across
the European Union. Darsch and partner
Lisa Macdonald accept members based
on their company and career profiles and
on their potential to offer maximum value
to the other participants.
This pan-European CEO network—the first
of its kind—gives some of the world’s most
dynamic chief executives a forum away
from the office to focus on vital goals with
world-class peers who have experienced
many of the same challenges. Members
discuss critical business issues, present
specific challenges, and integrate the
feedback into their strategies.
The basic concept of a CEO forum is not
new. More than 10,000 CEOs represen-
ting more than one million employees
and more than $300 billion in assets
participate in forums worldwide. In fact,
forums have a formidable track record.
Research shows that companies headed
by CEOs who belong to forums grow
at five times the average of small- to
medium-sized businesses headed by
non-forum CEOs.
What distinguishes CEO-CF is its refined
model. Darsch and Macdonald take
extraordinary care in the composition
of each of the three distinct groups that
comprise CEO-CF, working closely with
every member to understand individual
goals and the company’s outlook for
growth. They also make sure that no two
members are marketplace competitors.
The intimacy of the CEO-CF experience
is unique among such forums. Because
the groups are small and tight-knit—12 to
14 members in each—the bond between
members is strong. The foundation of the
CEO-CF model is the Member Challenge,
a specific issue that each CEO brings
to every forum meeting that receives
CEo-CoLLaBoratiVE forumThe EU’s fast lane CEOs find a valuable pitstop.
Research shows that companies headed by CEOs
who belong to forums grow at five times the average
of small-to medium-sized businesses headed by
non-forum CEOs.
Banking Awards
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m a n a g e m e n t Learning
a dedicated hour of intense discussion
within the group. It’s co-processing to the
twelfth power with an elite peer group.
“The best part of being a member of the
CEO Collaborative Forum is that we know
each other,” notes Rui Paiva, CEO of
WeDo Consulting based in Lisbon. “We
have forged a connection and a network
to exchange ideas.”
The forums sustain their impact between
face-to-face meetings with the CEO-CF
E-Forum™ and Mid Forum Connect™,
a global telephone connection during
which members make commitments
and provide assistance to one another.
These complimentary tools give Darsch
and Macdonald the ability to monitor
the needs of members and bring in
appropriate specialists to address the
groups during their three-day forums,
which take place every few months
in European locales like Mallorca and
Budapest.
Darsch describes CEO forums as having
multiple levels of value. “CEO-CF is a
component of the worldwide CEO forum
community, which is enhancing both
the knowledge and the collaborative
spirit of the international community of
chief executives. And CEO-CF offers an
invaluable lifeline to high-growth CEOs
across the EU. On an up-close and
personal level, the forum helps individual
CEOs design and develop strategy and
deliver results in a hyper-competitive
marketplace.”
of the members themselves. A full 30% have
experienced IPO exits. More than 25% appear
on the Europe 500 list of fastest growing compa-
nies. Many have been recognized by Deloitte’s
Fast 500 and have appeared on the Inc. 500
list. Several have won or were finalists in the
E&Y “Entrepreneur of the Year” program.
Darsch and Macdonald are able to deliver
value to these talented CEOs because they
are immersed in their world. Headquartered
in Barcelona, Darsch is an internationally
respected CEO, board member, business
consultant, and advisor and sits on the boards
of directors of several companies. He founded
and managed a privately held software company
in the Washington, DC area from 1979 until its
acquisition by a systems integrator in 1996. The
firm made the Inc. 500 list of fastest growing
companies in America and was widely reco-
gnized as one of the few firms in the high-tech
market to experience both explosive growth
and longevity without external capital.
Macdonald, based in the Washington, DC
area, is a management consultant for execu-
tive level human resources and healthcare
administration. With two decades of expe-
rience in the healthcare field, including human
resources, finance and clinical care, she
assists organisations with change manage-
ment, accelerated growth, and acquisitions
and mergers from a human relations pers-
pective. Her healthcare finance background
has benefited many member CEOs who are
targeting the US market for medical devices
or pharmaceuticals. To learn more about CEO-
CF, visit www.ceo-cf.com.
Murielle Delucinge
mdelucinge@market500.eu
“While being in this CEO forum may not
help me predict the future, it allows me
to be able to see it better and be more
prepared for it.”
Marien van Ouwerkerk, mBalance,
Netherlands
“I am very satisfied with the dynamics
of the group—the opportunity to get to
know each other and discuss deep and
significant issues in such an open way
without hidden agendas. A lot of personal
learning has occurred that will impact my
company greatly. This is much more
powerful than a three-week session at
INSEAD. It is real life.”
Jeremy Goulding, ARTiSAN, UK
On an up-close and
personal level, the forum
helps individual CEOs
design and develop stra-
tegy and deliver results
in a hyper-competitive
marketplace.
High-growth, venture-backed CEOs face
intense pressure to deliver success,
Darsch says. “Giving them a forum desi-
gned just for them allows them to talk over
solutions with peers who are facing the
same challenges. It’s a lifeline many of
them have come to rely on.”
Participants attribute much of the value
of CEO-CF to the care, skill and passion
that Darsch and Macdonald invest in the
forums. “CEO-CF has done an outstan-
ding job putting together the group,” says
Nicolas Hassbjer, CEO of HMS Industrial
Networks AB in Sweden. “I am really
impressed by the combined knowledge
and experience of our team of CEOs.”
In this, Hassbjer raises one of CEO-CF’s
pivotal benefits—the world-class quality
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h u m a n r e s o u r c e s recruitment
Traditional human
resources strategies
do not work! We
need to be proactive
and not reactive if
we are going to hire
A Players who give
us high ROI.
Top talented people
are true assets for our business and not
simply transactions; forget about the cost-
per-hire and start thinking about the ROI
of human capital you will get if you hire the
A Player. A Players hire more A Players; C
Players hire more C Players – what type of
company do you want?
In 1999 I started my research to educate
and help managers and executives
become more human-capital focused.
That is when I started to put the pieces
together of the Human Capital Lifecycle
(HCL). I started assessing top companies
around the world like Siebel Systems
founded by Tom Siebel, which was
growing rapidly and is quoted as one
of the fastest growing companies in the
world. I tracked Google from 1999, when
I met Sergey Brin, one of the co-founders,
at a technology forum in the UK.
What did these companies have in common?
How did they manage their human capital
and seem to hire A Players consistently
when their competitors struggled?
Looking at these companies less than
10 years later Siebel Systems broke the
billion dollar sales mark and then sold
out to Oracle – their biggest competitor.
As for Google, at the time of writing this
article, their share price broke USD 500
per share. I had a chance to meet with
Sergey Brin again at a conference in the
USA in 2005. This time I was shaking
hands with a young man who was worth
over USD 7.5 billion dollars, an amount
which has nearly doubled since then.
The Human Capital Lifecycle has fifteen
key elements in which the CEO of today’s
landscape needs to be actively involved
and manage in order to build a lean,
fast growing and prosperous long-term
company.
The first area is about creating a strategic
workforce plan and clearly understanding
the type of top talented people we need
short-term and long-term to achieve our
objectives and vision. Only after this is
complete can we then focus on other
elements like finding & identifying top
talent, attracting top talent and inter-
viewing top talent.
We will explore these three areas in future
issues of Market500. But for now let’s
first understand the difference between
A Players, B Players and C Players and
who you really want to hire. It all starts by
understanding the magic hiring formula-
T x E2. The first part stands for “Talent”.
Would you agree everyone is born with
some degree of talent? Some people
discover it from a young age, some later
on in life between the age of 45 to 55,
and some unfortunately keep it hidden
and never explore it or use it and then die
feeling unfulfilled.
Now what about the second part - E2?
Think about the most successful people
you know at all levels of a company, from
achievinG hiGh roi By hiring ”a” pLayErsAre you hiring A Players, B Players or C Players? Are you getting a significant return-on-investment (ROI) from your human capital?
65
recruitment h u m a n r e s o u r c e s
the receptionist to a senior manager. What
do all these people have in common?
What traits? What patterns? What beha-
viours? Whenever I am speaking at major
conferences or in-house seminars for
organisations, I ask these questions and
always get back different words from the
audience.
After reaching some 100,000 people over
the past five years, I would say that
there are over 1,000 words out their
that describe “success“. Most of the
words used are really describing a form
of “energy”. Determination, ambition,
hardworking, commitment, enthusiasm,
passion and positive are all forms of
energy, so the second part of our formula
summarizes all these traits with Energy2
or E2 meaning Energy traits and more
than one. So we have a final formula – T x
E2. Let’s see how this works with the three
types of players in the world.
the C Player is someone who has some
(+) (-) Talent but zero (-) (-) Energy2,
meaning they lack the self-motivation to
ever be successful. But you can some-
times see some glimpses of genius and
their talent. These people are the ones
you have to keep motivating and the
ones that never give you true ROI. In fact,
they always cost you more money. the B
Player is someone who has some (+) (-)
Talent, just like the C player, but has (+)
(+) Energy2 in abundance; they have lots
and lots of self-motivation and energy,
and sometimes work harder than anyone
else in the team as they know they don’t
have any serious talent or uniqueness.
I remember interviewing former world rally
champion, and he said he always felt like
a B Player as he always worked harder
than everyone else but felt others had
more talent than him – but he became
world champion. B players are great to
have in the company and can give you a
healthy ROI.
So what about the A players? the A Player
is someone who has discovered what their
true strengths are inner talents – I call
it their DNA – they have unleashed it! It
unleashes when someone has tried lots of
different jobs, tasks, projects and careers
and suddenly wakes up one day and
confirms to themselves that this is what
they are excellent at and what they want to
do – this thing gives them complete fulfil-
ment and personal satisfaction.
The A players have lots of (+) (+) Talent
and they have a tremendous amount of
(+) (+) Energy2. That is why these people
become the very best at what they do and
are in the top 3% of their profession. The
best sales people in the world are in this
player category, the best nurses, the best
drivers, the best researchers and the best
educators.
If we were to apply the 80-20 principle
to our player categories, then 80% of
the world’s population would fall into the
C Player category and the remaining
20% in the A and B Player category.
This means we have nearly 1.4 billion
people to choose from to find and
attract into our business who would give
us a great ROI.
The best companies I have seen are
achieving a minimum of 10x the salary
they are paying their employees. Imagine
paying EUR 20,000 and receiving back
EUR 200,000. This is the norm with hiring
A Players, as they have the potential
and capacity to do this. Now obviously
it depends on your type of business and
market place, and the margins that are
possible; however, saying all that I have
still seen A Players achieve miracles in
a market place which is tight or over
crowded with competitors.
So, from now on, get clear on the type of
players you want to be bringing into the
business. In future editions of Market500,
we will explore the other areas of the
Human Capital Lifecycle and how you
can effectively find, attract and interview
top talent. In the interim, if you have any
further questions or would like to enquire
more about this subject matter, expert
speeches and seminars, contact our
human capital management specialist,
Mr. Reg Athwal.
Reg Athwal
rathwal@market500.eu
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t e c h n o l o g y Ideas
I have always been impressed by
how good the US society is at
making people from all corners of
the world feel at home and see the
US as their new home - the land
of opportunity. Regardless of their
ethnic origin, skin colour or religious
beliefs, you will often hear them
say (regularly in broken English),
“I am proud to be American”. Have
you ever heard anyone say the same
in Europe? I have not. On the contrary,
I have heard third generation Swedes
maintain that they are Turkish or from
other ancestral origins.
In business the Americans also have some
interesting traits. There are optimists and
they often have an ability to think big. This
is especially true in the Internet industry.
From the birth of the Internet the Americans
have been taking the lead and the height
of ambition for most European entrepre-
neurs is to be bought by an American
competitor. During the dotcom boom we
were seduced by the new models and
ideas. We started measuring our e-matu-
rity in how many American products and
services we consumed rather than in how
many European products and services
we invented and produced. Then came
the downturn. Fortunes were destroyed,
along with the dreams they were backing.
Silence reigned. The media and investors
lost interest in the bruised and battered
industry and the Americans pulled back
their troops from the strange continent
with so many languages and strange
tribes.
In the meantime something happened. It
happened in the digital mines of Silicon
Valhalla in Scandinavia, and in the shar-
pest minds in the gaming and gambling
hub of Gibraltar, and in the waking
German web 2.0 scene. It happened in
the Mecca of mobile phones – Finland,
and in France where the blog movement
grew stronger with every blog post, every
comment, every user-generated opinion.
A new breed of European companies and
entrepreneurs (even though many of the
heroes of the dotcom boom are back with
new, even bolder ideas) started to surface
and the companies they have built are no
longer built on dreams or US blueprints.
They have innovative, often disruptive,
ideas. These ideas do not focus on hype
and fast cash, like the worst examples of
the dotcom boom did, but on making the
user a little bit happier or on “delight[ing]
the user”, as Skype puts it. They are
European, often global.
While building their companies, a new
European “ecosystem” started to evolve.
An ecosystem I believe will be one of the
most important cornerstones of Europe’s
digital future. In a not too distant future
most of us will be knowledge workers,
many of us even digital workers doing
such alien tasks as producing digital furni-
ture to sell in online worlds or pursuing
athletic careers in the booming digital
sports arena.
Companies like Skype, Spain’s WiFi
company FON, Germany’s openBC,
mobile content company Jamba, Finland’s
Habbo Hotel or Sweden’s free mobile
calls service Rebtel have started to beat
the incumbents as well as the Americans
at their own game. When serial-entre-
preneurs like the Sahmwer brothers in
Germany, French blogger Loic Le Mure,
Skype founder Nicklas Zenström and
many other successful European digital
entrepreneurs exchange ideas with new
entrepreneurs and each other, something
happens. It is the same thing that made
Silicon Valley so vibrant: entrepreneurial
zeitgeist giving birth to companies like
EuropE 2.0
French Netvibes who in no time gather
millions of Europeans and succeed in
making even the largest portals tremble.
Something significant is happening. We
are seeing a new Europe evolving, a
Europe focusing on Europe, European
entrepreneurs easily manoeuvring through
the diverse cultural landscape of Europe
while striking alliances and flirting with the
growing Asian titans, India and China.
They are leveraging the fact that Europe
is ahead of the game in mobile techno-
logy and they are bringing their network
of European companies with them. For
them the question “how can we Europeans
compete with the US” is as strange as the
opposite is for an American. This new breed
of European entrepreneurs will create jobs
and wealth, inspire and make life easier,
more fun and a lot of other things with their
ideas. Maybe over time they will also make
us all say, “I am proud to be European”.
Ola Ahlvarsson
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c a s e s t u d y Barceló
Spain-based Barceló
Group is a leading
international hotel
chain. It grew from
37 establishments
in 1995 to 108 in
2005. The Barceló
Group is a singular
case showing how
an exemplary family
succession — from second generation
to third generation — can turn itself into
a true agent for the transformation of a
family business’ entrepreneurial capabili-
ties in the face of growth challenges.
the origins of the company
In the early 1930s, with his personal
savings and the help of his parents,
Simón Barceló bought his first bus for 54
euros and started a regular public shuttle
service between Felanitx and Palma de
Majorca in Spain. By 1936, he had a
fleet of four buses. His sons started to
work with him in 1940, while they were
still going to school. By the end of the
1940s, the first tourists started coming
to the island and Gabriel and Sebastián
helped their father, driving buses for day
trips from Palma de Majorca. At the end of
the 1950s, the family business started to
focus on the travel and hotel businesses.
The first step on its route to becoming an
international hotel chain years later was
the development of the first resort-type
hotel in Spain. Since then the Group has
experienced extraordinary growth while
keeping it all in the family. The third gene-
ration of Barcelós is currently leading the
business – cousins Simón Barceló Tous
and Simón Pedro Barceló Vadell are at
the head of the group.
growth opportunity: the role of the
second generation
When their grandfather passed
away in 1958, his sons, Gabriel and
Sebastián Barceló, the parents of the
current leaders, inherited the family’s
businesses. This consisted of the bus
company and the tourist agency. Their
two sisters received properties that were
part of the family estate. The family
business was split equally between the
two brothers. Gabriel took charge of
the travel agency and Sebastián ran the
transport company.
The business grew rapidly in the 1960s,
favoured by the high influx of British
and German tourists. The capacity to
absorb this flow of people was far below
demand. This led the brothers to enter the
field of hotel management, while keeping
the travel agency as their main busi-
ness. Early in the decade they started
to develop an innovative hotel concept
in terms of the architectural design and
the multiple service format that led to the
building of the 360-room Hotel Pueblo in
Palma de Majorca. The hotel was opened
in 1966. Its concept was to a large extent
69
Barceló c a s e s t u d y
the precursor of a type of hotel that
would be adopted extensively a few years
later and which led to today’s “resort”
concept.
At the same time, the brothers created
Construcciones Arte, a building company
with Sebastián Barceló at its head. The
building company’s goal was to develop
its own hotels as opportunities arose,
thus reducing costs, building time and
investment requirements. One of the
few tourism groups with its own building
company, Barceló was able to develop
products and services that helped diffe-
rentiate the brand from its competitors
and at a reasonable cost.
In the early 1970s, Barceló consisted of
various hotels with a capacity of well over
2,000 rooms. At that time they also started
to deploy an opportunistic hotel acquisi-
tion policy. Ten years later, they had built
five additional hotels and had started the
first phase of the business’ international
expansion. The expansion was completed
in 1997 with the integration into the chain
of forty additional hotels worldwide.
A key milestone of Barceló’s entire busi-
ness growth over the last twenty years
has certainly been the construction of
the 400-room Bávaro Beach Resort
(currently Barceló Bávaro Beach) in the
Dominican Republican (Punta Cana), the
first hotel complex built by the Group in
the Caribbean. Operational since 1985,
the success of the Bávaro model led
the Group to explore opportunities in
other areas of the Caribbean (Costa Rica,
Nicaragua and Mexico). The Barceló
brothers have always preferred to clearly
lead their growth projects, maintaining
full ownership control at all times. The
integration of hotel construction in the
process has enabled them to reduce risks
associated with both costs and the design
of the final product, preserving the natural
environment while incorporating native
cultural elements.
faMiLy suCCEssion whiLE kEEping thE EntrEprEnEuriaL spirit aLiVE
unattainable Goals ? A profile of a family-owned hotel & travel business: The Barceló Group*
A key milestone of Barceló’s entire business growth
over the last twenty years has certainly been the
construction of the 400-room Bávaro Beach Resort
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™ Source: “The Barceló Group - Family succession while keeping the entrepreneurial spirit alive: Unattainable goals?” Case study prepared by Juan Roure and Luis Segurado, IESE Business School, University of Navarre, Spain, 2006.
70
c a s e s t u d y Barceló
Passing the baton
By the mid-1990s, thanks to its active
investment policy, the company was
a diversified tourism group with hotel
businesses, retail and wholesale travel
agencies, transport companies, commu-
nications media, electrical components
and building companies. Traditionally,
the Group had created a company for
each the businesses and assets in which
it invested. This led to the existence of a
large number of companies.
In 1995, the company started to plan the
transition process, from the second to
the third generation. The transition was
planned to last between three and five
years and posed a serious challenge for
the family and the company’s leadership.
A Transition Board of Directors was
formed since at that time there were no
suitable coordination mechanisms in the
management structure or between the
company’s management and the family.
The transition took place during a period
of high growth for the company, with a
healthy financial situation and the Bávaro
project moving full speed ahead and
providing high returns.
The transition process was articulated
around the following premises: continue
with the Group’s professionalisation;
establish ownership distribution while
maintaining control of the Group’s mana-
gement among the three sons; increase
the responsibility of the third generation
as owners, leaving management of the
company to those who work in it, with the
exception of the two co-chairmen; and
design the exit of the second generation
from management. The transition to the
third generation was complete by June
2000 and included, among other things,
the approval of the holding company’s by-
laws. Also, the present co-chairmanship
was created, shared by the cousins,
Simón, Sebastián’s son, and Simón Pedro,
Gabriel’s son.
During the five-year transition period, the
Group had turnover growth of more than
45% generated by the hotels in the port-
folio, with EUR 670 million in revenues
in 1999. It had gone from 37 hotels in
1995 to just under 90 hotels in 1999, with
approximately 6,000 people employed in
the hotels, and gross earnings (EBITDA)
had increased eleven-fold between
1996 and 1999. Furthermore, significant
progress had been made in the compa-
ny’s structuring and professionalisation,
in its governing bodies and also in the
company-family relationship.
new growth approaches from the
third generation: growing through
partnerships
In the mid-1990s, the company was in
the midst of its transition process, with
the third generation implementing and
consolidating the Group’s expansion.
The main challenges facing the company
were to continue opening hotels in Latin
America and the Caribbean without
neglecting its expansion in the urban
hotel segment in Spain and opening new
travel agencies.
One of the biggest changes that took
place in the company was that of the
business model, from a vertical integra-
tion strategy within the tourism business
to a horizontal specialization focus on
the hotel management business, through
partnerships, if necessary, to improve the
Group’s competitive advantage in other
business areas. Thus they started to look
for European partners to grow the travel
and vacation hotel businesses at the end
of the 1990s.
Over more than one year, the top mana-
gement team analysed the different
options available to them within Europe
and decided to partner with First Choice
Holidays. First Choice was a leading
European tourism group, with a strong
presence in Canada and England, and was
listed on the London Stock Exchange. This
important strategic initiative concluded in
June 2000 with the integration of the
Barceló Travel Division (Viajes Barceló) in
the British group First Choice. However,
at the end of 2003, Barceló announced
that it was buying back the retail busi-
ness (327 retail travel agencies in Spain,
Portugal, Argentina and Mexico) from
the British company in a move intended
to avoid losing a significant presence in
the Spanish tourist market through the
travel agency network. The buyback of
Barceló Travel Division only involved the
travel retail business, and did not include
the destination services business, which
remained in First Choice’s hands.
The second significant strategic initiative
was related to the Group’s core business:
hotels. In 1998, the Group signed an
important expansion agreement, called
Grubarges, with the Spanish banking
group Argentaria (currently BBVA) and
the Spanish building group FCC. The
three companies formed an invest-
ment and management firm, with each
company owning one-third, which was run
by the Barceló Group. The operation was
designed to create Spain’s largest hotel
group by leveraging the complementary
competences of its promoters. Between
1998 and 2000, Grubarges invested EUR
670 million in purchasing existing hotels,
developing new hotels and improving
facilities, mainly in the US and Mexico.
The purchases and holdings obtained
through Grubarges enabled 29 hotels to
be added to the Barceló Hotels & Resorts
portfolio. In October 2003, Grubarges’s
During the five-year transition period, the Group had
turnover growth of more than 45% generated by the
hotels in the portfolio, with EUR 670 million in revenues
The second significant
strategic initiative was
related to the Group’s
core business: hotels.
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c a s e s t u d y Barceló
three partners announced the cancella-
tion of this cooperation project and the
company’s assets were put up for sale.
After the dissolution of Grubarges as
a holding company, in 2004 Barceló
entered into another “strategic alliance”
with FADESA, one of Spain’s leading real
estate companies, with the goal of deve-
loping hotel investment projects together.
The objective of the project was to operate
hotels developed by the property firm,
with Barceló having the option of mana-
ging them. By leveraging the projects
generated by the new real estate partner,
the alliance sought to ensure continued
growth in vacation hotels, urban hotels
and complexes with golf courses in two
locations that the Group had chosen as
priority areas.
From 1998-2000, the Barceló Group
experienced significant growth in urban
hotels, which grew at a similar rate to
vacation hotels. In 1997, only 30% of the
total number of the Group’s hotels was
urban hotels. The development of the
urban hotel segment was a priority goal in
Spain, Central and Eastern Europe, and
the US. The proportion of urban hotels in
the Group’s total hotel portfolio increased
to 42% by the end of 2004, mainly through
lease and management agreements since
this required fewer resources and the
hotels could be developed in less time.
Simultaneously the proportion of hotels
under minority interest was reduced
considerably, from 28% to 4% in the
same period with the aim of keeping full
or nearly full ownership particularly when
dealing with strategic assets.
Another of the Group’s initiatives in recent
years has been the acquisition of Crestline
Hotels & Resorts, a United States-based
hotel manager listed on the New York
Stock Exchange. Crestline was bought by
means of a tender offer and the company
was subsequently withdrawn from the
market. After the transaction, the firm was
merged with one of the Group’s subsidia-
ries (which managed Barceló’s hotels in
the United States), giving birth to Barceló
Crestline Corporation (BCC). In the United
States, the value chain in the hotel busi-
ness is clearly segmented, with specialist
companies and groups in each link of the
chain: ownership, branding, franchises
and management. A year and a half after
the creation of Barceló Crestline Corp
(BCC) and as part of a decided move to
increase its presence in the US market,
the Group took part, through BCC, in the
design and management of Highland
Hospitality Corp., a real estate invest-
ment trust which was listed on the New
York Stock Exchange, and purchased
4.5% of its equity for a total of USD 13.5
million. Four months after going public,
Highland had already purchased seven
hotels across the US for a total of EUR 165
million. Six of these were subsequently
managed by Barceló. Highland owns the
assets and Barceló Crestline manages
the hotels. The real estate trust formula
is widely used in the United States by the
large chains operating in the industry.
After 2000, with the new strategy and
management focus, a number of major
internal changes had been made to the
company. The main goal was to continue
improving the level of professionalisation
of the management team, create a more
decentralized organisation in decision-
making and optimise customers’ interac-
tions with the chain. The improvements
were focused particularly on key internal
processes, for example, certain aspects
of the company’s governance, human
resources, information systems, the
marketing function, brand development
and budgeting processes.
Brand development is an initiative that is
worth noting since the Group created a
new corporate image after spending more
than four years on its development. Thus,
three brands have been created: Barceló
Premium, bringing together the upmarket
hotels and resorts; Barceló, grouping
the urban hotels located in downtown
areas; and Barceló Comfort, bringing
together cheaper hotels which still offer
good quality for the price.
the results
With a turnover of more than EUR 1 billion,
and an EBITDA of more than EUR 80
million, the Group has become the third
largest Spanish international hotel chain
in hotel capability, and it holds 32nd
place in the world ranking of hotel chains
according to Hotels Magazine. The Group
operates in 15 countries on four continents,
with a total capacity of 30,000 rooms:
37% in Europe, 32% in Latin America and
the Caribbean; 25% in the United States,
2% in Asia and 4% in Africa. In Spain,
according to Hostelmarket, it holds fourth
place in turnover in the hotel business,
it is the second largest Spanish chain
in the Americas and the top Spanish
chain in the United States, the Dominican
Republic and Costa Rica.
The Group has grown from 37 hotels to
108, of which some 54% are held under
management or leased, 40% are fully
owned or the Group holds a minority inte-
rest, and 6% are franchised. The Group
is also the owner of one of Spain’s largest
travel agency networks, Barceló Viajes,
with more than 380 agencies.
Entering a new round of growth
Ten years after launching the family
succession process in 1995, the Group
has achieved a reasonable balance on
its vacation-urban hotel ratio, and has
accomplished significant geographic
From 1998-2000, the Barceló Group experienced
significant growth in urban hotels, which grew at a
similar rate to vacation hotels.
With a turnover of more than EUR 1 billion, and an
EBITDA of more than EUR 80 million, the Group has
become the third largest Spanish international hotel
chain in hotel capability.
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diversification in the hotel business, with
the United States and Europe as its main
markets. The Group now aims to add 44
hotels over a 2-3 year period to reach 152
hotels by 2007, with a planned investment
of EUR 230 million, and expects to reach
200 hotels by 2010.
The Group’s main challenges ahead are
to continue generating growth by optimi-
sing the mix between vacation and urban
hotels while maintaining an improved
balance between hotel ownership and
hotel management. It is a tough but chal-
lenging task that will require that the top
management make important strategic
choices on the basis of various alterna-
tive growth options, including: choosing
geographic areas in which to operate;
prioritising primary business areas,
whether vacation, urban or golf resorts;
what growth approaches to adopt,
whether organic by purchasing land and
building hotels or external development
by buying individual hotels or exploring
possible acquisitions of hotel chains.
To this is added the travel business,
consisting of the agency network, with
an expansion plan that has been under
way since 2004. The network currently
has 387 units, of which 307 are located in
Spain (45% franchised); 63 are business
travel outlets managed through Barceló
Business World; and 12 are destination
services agencies and international fran-
chises in Portugal, Argentina and Mexico,
with the highest portion of the revenues
(+85%) generated in Spain and the rest
in Portugal, Argentina, Mexico and the
Dominican Republic. The Group’s biggest
travel business challenge for the next few
years is deciding whether to continue
growing the network abroad or to explore
a merger. Whatever the decision, the
challenges are significant but the poten-
tial rewards are promising.
Case study prepared by Professor Juan
Roure and Juan Luis Segurado,
Researcher, as a basis for class discus-
sion. IESE-University of Navarre
c a s e s t u d y Barceló
The Group’s biggest travel business challenge for
the next few years is deciding whether to continue
growing the network abroad or to explore a merger.
International Lifestyle City Magazines
Become a franchisee in your city !
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76
e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0 growth summit
Enhancing the business environment
This is already happening in some parts
of Europe and was recognised at the
last Growth Summit in November 2005
in Barcelona by the presentation of a
special award for enhancing the business
environment to Austrian Finance Minister
Karl-Heinz Grasser. Austria was singled
out for successfully managing to lower
its budget deficit, reduce unemployment
and increase growth while at the same
time lowering taxes – all achieved despite
strong competition from neighbouring
low wage Eastern European countries.
Europe’s 500 special award is presented
annually to a European politician who is
judged to have significantly improved
the economic climate. It also serves to
highlight the necessity of sharing best
practice between European countries.
2005: Climate change
One of the key topics addressed at the
last Growth Summit in November 2005
in Barcelona was climate change - what
it means for the economy and what chal-
lenges and opportunities it will provide for
entrepreneurs. Former US Vice-President
Al Gore delivered a powerful keynote
speech on the perils of disregarding the
effects of climate change, a forerunner
of the message he has since delivered
to a global audience through his film
An Inconvenient Truth. Climate change
is at the top of the political agenda
worldwide, even in the US where it had
been controversially sidelined until now.
It is increasingly clear that solar and wind
energies and alternative fuels will be the
booming markets of the future, a view
reinforced by the results of this year’s
Europe’s 500 Listing of the best perfor-
ming European growth companies, which
saw an increased number of renewable
energy companies ranked among the
top 20.
The Summit aims to identify and address
current and upcoming trends and give
greater awareness of their economic
impact. The conference format, consis-
ting of a main topic, learning from the
best and workshops on current priori-
ties, offers a forum for the discussion
and generation of political recommenda-
tions and improvements at both the EU
and regional levels, driven by a policy
committee. Participating entrepreneurs
EuropEan growth suMMit
2007 Growth is eastOn 18 May 2007 in Barcelona, Europe’s 500 will hold its annual conference on growth strategies and policies in conjunction with IESE Business School.
grwoth summit e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0
can study opportunities such as public-
private partnerships, European funding
and public tenders, and can also contri-
bute their experience and improvement
ideas to the European Commission. This
enables them to combine corporate social
responsibility, individual business inte-
rests and high level contacts.
2007: growth is East
The main topic of the 2007 European
Growth Summit will be Growth is East.
There have been many conferences
already about India and China, but this
summit will address the whole Eastern
European/Asian potential for European
entrepreneurs. The emerging regions are
not only China and India, but also Russia
and Eastern Europe. Several Austrian
companies in the service sector have
recognised this opportunity earlier than
their peers, in banking and real estate to
mention just two examples.
High-level speakers from India such as
Lakshmi Mittal are invited. From Russia
we expect the Finance Minister of the
Moscow Region to give an insight into
Russia’s business situation and opportu-
nities and to inspire entrepreneurs to seek
support to enter the market. There will be
a perspective on China from insiders who
are successful and there will of course be
the new winners of the Europe’s 500 Listing
from the Eastern European countries.
Renewable energy is still only at the early
stage of demonstrating its potential for
huge upward growth and will allow plenty
of opportunities for entrepreneurs who
participate in this sector to help tackle
the most urgent problems of our planet.
It will be a key topic at the May summit
and an apt opportunity for follow-up from
the wake-up call that Al Gore gave us last
year and through his film.
Highlights of the 2007 Summit will
include:
• Europe’s 500 – Learning from the Best:
the winners present their breakthrough
strategies
• The regions: Eastern Europe–Russia–
India–China
• Perspectives from top entrepreneurs
and politicians
• The growth opportunities: renewables
and CO2 reduction
• The mega growth trend? Viewpoints
from experts and entrepreneurs
• Workshops on growth financing–inno-
vation–education–PPP
• EU – enterprise policies / Europe’s 500
initiatives
• Opportunities for entrepreneurs,
politicians and students to network and
exchange ideas
To register your interest and to receive
programme updates, please contact Petra
Stadler at petra.stadler@europes500.com,
or visit www.europes500.com.
By Martin Schoeller, President, Europe’s 500 – Entrepreneurs for Growth
Former US Vice-President Al Gore (right) at the 2005 European Growth Summit with Antonella Mei-Pochtler, Senior Vice-President, The Boston Consulting Group and Martin Schoeller, President of Europe’s 500 – Entrepreneurs for Growth
Much as
the World
Economic
Forum in
Davos has
b e c o m e
the premier
a n n u a l
platform for
discussing
global economic trends, the European
Growth Summit allows political leaders
and growth entrepreneurs to come
together to address the key issues of
economic growth and job creation in
Europe.
Europe is lagging behind the United
States and is struggling to meet the
challenge set by the European Council at
Lisbon in 2000 to become a single, highly
competitive market that will deliver “more
and better jobs” in Europe by 2010. These
Lisbon Agenda targets are still far from
being met and in order to deliver jobs
and growth, Europe’s entrepreneurs, poli-
tical leaders and experts need to share
best practice and successful strategies,
network and learn from each other. MA
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78
e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0 history
In the 1970s Professor David Birch,
an economist at the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology (MIT) in the
US, was conducting research into
the life cycle of companies and
found to his - and policy-makers’
- surprise that of the 25 million
companies in the US, only 12,000
had more than 500 employees. He
also discovered that new compa-
nies created 90% of all the new jobs in
the US.
Over the next 10 years he refined his research
and discovered that a tiny 3% of these new
small companies created more than three-
quarters of all the new jobs and were key to
the US economy’s growth. He called them
“gazelles”. Professor Birch’s research was
hugely influential in helping to change the
focus of government policy towards entre-
preneurs and how they were tracked, ranked
and taught about by universities.
In Europe, the picture was not as clear, so
in 1987 a group of European Harvard alum-
ni decided to found EFER, the European
Foundation for Entrepreneurship Research,
to focus on supporting academia to carry
out case studies of entrepreneurs. EFER’s
profile was boosted at the annual World
Economic Forum in Davos, attracting the
support of McKinsey, Deutsche Bank, Rabo,
European Venture Capital Association and
many successful entrepreneurs. In addition,
several leading business schools, including
IESE, IMD, LBS, Imperial College, Harvard
and INSEAD supported annual research
and conferences.
However, it was not until 1995 that the
idea for an annual listing of Europe’s
fastest growing companies – to be known
as Europe’s 500 – crystallised, following
a challenge to EFER from the European
Commission’s Directorate-General for
Enterprise: where were Europe’s gazelles?
EFER, together with DG Enterprise, Ernst
& Young and Europe Unlimited, carried
out a search to find the fastest growing
enterprises in Europe and used Professor
Birch’s Employee Growth Index as the
ranking tool.
Once the 500 winners had been selected,
a conference was held at Ghent University
(Belgium) in 1996 to highlight their achie-
vements and discuss the key challenges
facing growth entrepreneurs in Europe,
including raising capital, succession (in
family-run businesses) and the functio-
ning of the stock market.
Since 1996, the Europe’s 500 Listing has
been published annually and the winners
recognised at an awards ceremony and
gala dinner held each November in a
different European capital.
An annual conference – the European
Growth Summit - is held separately to
focus on key trends and topics affecting
growth entrepreneurs, and a series of
Roundtables for Growth have been esta-
blished with senior officials from EU insti-
tutions and national governments to help
develop policies which will foster the best
business environment. EFER concentrates
on training teachers in entrepreneurship
and research into the role of SMEs and
gazelles in driving jobs and growth.
a short history of europe’s 500
To mark the 10th anniversary of Europe’s 500, its two co-founders Dr Bert Twaalfhoven (left), Chairman of Twaalfhoven Group and the European Foundation for Entrepreneurship Research (EFER), and Juan Roure, Professor of Entrepreneurship at IESE Business School, Barcelona, were presented with special commemorative silver plates by Association President Martin Schoeller at the 2006 Europe’s 500 Awards Ceremony and Gala Dinner held at the Hofburg in Vienna.
As the only pan-
E u r o p e a n
organisation
p r o m o t i n g
the interests
of the EU
for more
E u r o p e a n
g r o w t h
e n t r e p r e -
neurs, Europe’s 500, the association for
growth entrepreneurs, launched its first
Roundtable for Growth in March 2004.
The aim is to provide a practical and
informal forum for growth entrepreneurs
and senior officials from EU institutions
and national governments to identify the
EU policies and regulatory initiatives that
are stifling growth entrepreneurship and
measures which could improve the busi-
ness environment.
At the first meeting with Erkki Liikanen in
March 2004 and the second in December
2005 with European Commission
Vice-President Günter Verheugen, the
discussions centred on growth entre-
preneurship opportunities and the chal-
lenges faced by the dynamic mid-cap
businesses in Europe - in particular,
innovation and growth financing, the
single EU market and existing barriers
to pan-European entrepreneurship, and
entrepreneurial education and mindset
in Europe. The entrepreneurs present at
these meetings represented companies
with around 500 employees – the ones
creating most of the growth and jobs in
Europe.
The 2006 Roundtables were held with
Graham Meadows, Director-General
of DG Regional Policy in the European
Commission and Prof. Danuta Hübner.
With a budget of over 300 billion €
for 2007-2013 - the second biggest in
the EU – the key objective of the EU’s
recently reformed regional policy is to
identify Community priorities for delivering
more growth and jobs throughout Europe
through the use of its structural and cohe-
sion funds. The Roundtable discussed
ways in which structural funds could be
used to promote growth entrepreneurship
and innovation in Europe and concrete
proposals are being followed up.
Further Roundtables are planned and if
you are interested in joining or want to
learn more about future activities, please
contact Frédéric Soudain at roundtable@
europes500.com or phone him on +32
2 639 6235.
promotinG thE right poLiCy fraMEwork for growth and joBs at thE Eu LEVEL
Günter Verheugen (left), European Commission Vice-President in charge of enterprise and industry, speaking at the second Europe’s 500 Roundtable for Growth in December 2005, with Martin Schoeller, President of Europe’s 500 – Entrepreneurs for Growth.
Danuta Hübner, European Commissioner for Regional Policy, presenting the Europe’s 500 awards 2006 in Vienna.
79
roundtable e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0
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that there could be much more growth
in Europe if the political and economic
conditions only allowed it. I am parti-
cularly critical of “old Europe” attitudes
which hamper competitiveness through
bureaucracy, the lack of a pioneering
or entrepreneurial spirit and a raft of
political measures constraining business
decisions. At the same time, Europe is
not sufficiently conscious in its dealings
with the developing world of the need
to defend or demand the same social
and environmental standards which have
been established here. Development aid
alone is not enough. Specific measures
and links to international trade policy
are also needed. This would motivate
more entrepreneurs in medium-sized
businesses to reach for sustained growth
in Europe as well. Just look at America,
where innovation and growth rates in
medium-sized businesses are many times
more dynamic than in Europe.
However, Europe’s 500 is not interested
in joining the blame game about who
is responsible for the problems of the
European economy: bureaucracy, protec-
tionism, inflexible labour markets and
a lack of tax incentives. The public is
fed up with hearing this and seeing the
snail’s pace of reform. It is more impor-
tant that growth entrepreneurs contribute
to solving the problems: Europe’s 500
focuses on contributing concrete propo-
sals which will make a real difference
towards helping businesses grow.
With this objective in mind, we bring
together entrepreneurs, politicians and
policy experts at an annual European
Growth Summit (see article on p.76)
to discuss upcoming trends and their
economic impact and work out prac-
tical proposals for improving the busi-
ness environment. In addition, Europe’s
500 organises regular Roundtables for
Growth between growth entrepreneurs
and senior EU and national policy-makers
to discuss specific policy measures
affecting them and to suggest ways of
fostering more entrepreneurial activity in
Europe. (See article on p.79 for further
information).
Europe’s 500 is currently working on five
main initiatives:
1. Growth financing
2. Innovation
3. Non-wage labour costs and a part-
time labour model
4. Trade with the developing countries
(Fair Wages)
5. Entrepreneurship education.
1. growth financing
This is an area where Europe’s 500 sees
a big need for action, especially since
the introduction of Basel II (the standards
governing the capital adequacy of inter-
nationally active banks). In reality this
has complicated the supply of credit to
medium-sized businesses and private
equity is not an adequate alternative
as this mostly leads to the sale of the
company after a few years.
We want to encourage a credit insurance
system which would provide, in return
for an annual risk fee, a reliable rating
system for medium-sized companies and
a bank or insurance guarantee to back
investment bank loans. This solution can
be entirely sustained by the private sector
and would remove a huge brake on
growth.
2. innovation
In Europe a patent costs about 20 to 30
times as much as in the United States.
Currently a new patent has to be legally
registered in each European country of
operation. This is time-consuming, costly
and acts as a huge deterrent to innova-
tion in Europe. Not surprisingly, invention
rates lag far behind the level in the US
and this has a trickle-down effect on
overall economic growth.
Our suggestion is obvious: there should
be a single European-wide patent which
requires only one application and regis-
tration fee in the whole of Europe. Patents
should only be issued in English to avoid
costly and time-consuming translations
and there should be a central court of
arbitration in Europe to rule on possible
infringements.
3. non-wage labour costs
Statistics show that countries with low
unemployment rates in Europe have a
higher proportion of part-time employment.
Despite this, politicians in the countries
with the highest unemployment rates -
Germany, France, Italy – so far have done
very little to enact changes in their labour
markets to facilitate greater flexibility.
More part-time employment means that
the same available paid work (in hours)
gets allocated to more individuals. So
what is needed is an incentive for the
economy as well as for the employee to
offer more part-time employment and for it
to be more socially acceptable. Europe’s
500 recommends that the burdensome
non-wage labour costs, which cripple
competitiveness in many countries, be
reduced massively for part-time employ-
ment, for example by 80%. The conse-
quence would be that:
a) two part-time jobs would cost the
employer less than one full-time job.
b) the employee with two part-time jobs
could earn net more than in one full-time
job.
We recognise, of course, that not every
employee would look for two part-time
jobs, either preferring a more family-
friendly arrangement whereby one parent
works full-time and the other part-time, or
because they choose to devote the other
half of their time to personal projects or
unpaid community or volunteer work.
The savings in unemployment benefits
could be used to cover the missing
contribution to social costs. A portion
of unemployment benefits would need
to be maintained for part-time workers
to make part-time work more favourable
to staying unemployed. This would also
help in the detection of those unem-
ployed who are unwilling to work and
those who abuse the system. Such a
measure would not only achieve one of
today’s key political goals – reducing
unemployment – but would also bring
about a reduction in working costs per
hour (at higher net earnings), thereby
increasing competitiveness in those
countries that adopted this system,
which in turn would lead to higher
growth and more employment.
4. international trade and Social
Standards
One of the most challenging problems
facing the world today is the wholesale
relocation of jobs from high-wage to
low-wage economies and the parado-
xical high poverty levels which persist
in these low-wage countries. Europe’s
500 questions the predominant opinion
that the most liberal form of globalisation
automatically leads to the best results.
It cannot be good for our world that a
business can replace employees who
are provided with a social safety net
with cheap unprotected labourers while
simultaneously avoiding tougher environ-
mental regulations.
When we see the success of the 2006
Europe’s 500 entrepreneurs from the new
EU member states and simultaneously
see how much bigger the growth is in the
eastern European countries rather than
in western Europe, this is not just due,
in our opinion, to the huge potential for
catching-up that existed in those coun-
tries’ economies, but also to their adoption
of EU norms in social and environmental
standards which the EU demanded from
all accession countries.
Europe’s 500 is working on a proposal
for the EU to link a step-by-step adoption
of social and environmental standards
by developing countries to their admis-
sion to the marketplace. These coun-
tries are often overburdened and tend to
react exclusively to the demands of the
International Monetary Fund (IMF) and
the World Bank, which focus too much on
savings measures, budget deficits and
combating inflation. It is also worth noting
that democracies do not automatically
develop the know-how or possess the will
needed to introduce social systems and
environmental systems into a country. In
actual fact, it is the one-party, virtual dicta-
torships like Singapore, China and Russia
which introduce social development much
more forcefully and efficiently.
We encourage the EU to reward those
developing countries which are willing to
adopt the requisite social and environ-
mental measures – to let them “join the
club” - and gain trade benefits in Europe.
Those countries that do not adopt such
measures could be prevented from being
able to use their cost advantage to adver-
sely affect trade in Europe, thereby slowing
the impetus for relocation to low-cost coun-
tries and contributing to the fight against
poverty by encouraging salary levels to
increase to drive domestic demand. This
would also result in the export of more
technical know-how and machinery from
Europe to developing countries as their
domestic economies grow and reduce
their reliance on export trade with deve-
loped countries which has heavy addi-
tional costs, such as transport.
5. Entrepreneurship Education
In collaboration with the European
Foundation for Entrepreneurship
Research (EFER – www.efer.nl) of
Dr. Bert Twaalfhoven, Europe’s 500
supports the initiative on entrepre-
neurship education in universities.
Compared to the US, our universities
concentrate exclusively on the teaching
of management. Management starts in
principle where there is something to
administer and to enhance, the entre-
preneur starts with a blank sheet but
constantly creates new solutions and
processes which have to be managed
afterwards. Where entrepreneurship is
taught as a subject at business schools,
more entrepreneurship in that country
follows – this is certainly the case in
the US and is noticeably deficient in
Europe.
Europe’s 500 board of directors, all of
them entrepreneurs who have quali-
fied at least once for the Europe’s 500
listing, as well as a professor of entre-
preneurship, bring their experience and
know-how to these initiatives. Joining me
on the board are Dave Darsch, founder
of the CEO Collaborative Forum (Spain),
Jordi Galles, Chairman, Europastry
(Spain), Declan Ganley, Chairman and
CEO, Ganley Group (Ireland); George
Gerardos, President, Plaisio Computers
(Greece); Dominique Louis, Chairman,
Assystem (France); Professor Juan
Roure, Professor of Entrepreneurship,
IESE Business School (Spain); Dr Ulrich
Schwanengel, Managing Director,
Consol (Germany); Hendrik teNeues,
teNeues publishing company (Germany);
Roger Tondeur, President, MCI Group
(Switzerland); and Dr Bert Twaalfhoven,
Chairman, Twaalfhoven Group, and EFER
(Netherlands).
Europe’s 500’s activities are supported by
sponsors who currently include KPMG,
Microsoft, Coface, HKB, Sal. Oppenheim,
Schoeller Industries and The Boston
Consulting Group.
By Martin Schoeller, President of Europe’s
500 – Entrepreneurs for Growth
80
e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0 letter from the President
continued from page 3
(from left) Professor Juan Roure, Jean-Paul Thill, KPMG’s CEO EMA, Alejo Vidal-Quadras MEP and Martin Schoeller at the European Growth Summit held at IESE Business School, Barcelona in November 2005.
81
letter from the President e u r o p e ’ s 5 0 0
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i n v e s t i n g mid-cap
Pointing at the wide
dispersion of returns
between top and bottom
quartile managers, Yale
University’s endowment
fund star manager David
Swensen shows that mid-
cap stocks constitute
an inherently inefficient
market. The inefficiency
of mid-cap stocks comes from many well-
know factors: relatively reduced scrutiny
from investors and brokers, less readily
available information and the more frag-
mented nature of the market itself. Over
the last few years however, you did not
need to beat the index to do very well.
Just buying it would have generated very
hefty profits for your portfolio. Not unlike
early 2005, many strategists were quite
pessimistic in early 2006 about the pros-
pects for mid-cap European stocks. They
have been proven wrong again, and 2007
could well be a replay of 2006.
We are now in a continuing six-year cycle
of out-performance relative to European
large caps. According to the Euro STOXX
Mid 200 Index, the returns on European
mid-caps in 2006 outperformed the Euro
STOXX Large 200 Index by about 11%,
with returns rising by 24%, and despite
a sharp correction in May. Valuations are
becoming somewhat rich: in the UK, the
FTSE 250 is trading on prospective p/e of
13.9 times 2007 earnings while the FTSE
100 is rated at 11.8 times. Despite rela-
tively high valuations, large institutional
investors, including pension funds, have
been increasingly interested in raising
their exposure to mid-cap stocks in order
to generate additional alpha from equities
markets. Should they do it themselves by
buying direct holdings or via a specia-
lized fund is they key question. Because
mid-caps are inherently a specialist’s
market, in which you typically want to
spread your risk across many positions
rather than concentrate it on just a few
bets, most investors usually decide to use
pooled investment vehicles rather than
pick individual securities directly.
The secular case for mid-cap investing
is clear: there are over 1,000 mid-cap
companies in Europe, so it is always
possible for managers to find the diamond
in the rough. Ignoring that segment of the
market may result more risky than not
ignoring it. Most mid-cap companies are
only in one business so an investment
in their stock is quite pure. Also, several
emerging businesses such as renewable
energy can only be found in mid-cap
land. In general, stock pickers point out
that mid-sized companies can grow as
quickly as small ones and faster than big
ones. Unlike small companies however,
mid-size outfits tend to have established
products and proven track records of
generating earnings. These last two attri-
butes can make mid-size companies
“prime” candidates to be acquired by
big ones. Managers also like the fact that
mid-size companies’ top executives make
themselves more accessible.
There are many reasons to believe that
mid-cap stocks could continue to do very
well in 2007: 1) it is a class with higher
expected returns (and risk) compared to
large caps, 2) investors continue to have
a big appetite for risk as witnessed by
the current tight credit spreads, 3) M&A
activity has been and is forecast to remain
very strong, 4) the current economic
thE Mid-Cap wayInvesting in a medium-sized, European company
8�
mid-cap i n v e s t i n g
cycle has proven its resilience and its
longevity is not in doubt for the moment,
and 5) mid-size businesses tend to be
more domestic so they are hurt less by a
weaker dollar.
Another supporting factor put forward
by mid-cap bulls is simply demand. It
could continue to be very strong as many
investors have missed the rally because
the large investment firms advising them
have in general a poor mid-cap product
offering. Indeed, large firms looking after
vast pools of money typically do not find
it economical to focus on a market which
is relatively small compared to the assets
they manage. Boutique investment firms
and their clients have profited the most
from the boom in mid-cap stocks and
they are now attracting the interest of
large institutional investors, no longer just
private money. Most importantly maybe,
private equity sponsors are raising
records amount of cash and, as can be
seen by the record level of transactions,
it is becoming more and more appealing
for many public companies to be owned
by focused, professional investors with a
long-term industrial view rather than see
their stock go up or down according to
next quarter’s earnings or the unpredic-
table and volatile mood of stock market
investors.
The fact that the ECB is raising rates at
a reasonable pace could be interpreted
as a positive sign for mid-caps since
it signals confidence about economic
growth. The risk of course is that monetary
policy becomes too aggressive and that
growth slows abruptly in 2007; that would
be particularly bad for mid-cap compa-
nies indeed as they have fewer different
revenue streams than large caps.
It is not certain either that the mid-cap
sector will continue to be a happy hunting
ground for managers: valuation anoma-
lies are becoming harder and harder to
unearth as the mid-cap space attracts
every-increasing attention. The days
of finding a dull but worthy industrial
company that is deeply undervalued are
waning. It is difficult to imagine a mid-
cap stock that has not been sized up
by hedge funds, private equity houses,
trade buyers and a rising number of
more active, traditional fund managers.
Almost all carry out computerized, quan-
titative screening of stocks to seek out
bargains on the basis of financial ratios
and earnings performance. Many also
employ the tactics of traditional stock
pickers to seek out primary information
such as scouring trade publications and
talking to suppliers. Finally, another risk
for investors is to invest in large-cap
managers disguised as mid-cap ones.
Indeed, many mid-cap managers have
seen massive asset inflows of late, trig-
gered by their recent historical success.
They could slowly be tempted to drift
towards investing in large-cap stocks for
liquidity reasons and there is a risk that
their performance could become more
index-like, which would mean of course
that their management fees would no
longer be justified (a little like beta mana-
gers pretending to be providers of alpha,
in order to charge higher fees). Investors
beware!
Nicolas Sarkis
nsarkis@market500.eu
360
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Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec 2006
Dj Euro Stoxx Mid Dj Euro Stoxx Large
There are many reasons
to believe that mid-cap
stocks could continue to
do very well in 2007.
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i n v e s t i n g mid-cap
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mid-cap i n v e s t i n g
Small Companies FranceAAZ Challenger 12.61 78.84 ** AAZ Finances EUR 13.72AEden France Croissance 14.73 84.33 62.74 ** KBL France XFR 30.58AXA France Small Cap C 30.56 129.42 91.73 ***** AXA XFR 199.49AXA France Small Cap C 30.56 129.42 91.73 ***** AXA XFR 199.49BMM France PME P 18.46 86.62 70.55 *** Banque Martin Maurel XFR 24.14BNP Paribas Smallcap France C 24.64 110.47 83.55 ***** BNP Paribas XFR 79.29Boscary Mont-Blanc Sélection 37.13 110.25 **** Financière Boscary EUR 26.31Cambacérès Risques 24.18 102.89 51.27 *** Credit Mutuel Nord Europe EUR 10.13Cambon Ventures 14.31 57.58 7.67 * Chaussier Gestion XFR 5.94Centrale Actions Avenir 13.88 69.57 91.02 * CCR XFR 105.6CFD Small Caps 12.17 CFD Capital Management EUR 1.85CFD Small Caps 12.17 CFD Capital Management EUR 1.85Chaussier Croissance 16.13 81.02 69.75 ** Chaussier Gestion XFR 18.9CIC Euro Opportunités 25.48 87.41 30.16 *** CIC XFR 279.31CIC Nouveau Marché 12.56 68.26 -10.36 ** CIC XFR 13.83CIC Sud-Est 21.17 84.39 76.09 ** CIC XFR 59.91Cogefi Carpe Diem 5.4 53.91 -6.47 * Cogefi XFR 3.39Cogefi Prospective 9.6 61.86 10.14 * Cogefi EUR 14.46Découvertes 10.31 75.82 95.36 ** HSBC Private Bank France XFR 42.02Dexia France Small Caps C 20.54 102.26 89.9 **** Dexia Asset Management XFR 10.86Dexia France Small Caps C 20.54 102.26 89.9 **** Dexia Asset Management XFR 10.86Dexia France Small Caps C 20.54 102.26 89.9 **** Dexia Asset Management XFR 10.86Digital Funds Stars France 23.14 UBS Third Party Management Co S.A. EUR 25.33Echiquier Junior 10.62 59.13 83.76 * Financière de l’Echiquier XFR 178.92Fortis France PME 21 84.66 101 *** Fortis Investments XFR 32.33France Futur C 24.45 100.83 63.52 **** BFT XFR 108.45France Futur C 24.45 100.83 63.52 **** BFT XFR 108.45Fructi France Microvaleurs 1.42 Banques Populaires EUR 19.57Fructi France Smallcap 14.62 61.6 -7.66 * Banques Populaires XFR 27.05Generali France Small Caps 22.26 100.36 100.32 **** Generali Fin. EUR 49.74HSBC Small Cap France 26.36 122.46 101.8 ***** HSBC Investments XFR 163.68IDE France Dynamisme 26.59 71.58 125.14 ** Investisseurs ds l’Entreprise XFR 83.66IXIS Médianes 17.53 91.8 74.89 *** IXIS Asset Management XFR 186.69LFI PME 11.44 106.37 59.93 **** Portzamparc XFR 4.59MCA France 16.81 62.81 50.24 * MCA Finance XFR 7.26MG Nouveau Marché C 13.59 68.65 -11.53 ** Muta Vie XFR 8.72MMA Perspectives 25.26 103.25 45.75 **** MMA XFR 147.76Moneta Micro Entreprises C 34.59 122.03 ***** Moneta Asset Management EUR 122.1Objectif Small Caps France 13.74 78.76 91.69 ** Lazard Freres Gestion XFR 189.52Palatine France Midcap 16.49 95.55 35.72 **** Banque Palatine XFR 121.26Palatine France Small Cap 6.01 73.22 -11.1 ** Banque Palatine XFR 14.52Pluvalca France Small Caps 27.16 103.9 121.96 *** Financiere Arbevel XFR 31.17Robeco Small Cap France 4.95 64.45 36 * Banque Robeco XFR 20.95RP Sélection Mid Cap 13.84 115.1 156.92 **** SPGP EUR 101.15Saint Germain Opportunités 8.85 43.76 40.3 * Banque Privee Quilvest XFR 9.13Saint Honoré PME 19.53 95.12 90.87 *** Cie Fin. Rothschild XFR 89.45SGAM Invest France Sm. Cap C -0.31 55.05 -9.58 * Societe Generale XFR 76.12Siparex Small Cap Value 30.84 140.3 221.79 Siparex XFR 151.73Trusteam Microgarp 11.52 TrusTeam Finance EUR 7.57Vendôme Sélection 25.11 91.89 64.99 *** BGPI XFR 170.77Source : Standard & Poor’s Database Name : Pan European Date : 29/12/2006 Calculation Settings : Euro, Nav - Nav, Gross Reinvested.
Small Companies italyLeonardo Small Caps 17.4 58.8 52.72 Leonardo SGR S.p.A. XEC 41.3Optima Small Caps Italia 24.43 71.97 72.89 Optima SGR S.p.A. EUR 43.96Source : Standard & Poor’s Database Name : Pan European Date : 29/12/2006 Calculation Settings : Euro, Nav - Nav, Gross Reinvested.
* Since Launch Performance figures are calculated in fund base currency.
Small Companies netherlandsABN AMRO Small Comp Neth Fund 39.89 168.03 183.26 ABN AMRO Investment Management Funds BV XNL 126.1Orange Fund 41.2 154.56 118.05 Kempen Capital Management XNL 141.22Source : Standard & Poor’s Database Name : Pan European Date : 29/12/2006 Calculation Settings : Euro, Nav - Nav, Gross Reinvested.
* Since Launch Performance figures are calculated in fund base currency.
Small Companies ukAbbey Natl Smaller Companies 25.84 87.49 36.85 ** Abbey National UT Managers GBP 27.98Aberdeen UK Emerg Cos A Acc 29.41 77.89 51.23 ** Aberdeen Unit Trust Managers GBP 186.54Aberforth UK Smaller Cos 29.61 119.88 140.49 **** Aberforth Unit Trust Mngrs GBP 865.03AIGLI/M&G Innovator 27.71 114.31 21.26 **** AIG Life (Ireland) GBP 0.01Artemis UK Smaller Cos 19.44 85.29 101.52 *** Artemis Fund Managers Limited GBP 633.17AXA Framlington UK Sm Cos Inc 20.3 104.98 122.29 **** AXA Framlington Group GBP 251.25AXA Rosenberg UK S Cap A 18.94 61.61 76.46 * AXA Rosenberg Mgt Ireland Ltd GBP 20.29AXA UK Smaller Companies 24.35 80.29 37.18 * AXA Fund Managers GBP 139.42Baillie Gifford BrSmCo A Acc 37.49 127.9 105.75 **** Baillie Gifford & Co GBP 486.35Baring UK Smaller Companies 26.41 80.02 37.67 ** Barings GBP 39.59Cavendish AIM Rtl -2.46 Cavendish Unit Trust Mgmt GBP 9.22Cazenove UK Smaller Cos B 38.5 102.3 48.11 *** Cazenove Investment Fd Mgt GBP 18.79CF Canlife UK Smllr Companies 4.22 33.61 24.58 * Capita Financial Managers Ltd GBP 75.32Close Beacon Investment 9.89 38.64 4.86 * Close Fund Management Ltd GBP 17.18Close Special Situations Fund Close Fund Management Ltd GBP 5.21Credit Suisse Small Companies 34.43 102.72 97.08 *** Credit Suisse Asset Mgmt (UK) GBP 42.23Dimensional UK Sm Comps Inc 30.3 Dimensional Fund Advisors Ltd GBP 48.56Discretionary Unit 23.71 79.84 97.58 ** Discretionary Unit Fund Mgrs GBP 64.41Electra Active Value 5.08 34.23 29.83 * Electra Quoted Management Ltd GBP 25.28F&C UK Smaller Cos SC1 Acc 30.75 111.27 44.76 **** F&C Fund Management Ltd GBP 71.63First State British Sm Cos A 10.58 63.3 86.33 ** First State Investments GBP 16.7Gartmore UK & Irish Sm Co Rtl 20.72 70.43 52.91 * Gartmore Fund Managers GBP 284.62Henderson UK Smaller Cos A 32.56 105.15 28.2 *** Henderson Global Investors GBP 155.95HSBC UK Smaller Cos Inc 18.96 64.37 43.48 * HSBC Investment Fds (UK) Ltd GBP 26.88Insight Inv UK Sm Cap Rtl Inc 25.02 88.37 70.1 ** Insight Investments Mgmt Ltd GBP 30.54INV PERP UK Sm Cos Equity Acc 30.6 119.55 99.74 **** INVESCO Fund Managers GBP 435.59INV PERP UK Sm Cos Growth Inc 13.37 74.1 56.6 ** INVESCO Fund Managers GBP 152.86Investec UK Smaller Cos Acc 34.13 120.83 152.97 **** Investec Fund Managers Ltd GBP 122.01JPM UK Smaller Cos A Acc 37.73 123.5 101.21 ***** JPMorgan Asset Management GBP 264.96Jupiter UK Smaller Companies 31.28 85.62 64.07 ** Jupiter Unit Trust Mgrs GBP 82.5L&G UK Smaller Cos E Inc 30.68 96.96 74.65 *** Legal & General UT Managers GBP 181.99Lazard UK Sm Cos Retail 35.26 114.79 103.27 **** Lazard Fund Managers Ltd GBP 97.82Liontrust Intellectual Cptl 12.8 62.96 71.48 * Liontrust Investment Funds GBP 111.55M&G Smaller Companies A Inc 28.71 123.21 94.57 ***** M&G Group GBP 241.49Marlborough Special Sits 26.82 111.31 152.85 **** Marlborough Fd Mgrs GBP 136.59Marlborough UK Micro-Cap Fund 28.35 Marlborough Fd Mgrs GBP 36.36Merrill Lynch UK Sm Cos Inc 30.2 130.72 113.1 ***** BlackRock M Lynch Inv Mgrs (UK) GBP 209.69
Fund name return return return S&P Manager Currency Fund Size 1 Year 3 Year 5 Year Fund Stars
Fund name return return return S&P Manager Currency Fund Size 1 Year 3 Year 5 Year Fund Stars
EuropEan Mid-Cap fundsA selection of small and mid-cap investment funds in Europe filtered by the yearly best performances.
Sou
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mid-cap i n v e s t i n g
New Star GF UK Smllr Cos 11.97 74.68 73.87 ** New Star Asset Mgmt Limited GBP 15.44Norwich Henderson UK Small Co 33.27 108.22 30.79 **** Norwich Union Intl Ltd GBP 0.44Norwich Perpetual UK Small Co 31.24 122.14 97.14 **** Norwich Union Intl Ltd GBP 1.05Norwich Schroder UK Small Co 31.91 85.83 85.77 *** Norwich Union Intl Ltd GBP 3.65Norwich UK Small Co 26.89 73.43 62.18 ** Norwich Union Intl Ltd GBP 2.78Norwich UK Smaller Cos 1 26.71 77.7 71.23 * Norwich Union Trust Managers GBP 111.59Nucleus Sm Securities Trust 7.15 56.41 -4.3 * Smith & Williamson FA Ltd GBP 17.3Old Mutual UK Sel Sm Cos Acc 40.92 147.94 174.82 ***** Old Mutual Fund Managers Ltd GBP 561.42OM (Dub) UK Sel UK Smllr Cos 38.91 180.95 ***** Old Mutual Asset Managers (UK) Ltd GBP 105.29Premier UK Smaller Companies 6.84 64.83 59.69 ** Premier Portfolio Managers GBP 6.67Premier UK Smaller Companies 6.84 64.83 59.69 ** Premier Portfolio Managers GBP 6.67Pru Small Companies Trust Inc 28.15 121.6 97.02 **** Prudential Unit Trusts Ltd GBP 244.11R&M UK Equity Smaller Comp Cl A River and Mercantile Funds ICVC GBP Rathbone Smaller Cos Inc 26.8 97.28 70.21 **** Rathbone UT Mgmt Ltd GBP 48.49Rensburg UK Micro Cap Growth 21.45 91.11 *** Rensburg Fund Management Limited GBP 29.67Rensburg UK Smaller Cos 25.26 92.74 60.78 ** Rensburg Fund Management Limited GBP 51.68Resolution Smaller Cos Inc 38.42 124.67 77.63 *** Resolution Fund Managers Ltd GBP 108.83Schroder Inst UK Sm Cos 27.83 88.44 102.74 ** Schroder Unit Trusts (UK) GBP 464.8Schroder UK Smaller Cos Inc 32.05 85.59 88.28 ** Schroder Unit Trusts (UK) GBP 451.34SG UK Smaller Cos Ret Acc 22.82 Société Générale Investmt Fds GBP 117.18Skandia GBP InvPe UK SmCo IRL 28.83 111.38 **** Skandia Ireland Limited GBP 0.14Std Lf UK Smll Cos Rtl Acc 46.44 137.26 106.59 ***** Standard Life Investments GBP 226SW UK Smaller Cos A 29.97 94.16 74.36 *** Scottish Widows UT Mngrs Ltd GBP 228.09SWIP UK Smaller Cos A 33.89 96.72 52.73 *** Scottish Widows Investment Partnership GBP 87.63Threadneedle UK Sml Cos 1 33.61 102.28 77.41 *** Threadneedle Invstmt Services GBP 155.88UBS UK Smaller Companies A 26.98 96.9 *** UBS Global Asset Mgmt Fds Ltd GBP 69.61Unicorn UK Small Cos A Inc 31.35 43.06 * Unicorn Asset Management Ltd GBP 3.58Source : Standard & Poor’s Database Name : Pan European Date : 29/12/2006 Calculation Settings : Euro, Nav - Nav, Gross Reinvested.
* Since Launch Performance figures are calculated in fund base currency.
Small Companies Switzerland3V Inv Swiss Small & Mid Cap 26.82 142.76 137.07 **** Oppenheim Pramerica Asset Mgt S.a.r.l CHF 263.37AIG EF S&M Caps Switzerland A 20.82 AIG Private Bank Ltd CHF 10.12Asselsa SM-Caps Switzerland 33.53 99.03 ** PMG Fonds Management AG CHF 42.15Bank Hofmann Swiss Sml Stocks 37.06 115.99 88.19 ***** Bank Hofmann Fund Mgmt Ltd CHF 141.11Bank Hofmann Swiss Sml Stocks 37.06 115.99 88.19 ***** Bank Hofmann Fund Mgmt Ltd CHF 141.11Callander F-Swiss Gr Mid-C C1 26.79 78.91 56.08 * Banque de Luxembourg CHF 13.34CommCept Swiss Mid&Small Caps 8.79 49.48 * FidFund Management S.A. CHF 12CS EF Small & Mid Cap Switzl 41.23 102.69 82.3 ** Credit Suisse AM Schweiz CHF 239.57Gem Small&Mid Caps Switzerld 26.42 FidFund Management S.A. CHF 234JB Inst Swiss S&M Cap Eq A2 37.62 Bank Julius Baer CHF 39.97JB Swiss Small&Mid Cap SF B 35.08 94.37 57.32 *** Julius Baer Investmt Fd Serv. CHF 129.71LODH Opp Swiss Sm & M Caps 35.81 106.13 82.15 *** Lombard Odier Darier Hentsch & Cie CHF 92.95LODH Swiss Cap ex-SMI I 38.83 Lombard Odier Darier Hentsch & Cie CHF 78.91LODH Swiss Cap EX-SMI P 38.9 115.62 113.9 **** Lombard Odier Darier Hentsch & Cie CHF 488.35MI-FONDS (CH) Inst Sm Stock CH UBS Fund Management AG CHF 38.71MirGest Swiss Small & Mid Cap 37.48 Mirabaud Investment Mngt Ltd CHF 38.78OZ Swiss Equities Optimized 13.76 51.75 26.74 * Helaba Investment (Schweiz) AG CHF 65.88OZ Swiss S&M Cap Selection Fd 25.72 Helaba Investment (Schweiz) AG CHF 25.82Pictet (CH) Swiss Mid-Small P 32.11 108.91 91.6 *** Pictet & Cie CHF 228.13RBZ Swiss Small & Mid Caps 39.24 83.64 46.14 * Rothschild Fund Management AG CHF 27.84Reichmuth Pilatus 20.84 97.4 104.08 ** Reichmuth & Co Investmentfds AG CHF 74.71SaraSelect 36.69 115.72 126.05 **** Sarasin Investmentfonds AG CHF 676.65Schroder ISF Swi Sm&Mid A Acc 40.25 107.01 *** Schroder Investment Mgmt (Luxembourg) CHF 163.35Swisscanto (CH) EF SMCap CH A 38.15 105.9 94.36 *** Swisscanto Fondsleitung AG CHF 618.76Synchrony IF Small Cap CH A Gerifonds SA CHF 41.5UBS (CH) EF-Mid Caps Switzl 33.74 95.86 83.96 ** UBS Fund Management AG CHF 528.89UBS (CH) EF-Small Cap Switzl 32.82 108.25 99.71 **** UBS Fund Management AG CHF 404.7UBS (CH) IF-S&M Eq Switz B 35.98 107.68 102.99 *** UBS Fund Management AG CHF 196.46
Vontobel Swiss Mid & S-Cap A2 34.08 90.19 55.34 ** Vontobel Fonds Services AG CHF 89.67Vontobel Swiss Small Companies 34.87 116.35 107.55 **** Vontobel Fonds Services AG CHF 490.34XMTCH on SMIM® 43.81 Credit Suisse AM Schweiz CHF 584.69Source : Standard & Poor’s Database Name : Pan European Date : 29/12/2006 Calculation Settings : Euro, Nav - Nav, Gross Reinvested.
* Since Launch Performance figures are calculated in fund base currency.
Small Companies EurolandAGF Invest Euro 29.37 AGF EUR 113.18AXA L Fund Sm Caps Benelux C 25.53 140.67 148.85 ***** AXA-IM / Axabank XLF 13.29Barclays Small Cap Euro PEA C 15.09 79.32 46.84 ** Barclays EUR 100.65BG Sicav SC Euro Eqs DXB-C Generali Investments EUR 64.31Bim Azionario Small Cap Italia 19.38 72.85 ** BIM Intermobiliare SGR S.p.A. EUR 60.94BK Small & Mid Caps 27.39 93 *** Gesbankinter EUR 207.91BMM Eurosmallcaps Banque Martin Maurel EUR 2.63BNL European Small Caps A 27.54 121.01 **** BNL Global Funds PLC EUR 11.1BNP Paribas Micro Cap Eurol. 13.57 73.61 * BNP Paribas EUR 18.92BNP Paribas Smallcap Eurol. C 25.69 103.35 97.73 **** BNP Paribas XFR 457.7CAAM Midcap Euro P 26.87 107.09 83.29 *** Crédit Agricole XFR 121.04CAAM Midcap Euro P 26.87 107.09 83.29 *** Crédit Agricole XFR 121.04Capitalgest Small Cap 26.33 51.25 59.04 * Capitalgest SGR S.p.A. EUR 98.13Centrale Avenir Euro 21.4 CCR EUR 32.35Dexia Eq B EMU Small Caps C 33.82 120.2 127.89 *** Dexia Asset Management XBF 25.19Dexia Eq B EMU Small Caps C 33.82 120.2 127.89 *** Dexia Asset Management XBF 25.19Dexia Eq B EMU Small Caps C 33.82 120.2 127.89 *** Dexia Asset Management XBF 25.19DWS Euroland Neue Märkte 13.98 70.91 0.06 * DWS Investment S.A. XDM 63.88Elan Midcap Euro C 30.74 Rothschild Banque EUR 47.65Elan MS Midcap Euro PEA 23.75 85.6 ** Rothschild Banque EUR 10.52EuroAction: Midcap 22.54 89.08 51.39 * Union Investment Lux S.A. XDM 242.88Groupama Avenir Euro I 26.71 100.96 *** Groupama EUR 37.79HSBC GIF Euroland EqSmCo AC EUR 33.71 114.89 *** HSBC Investment Fds (Lux) SA EUR 42.91HSBC Microcaps Euro C 11.4 67.93 -21.26 ** HSBC Investments XFR 31.46Iéna Euro Mid C 17.18 81.22 58.04 ** BFT EUR 41.23Iéna Euro Mid C 17.18 81.22 58.04 ** BFT EUR 41.23iShares DJ EURO STOXX Sm Cap 32.22 Barclays Global Investors EUR 193.16iShares DJ EURO STOXX Sm Cap 32.22 Barclays Global Investors EUR 193.16IXIS Découvertes 8.2 63.37 13.78 * IXIS Asset Management XFR 44.11Kairos Partners Small Cap 17.56 67.73 ** Kairos Partners Sgr S.P.A. EUR 683.07LBPAM Actions Midcap C 37.06 127.06 160.04 ***** La Banque Postale EUR 273.26LFP Microcaps 9.28 61.64 * La Francaise des Placements EUR 10.46Lupus alpha Sm Tec Champ C 24.93 75.79 30.29 ** Lupus alpha Asset Mgmnt GmbH EUR 89.43Lupus alpha Smllr Eur Champ C 27.84 108.67 149.78 *** Lupus alpha Asset Mgmnt GmbH EUR 181.32Lyxor ETF MSCI EMU Small Cap 25.55 Lyxor Asset Management EUR 78.49Mellon Small Cap Eurold A EUR 32.29 122.67 **** Mellon Global Investments Ltd EUR 237.38Natexis Actions Cap. Struct. -9.42 Natexis Equity Management EUR 31.59Nextra Azioni Pmi Italia 12.32 69.05 80.7 ** CAAM Sgr S.P.A. EUR 202.37Objectif Small Caps Euro 21.15 76.87 ** Lazard Freres Gestion EUR 225.55Parvest Euro Small Cap C 24.53 99.69 96.21 ** BNP Paribas Asset Management XEC 110.27Prévoir Perspectives 17.96 92.54 *** Société de Gestion Prévoir EUR 8.88SGAM Fund Eq Euroland S-Cap A 30.92 SG Asset Management EUR 149.08SGAM Index Small Cap Euro 31.11 SGAM Alternative Investments EUR 49.88SLB EuroSmallCaps Fund 19.06 107.15 86.47 *** Swiss Life Belgium EUR 3.61Symphonia Comp Az Italia S Co 12.49 58.61 11.18 * Symphonia Sicav S.P.A. EUR 87.03Synergy Smaller Cies A 22.17 92.74 Sycomore Asset Management EUR 284.24Zelia Euro Small Caps 19.06 107.15 86.47 ** Zelia Assurances XBF 14.35Source : Standard & Poor’s Database Name : Pan European Date : 29/12/2006 Calculation Settings : Euro, Nav - Nav, Gross Reinvested.
* Since Launch Performance figures are calculated in fund base currency.
Fund name return return return S&P Manager Currency Fund Size 1 Year 3 Year 5 Year Fund Stars
Fund name return return return S&P Manager Currency Fund Size 1 Year 3 Year 5 Year Fund Stars
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90
l i f e s t y l e yachting
Monaco Yacht show, is the only International
Boat Show dedicated exclusively to luxury
yachting. And, attracted by the prestige of
this event, top luxury brands, Blancpain,
Lanson Champagne, Lenotre, Baccarat,
Lalique, Dassault Aviation and Mercedes,
enthusiastically join forces with the MYS.
Among 91 superyachts, 44% measure more
than 40 meters in length. Taking part, 520
exhibitors, 77 shipyards, 29 luxury yacht
brokers, 54 naval architects and interior
designers, 187 equipment manufacturers
and 11 of the world’s top 15 customised
yacht builders.
“The Monaco Yacht Show is a perfect
example of an exhibition capable of crea-
ting community growth, not only has the
Principality of Monaco benefited, but the
entire nautical industry worldwide”, said
HSH Prince Albert 11 of Monaco.
“We Care For the Earth” is the theme throu-
ghout MYS. With the collaboration of Camper
and Nicholson, Monaco Yacht Show is the
first Monegasque event to receive the
“Carbon Neutral” award, striving to increase
awareness of its participants on global
warming issues.
91
yachting l i f e s t y l e
In spite of the astronomical costs,
world production of luxury supe-
ryachts has been growing at a
rate of knots in recent years. At
46.+ meters Lulworth is the world’s
largest gaff-rigged superyacht.
Discovered virtually abandoned in
the Italian sun in 2001, she was
bought by a company owned by
gregarious Dutch businessman
Johan van den Bruele who decided
to create “the restoration of the
century” using original materials,
even managing to track down rare
Honduras mahogany for the hull. It
takes 20 minutes to hoist the main
sail and when Lulworth races there
are 28 crew on board. Restored
in the boatyards of Viareggio, she
even boasts the original silverware
and interior features, graciously
returned by one of the previous
owners. For sale at 19.5€ million and
available for select day charters at
15,000€ including crew and skipper
Guiseppe Longon.
With 23 cutting-edge boats on show
the Italians are top of the “Builders
Nations” league, holding the keys to
the season’s must-haves, followed
by The Netherlands with 14, France
11, USA 8, Germany 7, New Zealand
6, Monaco 3, Russia 2, Turkey 2, UK
2 etc.
Blancpain
The Yacht Show also supports The Monegasque Association
Against Muscular Dystrophy, helping children affected by
this serious genetic disease. Each year since 2001, the MYS
donates, to AMM, half of each 50€ entry ticket and, sets up fund
raisers such as the annual Blancpain “Only One Watch” auction
with Prince Albert in the front line. The world’s most exclusive
auctioneers of rare timepieces Antiquorum and Osvaldo Patrizzi,
raised 110,000€€ this year. “With its 72-hour power reserve the “Only
One” watch is unique, the winding rotor, hand carved by Blancpain’s
master engraver, bears the image of the Lake Geneva historical sailing
vessel La Vaudoise”, explained the auctioneers.
16th Monacoyacht show
xxxx
Lulworth
Candyscape
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l i f e s t y l e xxxxxxx
l i f e s t y l e yachting
Impossible to ignore Maltese
Falcon,Tom Perkins’ magnificent state-
of-the-art sailing-yacht, the largest
project to date to come out of Perini
Yildiz Tuzla shipyards, Istanbul. In
addition to being a superb example of
technology and engineering in action,
look up! The UK based Insensys
company is responsible for the
Falcon’s revolutionary rotating mast
and the metallic silver rigging resem-
bles the ribs of an immense prehistoric
carbon creature. “We clean it with a
Karcher pressure washer with rotating
brushes and a very, very long hose,
along with two crew in the rig”, says
the yacht’s captain, Chris Gartner.
The interior is by French architect/
designer Christian Liagre, a combina-
tion of classical marine tradition and
contempoarary elegance. It’s yours for
a mere 100€ million
For sale, or to charter, Mirabella V, the
247-foot luxury sailing yacht exhibited
by brokers Nigel Burgess. Mirabella is
the world’s largest sloop, and is in the
Guinness Book of Records having the
tallest mast and largest sail. Burgess
say it is nimble for its’ size and can
reach speeds of upwards of 20 knots
under sail. There’s room for 12 guests
in six luxurious cabins with en-suite
bathrooms, Plasma TV’s, DVD and
CD players with 250-hour centralised
music system and, of course internet
and telephone connections. The
master suite on the main deck runs the
length of the boat. No excuse to stay
cabin side, try the Jacuzzi and pool,
the 30-foot tender will whisk you off to
your favourite restaurant. Burn off the
calories on the jet skis or in the gym.
Oh! and there are indoor and outdoor
movie screens. Price on application
but if you want to charter for a week
$300,000 includes the crew of 14.
9�
yachting l i f e s t y l e
The brilliant design duo brothers, Nick and
Christian Candy, recently refitted, the Benetti
built, Candyscape presented by Edmiston with
a price tag of 15.5€ million or, for charter at
€180,000 - €200,000 depending on the time of
year. “This is our first venture into boat design for
Candy & Candy. It’s art-deco meets contempo-
rary: a fusion”, explains Candy. It’s certainly no
ordinary 6-cabin: 6 bathrooms vessel. Original
artworks hang on silk covered walls, platinum
and gold leaf coat the ceilings whilst bespoke
furniture needs to be admired for its’ elegance.
Check out Halle Berry’s knife belts worn in the
James Bond film “Die Another Day”. Admire the
Louis Vuitton monogram trunk covering one of
the guest cloakroom walls, the mahogany dining
room table that flips over to become a gaming
table complete with roulette wheel.
From YachtPlus comes the Sea-Sleek Norman
Foster customised 100-footer, built from 100%
carbon fibre including the sails. It has room for
6 passengers and four crew. Push button sail
controls means one person can operate the
boat. Their 180-foot mega-yacht features a top
speed of 16 knots and an 861-square foot main
salon. The glass superstructure floods the inte-
rior with sunlight and gives 360-degree views
from the upper decks. Price? A mere $75.5
million and from the time you place the order,
expect a three year wait: because it’s worth it.
I’m not paying that!
So, YachtPlus have created Fractional
Ownership, a very practical and exciting
formula. “We have a fleet of 20 luxury motor
yachts built exclusively for our Fractional
Ownership Programme”, explains Han
Verstraete of YachtPlus. “Clients have the luxury
of leaving hectic schedules behind to escape
on board their own fully serviced yacht, with
crew; where and when they want. The Norman
Foster designed boats have 5-cabins, are built
by Rodriguez Cantieri Navale. 5 weeks a year
in the Caribbean or the Mediterranean will cost
approximately £849,000 plus an annual fee of
£86,000 which includes crew and servicing.
Maltese Falcon (up), Mirabella V (down)
Master Bedroom (up) and living room (down) Candyscape
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The Autumn Boat Bonanza continues in
Monaco, before moving on to Genoa,
Barcelona and Paris, with the super
sexy riva63 Vertigo, a must have
toy for the likes of Brigitte Bardot and
Sean Connery. Founded in 1842, by
Pietro Riva in Sarnico, Northern Italy,
Riva is the world’s oldest and most
renowned boat builder. In the 1950’s
Carlo Riva took over the yard, located
on the banks of Lake Iseo, and “le tout
Hollywood” fell in love with Riva, now
part of the Ferretti Group. Production
is limited to about 50 boats a year and
you’ll pay about €2.05€ million plus tax
for the “63” with vee-drive gearboxes.
“Expect the best and live the best
– Riva”.
For a larger motor yacht there’s
Annaliesse, at 280 feet, shown at MYS
by Edmiston. Room for 36 guests, with
a crew of 45, including an in-house
beautician and personal trainer. This is
sea-spa attitude with Jacuzzi, sauna,
massage rooms, his and hers hair
salons, nail parlour and gym. The price
is about $850,000 a week and if you
want to make them an offer at the end of
the week it will have to be in the region
of €€79 million.
The Wally Company, created in 1993,
was named by owner Luca Bassani’s
son after Wally Gator his favourite
cartoon character. Bassani, a wealthy
Italian economist turned yachting
entrepreneur, collaborates with naval
architect Luca Brenta to build fast,
light, safe, stylish and very expensive
carbon fiber sailing yachts. SYtango is
the fifth unit of the successful Wally80
design. Combining high performance
with interior volumes that are uniquely
large considering its’ 24 meter size,
there’s flush deck canting keel and
three cabins.
“The Monaco Yacht Show provides an
excellent opportunity to do business,
although there is obviously a lot of
competition”, explains Rupert Nelson,
sales director of Yacht Broker Nigel
Burgess. 12 guests and 15 crew make
indian Princess one of the Burgess
best boats. Definitely the grand piano
is an attraction, the games room with
180 degree panoramic view, and the
AC3 cinema/theatre, the gym, running
machine, cross trainer and oh! so much
to enjoy a life on the ocean wave.
Phocea is one of the largest privately
owned sailing yachts in the world, built
in 1976, by Arsenal de Toulon and raced
single-handed in the Transatlantic Yacht
Race by Alain Colas. She was then
converted for Club Med who sold her
to French entrepreneur/actor Bernard
Tapie. Her transformation into the jet-
set took place when Mouna Al-Ayoub
bought her and spent fortunes on the
interior décor, recently transformed by
David Linley. Mike Horsley of Edmiston
presented Phocea at MYS. “She’s in
the region of 19.5€ million to buy. If you
want her for charter think 80,000€ per
week, including crew, plus expenses”,
Horsley quoted.
Last May, Burger Boat Company laun-
ched the 144 foot tri-deck Mirgab V,
the largest aluminium yacht in its’ 143-
year history. The defining focal point
is a 1-meter diameter, glass tube
pneumatic elevator surrounded by a
circular sculpted bronze stairway and
illuminated glass treads spanning three
stories. This incredible stairway, desi-
gned and created by Les Metailliers
Champenois, is grounded on all three
levels with rare onyx stone.
No expense was spared when a high
profile executive and 24-hour party
person commissioned, from Amels,
Lady in Blue. This is the yacht that
thinks it’s a resort, read, Aman-on-Sea.
There are space for 10 guests and 14
crew, interior design is by Studio Alberto
Pinto, featuring a working fire place.
There’s plasma TV’s everywhere, disco-
theque, Jacuzzi, treadmill and the usual
tenders and toys. For sale at 35,000,000
USD or charter for 300,000 USD weekly
+ expenses. The galley would attract a
3-star chef – but Alain Ducasse doesn’t
come cheap.
95
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Monaco Yacht Show
www.monacoyachtshow.com
Blancpain SA
Chemin de l’étang 6
1094 Paudex, Switzerland
T: +41 21 796 36 36
www.blancpain.com
Edmiston & Company
Le Panorama
57 rue Grimaldi,
MC98000. Monaco
T: +377 93 30 54 44
www.edmistoncompany.com
Perini navi
Via Michele Coppino,
114-55049 Viareggio, Italy
T: +39 05844241
www.perininavi.it
YachtPlus
161 Brompton Road,
London SW3 1QP
T: +44 020 3144 0103
www.yachtplus.co.uk
nigel Burgess group
16/17 Pall Mall
London, SW1Y 5LU
T: +44 2077664300
www.nigelburgess.com
riva
VIA Predore 30
24067 Sarnico
Italy
T: +39 0359 10202
www.rivaboats.com
Candy & Candy Ltd
100 Brompton Road
London SW3 1ER,
T: +44 (0) 20 7594 4300
www.candyandcandy.com
Camper & nicholson
international
Port Camille Rayon, 06220
Golfe Juan, France,
T: +33 (0) 4 97 04 10 50
Amels
www.amels-holland.com
Burger Boat Company
www.burgerboat.com
Address Book
Riva Vertigo (up), Analiesse (down)
Wally Tango
yachting l i f e s t y l e
l i f e s t y l e hot products
thE of desireEnough of grey! The trend is towards brightly coloured designer objects, large or small, that you can slip into your pocket or show off in your living room. A high-tech, stylish selection for a winter full of colour.
Skiing is not a tourist sport; it’s a state of
mind, almost a life philosophy. It’s some-
thing within you whose line and materials
form the pillars of the soul. Simon Jacomet
brought extra soul into sliding sports when
he created Zai skis in 2003. Hand made skis
in ash and titanium, all of them numbered.
500 pairs were manufactured last year and
700 will be made this year. Don’t miss these
real skiing Berluttis, made by a lover of
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Zai odavon, € 2,380
pocket flower
Love always. It’s been made into perfumes,
songs, films, and tragedies... Today, love
is also a range of glamorous and subtle
mobile phones from Nokia’s designers.
Rounded shapes, shades of pink and
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phone includes a 2 million pixel camera
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nokia n7373 oh l’amour powder pink,
€ 350
hot products l i f e s t y l e
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We used to know the Aibo robot dog, who’s no longer with us.
Robosapiens with an almost human form but with limited useful-
ness in everyday life. Today, the most technological animal is
a rabbit. Connected to your computer and Internet connection
via Wi-Fi, it is capable of reading your e-mail aloud as well as
playing music files stored on your PC. Better still: when your
friends are connected to an instant messaging client or when
you’ve received e-mail, its ears imitate American mailboxes and
drop to let you know.
Conran shop, Wi-Fi Bunny, € 115
techno rabbit
music sharinGWe used to hear complaints about people listening to their
music at full volume and making sure everyone else could hear it
through poorly adjusted headphones. Today this will be better or
worse, depending on whether you’re a victim of your neighbour’s
sonic assaults or whether you generously share your songs with
those around you. This dark-coloured personal stereo with touch
keys slides to reveal built-in miniature speakers for listening to
MP3 and radio in your hotel room or in the middle of the crowd.
Samsung YP-k5, €€ 300
the spirit of skiinG
96
nomadic worker
97
Sometimes, we have to decide to work. If we can conform
to this ritual from the place of our choosing, preferably
somewhere resembling paradise, the challenge will be
easier to overcome. With this true pocket office combining
keyboard, touchscreen and broadband telephony that can
go online anywhere via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, you can get
your e-mail and work between two flights. Or between two
lengths of the pool...
Sony Ericsson P990, € 770
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l i f e s t y l e hot products
The appearance of IT takes on colour with the
Vaio C series. Each of us has our own lifestyle,
colour code and mobile phone to fit into our
daily lives. White for cool, green for defenders
of nature and pink for fashion victims... Vaio
mobile phones were already among the best
looking and most compact on the market. Now
they’re available in colour with matching pouch
and mouse.
Sony Vaio C, € € 1,300
Vital colours
royal comfortTaking on the steepest slopes in freestyle can also be done with style on a snowboard that’s not
content to be like all the others. With its bed of lilies, this snowboard’s elegance is what makes the
difference. Now it’s your turn to look good.
Rip Curl royal honor, € € 419
When you see it you can’t help comparing it with a minia-
ture of a Jedi Knight laser sabre . But no, it is in fact an
MP3 reader with the measurements of a cigar and a ring
that lets you control all its musical functions. What’s the
most original thing about it? Just shake it three times to
change the listening mode. Unless you prefer creating
jogging playlists that the personal stereo will let you listen
to while you’re walking or running.
MP3 Sony design personal stereo NW S2003, € 140
sabre laser
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The QS team looks forward to meeting you in 2007 at one ofour business school events around the world:Europe China & India Latin America North America Europe Asia Pacific India & M.East3 Mar - 27 Mar 7 July - 27 July 27 Aug - 10 Sep 12 Sep - 6 Oct 9 Oct - 2 Nov 4 Nov - 27 Nov 29 Nov - 11 DecFrankfurt Mumbai São Paulo Miami Moscow Tokyo New DelhiMoscow New Delhi Buenos Aires New York Kiev Seoul HyderabadLondon Seoul Santiago Boston London Taipei BangaloreParis Beijing Lima Washington DC Milan Hong Kong ChennaiSofia Shanghai Bogotá Toronto Madrid Shenzen MumbaiBucharest Shenzen Caracas Atlanta Frankfurt Beijing DubaiRome Mexico City Chicago Zurich ShanghaiLisbon Los Angeles Munich ManilaBarcelona San Francisco Paris HoChi Minh
Seattle Tel Aviv BangkokAfrica Houston Athens SingaporeJohannesburg Istanbul Kuala Lumpur
More info and registration at www.topmba.com From the team at
World MBA TourMeet face to face with
admissions officers from380 business schools inmore than 35 countries
ExecMBA VillageThe chance for experienced
professionals, corporatehigh-flyers and HR managersto enquire about ExecMBAs
Global-WorkplaceQS manages the world’s largeststudent and alumni community
of top talent from theworld’s best schools
QS TopMBA ScorecardThe interactive alternative tostandard b-school rankings,
to create a personalisedranking matched to you
Exec Ed SearchA comprehensive search ofbusiness schools providing
details on theiropen-enrollment courses
QSprovides a lifetime of
educational andcareer services
to high-achievers
Privates Bankers since 1842
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