Rapid growth ‘Down Under’ propels Driver Hire into Sunday Times HSBC International listings

13 June 2016

Outstanding levels of growth at Driver Hire Australia have propelled its owner, Specialist People Services (SPS), into the Sunday Times HSBC International Track 200. The list covers the 200 UK firms with the fastest growing international sales. To qualify, annual revenue from this source must be £1m or more; SPS is ranked 104th.

Alongside Driver Hire Australia, SPS owns a range of leading recruitment services brands in the UK including Driver Hire Nationwide, rail support services provider ISS Labour; Driver CPC training provider Driver Hire Training; and eServices, which offers online people management services including dh Licence Check.

The first Driver Hire Australia office opened in Perth in 2012. Supplying temporary labour to a number of industries, it is now one of four, alongside Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney. From a standing start, Driver Hire Australia’s turnover reached AU$9.7m in the 2015/16 financial year.

Chris Chidley, chief executive of SPS, said: “In a relatively short period of time we’ve built a successful business in Australia, with four offices offering strong coverage across the country.

“Key to this was playing to our strengths and exporting our expertise in the provision of  specialist temporary labour to hard-to-serve industries like transport and logistics. As a result we now have a significant foothold in a growing market. Nevertheless, we remain committed to looking for other opportunities to continue to build our business overseas and in the UK, either through further organic growth or acquisitions.”