Another important step for the company in the Central European region. In spring 2021, B+N Referencia Zrt. acquired the interests of ISS Group in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania and Hungary. With this move, the Hungarian company group has become one of the largest facility operators in the region. As a logical continuation of this expansion, the company purchased a 100% stake in the Slovenian subsidiary of ISS.
With the acquisition, B+N Referencia Zrt.’s activities cover almost the entire Central European region and it has become the leading facility operator in the region. Further international expansion clearly follows from the successes achieved so far. In two decades, the company has become the market leader in this highly competitive segment in Hungary. For years it has been a stable player in the ranking of the 500 Hungarian companies with the highest turnover. Over the past few years, sales have steadily increased, and in 2019, with a turnover of HUF 36 billion, the company achieved a profit after tax of HUF 4 billion. In addition to public institutions, its clients also include prominent representatives of the domestic corporate sector. The acquisition, which took place in the spring of 2021 and involved four of the region’s key countries, marked another milestone in the company’s development. In the six months since then, B+N Referencia Zrt. has successfully transferred its domestic expertise and experience to other countries in the region.
Founded in Copenhagen in 1901, the ISS Group is one of the world’s largest international facility operator service providers. As a major player in the market, with almost 400,000 employees, it serves thousands of customers worldwide. Its main business lines are cleaning, technical services, catering and workplace services. In 2018, the Group announced its intention to sell its stakes in 13 countries, including the operations that are the subject of the current transaction, in order to focus on its core markets and achieve its strategic objectives. The sale of ISS companies in Central and Eastern Europe is part of this process.
Ferenc Kis-Szölgyémi: “We’ve proven that the knowledge, experience and expertise of our colleagues guarantee our success in the international market”
“In the last six months, B+N Referencia Zrt. has gone from being the domestic market leader to an indispensable player in the region. We’ve proven that the knowledge, experience and expertise of our colleagues guarantee our success in the international market. I am confident that, following the successful acquisitions in Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Romania, we will become a major player in facility management in Slovenia. Increasing size increases cost efficiency, and high volume gives us a competitive advantage over smaller players in all our markets. With this transaction, the number of employees of B+N Referencia Zrt. will rise to over 10,000” – said Ferenc Kis-Szölgyémi, CEO.
Ferenc Kis-Szölgyémi, CEO, B+N
He added: “Our capital is our blue-collar base. As Europe’s blue-collar workers are mainly from the Central and Eastern European region, I am convinced that a significant regional workforce will also improve our competitiveness in Western Europe. We plan to use this competitive advantage to expand further in the future.”
With the market entry of B+N Referencia Zrt., ISS clients can be assured that the high-quality services of the past will be continued and even further developed in the entire facility management portfolio in the Slovenian market.
The company is a market leader in Hungary in the field of facility management. It has more than 20 years of experience and expertise, working under ISO certification in several fields. Its domestic clients include prominent players in the corporate and business sectors.
B+N Referencia Zrt. has exported the outstanding expertise, high quality service, customer orientation, transparent and flexible operation and fast decision-making that are familiar in Hungary to the countries of the region. All this ensures a high quality of service for its prospective customers also in the Slovenian market. The company is also optimistic about further expansion: As a 100% Hungarian-owned company, it knows and understands the Central and Eastern European market, the business world and the economic environment.
B+N: We are working for a more liveable world!
B+N Referencia Zrt. believes that automation and robotics will become increasingly important in the facilities management sector, as in all other areas that require large human resources. That is why, in addition to the continuous improvement of its services, it puts great emphasis on technological innovation. Among the facility management companies in Hungary, this is the only one with a research and development department, employing 15 people. The company will also make available to its foreign partners the innovative automation solutions developed by its R&D department in Hungary. Examples include a self-developed autonomous industrial cleaning robot launched in 2019 and a mobile UV disinfection device developed in 2020.
Everyone has the right to a healthy, liveable environment, both at home and at work. The company works to create and maintain this, as the slogan says: “We are working for a more liveable world!”. Decades of experience, expertise and commitment prove that this is no empty promise. Its daily business is based on customer satisfaction, which it achieves through high quality services.
B+N Referencia Zrt. considers it its social mission to raise awareness of the importance of cleaning work and actively promotes its recognition throughout the region, with more than 7,000 cleaning workers in the region. Valuing manual work is a core value of the company. With this in mind, in 2020 it launched its “Look around and see” campaign, which aims to raise the social esteem of cleaners. The campaign aims to ensure that those doing this important work get the recognition they deserve. B+N Zrt. has also initiated this change in the new markets. In Slovenia, as in other countries in the region, the company strives to retain and value all local employees wherever possible.