Acquisitions in the US convenience services sector and strong food service segment trade globally helped offset softer facilities management activity during the quarter
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Sodexo supplies catering services to offices, hospitals, leisure facilities and educational campuses across more than 45 countries | Photo credit: Sodexo Group
Sodexo Group’s growing North American vending and office coffee division has been the strongest contributor to slight first quarter revenue growth.
The French contract catering and facilities management group’s total sales in the three months ended 30 November 2024 grew 2% year-on-year to reach €6.4bn ($6.7bn). Group revenues were driven by 6% growth in Sodexo’s food services segment, which includes catering services across offices, hospitals, leisure facilities and educational campuses across more than 45 countries.
Operating revenues in the group’s facilities management services segment increased 2% year-on-year.
North America is Sodexo’s largest regional segment by revenues, with sales growing 2% during the period to reach €3.1bn ($3.25bn) – 48% of the group’s total.
Alongside a strong performance from its Sodexo Live! events management business, Sodexo’s North America revenues continue to be positively impacted by the expansion of its self-serve vending and office coffee service division, InReach. Sodexo has made seven M&A deals in the US vending sector since 2022 – most recently acquiring Pennsylvania-based CRH Catering in November 2024.
Operating revenues in Europe grew 1.1% to €2.2bn ($2.3bn), slowing from the second half of 2024 following lower activity in Continental Europe, contract losses and a decline in project works. Strong performances in India, Brazil and Australia lifted sales in Sodexo’s Rest of the World segment to €1.1bn ($1.1bn) – 2.2% higher than the same period in 2023.
“As we reflect on the first quarter, we have delivered organic growth of 4.6%, marking a soft start to the year as expected. Solid performance in food services offset softer activity in FM services, where we experienced lower volumes in project works. Importantly, we are encouraged by the strong commercial momentum at the start of the year, marked by major contract wins and renewals,” said Sophie Bellon, Chairwoman and CEO, Sodexo.
Founded in Marseille in 1966, Sodexo serves 80 million consumers daily, providing integrated food, facilities management and organisational services to clients in the corporate, education, healthcare, senior living, leisure and government sectors.
The contract catering and facilities management group, which posted full-year sales of €23.8bn ($25.7bn) in 2024, has forecast modest sales growth in the first half of its fiscal year ahead of an acceleration in the latter part of the period.