Poolia is a well-established brand within white collar staffing and was founded in 1989 (as Ekonompoolen). With the merger with Uniflex in November 2018, Poolia now offers both white collar as well as blue-collar services. The Poolia unit helps companies with their temporary staffing as well as recruitment. Some of Poolia’s specialty areas are banking & finance, HR, sales & markets & administration. Besides Sweden, it has offices in Germany, Finland and Norway. Now merged with Uniflex, Poolia has extended its offering towards the fields of industry, warehousing, construction, electricity, administration, sales and customer service.
The business model is capital-light and growth can be generated without the need for larger investments. For the same reason, the model results in strong cash flow and high payout ratios, meaning room for great dividends. Poolia is furthermore a well-established brand with 30 years of history. We think the company should be able to attract more consultants with its strong brand, resulting in growth at least in line with the sector. Together with Uniflex, cost synergies should come easily with the opportunity for margin expansion.
Staffing companies are in general contracted as a flexible part of a company’s workforce. Their services are therefore attractive when the economy is expanding and the quick addition of labour is needed for businesses to meet customer demand. Therefore, Poolia is naturally sensitive to changes in the business cycle, and now the inclusion blue-collar staff increases this sensitivity. Germany has been a strong EBIT contributor but recent political regulation in Germany regarding temporary staffing could make it harder for Poolia and its peers to operate in the country.