Empresaria Group Regulatory News (EMR)

26 October 2021

Empresaria Group plc

("Empresaria" or the "Group")

Trading update

Continued growth in profit forecast with Offshore Recruitment Services a key contributor

Empresaria, the global specialist staffing group, provides the market with an update on trading for the current financial year ending 31 December 2021.

Trading update

Following the progress made in the first half of 2021, we have seen increased momentum into the second half of the year as the Group continues to realise the benefits from operational initiatives and the improved economic environment. As a result, it is anticipated that the Group's full year net fee income will be in the range of £57m to £59m and adjusted profit before tax is expected to be in the range of £7.4m to £7.9m (9% to 16% above market consensus).

Our Offshore Recruitment Services sector continues to go from strength to strength and delivered a record increase in billable headcount in September. This sector remains core to our future plans through both its external and internal delivery.

Our Professional sector has performed better than expected in the third quarter with a strong recovery in our UK hospitality operations and solid performances in Asia despite the very significant levels of local lockdowns. However, the challenges in the aviation industry continue and this is expected to impact us until the sector recovers.

Our Healthcare sector has had a very strong 2021. While we were anticipating a significant slowdown in the vaccination programmes in our Healthcare sector in the second half of the year, the autumn COVID-19 booster vaccinations in the US have led to additional demand. This will likely last through to early 2022 after which we expect reduced demand from the vaccination programme.

Chief Executive Officer, Rhona Driggs, commented:

"I am pleased we are able to deliver this positive news on our trading. Demand continues to be strong across the staffing industry and we are seeing this reflected in most of our businesses. With skills shortages at a 15-year high, candidate attraction and engagement remain a key priority as we close out the year. We are continuing to invest in the future of the business, including the recent appointment of regional leaders who will be instrumental in helping us deliver on our growth strategies. I am pleased to see the positive momentum within the business, and I am confident that we can take advantage of the continued economic recovery to deliver long-term growth."

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Notes for editors:

§ Empresaria Group plc is a global specialist staffing group offering temporary and contract recruitment, permanent recruitment and offshore recruitment services across 6 sectors: Professional; IT; Healthcare; Property, Construction and Engineering; Commercial and Offshore Recruitment Services.

§ Empresaria operates from locations across the world including the 4 largest staffing markets of the US, Japan, UK and Germany along with a strong presence elsewhere in Asia Pacific and Latin America.

§ Empresaria is listed on AIM under ticker EMR. For more information visit empresaria.com.