BrazilFrance has grown into Comatch's second largest market
France has quickly become Comatch’s second largest market, since launching in 2017. The platform for connecting consultants and independent experts with companies has used the wide ranging expertise of its 900 strong network to enjoy rapid growth in the country.
Two years after launching in Germany in 2015, Comatch landed in Europe’s second largest economy of France. Now one and a half years down the line, the company has completed dozens of projects in the country. Over the past six months, the number of projects completed has increased by 170%.
Comatch’s activities in France are growing for a number of reasons. First and foremost, the excellent health of the consulting market in France is a key factor. In 2018, Consult’in France found that the industry had expanded its revenues by 11%, and with this boom in demand, the need for independents as found in Comatch’s network has risen as well. Its database of French freelancers now hosts around 1,000 management consultants and industry practitioners. The firm’s entire database sits at 7,000 members all over the world, so almost 15% of the network is currently based in France.
At the same time, Comatch’s network boasts quality as well as quantity. Each member is handpicked and must undergo a rigorous process of vetting before being admitted. Meanwhile, the wide variety of skills and capabilities shared by these consultants mean that Comatch is capable of covering matters across strategy and business consulting. It now has a track record in more than 30 sectors as a result.
Contrary to the largest consulting firms, Comatch targets mainly medium-sized and intermediate companies that typically find the fees of the MBB or the Big Four too high, or their consulting processes to cumbersome. According to Bernhard Ney, the Chief Executive of Comatch France, this means that clients are satisfied with Comatch’s consultants, due to the very high return rate on engaging them.
Ney explained, “With reduced overhead costs, the Comatch model makes top consultants more accessible to these companies. We see major opportunities in this segment, and thus address them with a personalised approach and a tailor-made support system… With a rate of recommendation of 94% and the multiplication of project renewals, we are convinced of the relevance of our model. Our customers emphasise not only the flexibility and availability of our teams, but also the quality of the members of our network.”
For 2019, the firm aims at continuing its growth. It intends to do this by becoming a trusted partner of companies, and extending its portfolio of services from consultancy engagements to placements as well. To support these developments in the French market, the team has been strengthened and now has around fifteen people.
The French team will now build on the foundation built by Comatch globally. The company has a global team of over 100 employees, and last year closed a €8 million financial round to accelerate its expansion, including a deepening of its services, investment in its technical infrastructure, and entering new markets.
Even talk of a global economic slowdown doesn’t concern Ney thanks to this progress. He concluded; “If forecasts of economic slowdown materialise, our light cost structure will allow us to propose consulting engagements at prices adapted to this cycle of the economy.”
