SERVICES | Rogers
ROGERS
SEM-listed international holding
company with deep roots in Mauritius
speaks to Rogers CEO Philippe Espitalier-NoĂŤl
African Business Network
SERVICES | Rogers
Rogers is a multi-faceted services and investment company with roots in Mauritius stretching all the way back to 1899. As such, the firm has been contributing to the development of the island for nearly 120 years and as a good corporate citizen, its own development has remained closely linked to that of the country in the postindependence era. Over the last half century, Rogers has been a forerunner in various sectors including tourism and aviation, playing a leading role of the setting up of the national airline, Air Mauritius on the eve of independence. “We have often been among the first to venture into greenfield sectors and the success we have met has been shared with our citizens through our significant contribution to GDP and job creation in Mauritius,â€? says Rogers CEO Philippe Espitalier-NoĂŤl.
A global growth story Today, the Rogers story is no longer centred on Mauritius alone. In recent years, the company has expanded out of its Mauritian base, establishing a corporate presence in several emerging markets, particularly in the Afro-Asian region.
African Business Network Thanks to a series of measured and adaptive management practises and a sense of leadership, agility and dynamism, Rogers now has a sustainable presence on three continents; Africa, Asia and Europe. “It has taken much business acumen and energy to drive our group’s growth beyond the borders of our country. Our financial strength and growth history over several decades despite the ups and downs of the global economy have forged our credibility with our foreign counterparts.” Through its subsidiaries and investments, Rogers currently has more than 50 offices in 16 territories, namely Mauritius, Reunion Island, Mayotte, Madagascar, Comoros, the Seychelles, Kenya, Mozambique, South Africa, India, Singapore, Bangladesh, France, Morocco, Zimbabwe and Zambia. This internationalisation of the Rogers growth story is largely symbolic of the rise of Mauritius on the global stage over the last two decades, as the tiny island nation has become well-renowned across the world as a luxury holiday destination and for its firstrate services industry, particularly in finance and investment. Consequently, hospitality and finance are two of four focus sectors for Rogers, with logistics and property the other key areas that it offers services to in Mauritius and in other destinations around the world. “We definitely have a competitive edge in
TURN YOUR BUSINESS INTO A MASTERPIECE Today’s fast moving world makes it capital for companies to constantly readjust themselves.From small to medium, from local to global, from e ffective to efficient, evolution is essential in order to succeed.Rogers Capital offers a complete suite of corporate services whose mettle is aligned to international standards, including: corporate administration, fund administration, tax advisory and compliance, accounting and payroll outsourcing, and captive insurance management. With our three business segments, Corporate, Financial and Technology, we combine world-class financial expertise with cutting edge technology to provide sophisticated business solutions that are tailored to our clients’ needs. Together, we partner up for progress, we keep evolving.
Corporate | Technology | Financial
www.rogerscapital.mu
African Business Network
our core areas of competency,” claims
A bubbling tourism sector
Espitalier-Noël. “Over the years, we have
Focusing on its domestic hospitality business,
successfully executed our strategy to achieve
in the last year or so Rogers has benefitted
leaner and more streamlined operations.
from a marked upturn in tourism arrivals
these served markets, which have become
after a few sluggish years with regards to “We are now an international services and
visitor numbers.
investment company with a structure that enables us to focus on those things which we
Espitalier-Noël holds up the improved
do best and capitalise on opportunities for
revenue made by subsidiary Veranda Leisure
growth, building on our strengths. The fact
& Hospitality (VLH) as evidence to this point,
that these sectors are mainly service-oriented
which is further strengthened by the fact that
also makes it easier for us to export our
the resort operator turned in a satisfactory
know-how and expand into existing or new
performance despite drops in Euro and
markets.”
Pound Sterling exchange rates.
SERVICES | Rogers
In order to capitalise on the growth observed
After recording a bumper 11% rise in visitor
in the domestic tourism market, Rogers has
numbers in 2016 and following this up with a
chosen to significantly increase its investment
smaller (yet still impressive) 5% increase last
in the hospitality sector since 2016.
year, Espitalier-Noël is confident of a similar performance in 2018 within the tourism
“This includes an expansion of our leisure
industry, which is set to further boost Rogers’
offerings to enhance the guest experience,”
hospitality business.
the CEO explains. “We have been capitalising on golf tourism, on gastronomic offerings,
Regional fintech leader
and wellness services, amongst others.
However, Mauritius is not just thought of as a high-end holiday destination. The country
“Our group has been infusing innovation for
has also built a reputation as a world class
decades across the entire travel and tourism
investment hub intersecting Africa, Asia and
value chain in Mauritius and we are intent on
Europe with an advanced fintech network
going further in this direction.”
buttressing the sector.
Resource GlobalNetwork Network African Business
Rogers has embraced this burgeoning fintech
300 professionals and is structured around
culture on the island and become well-versed
three core pillars: Corporate Services,
in the latest technological trends occurring
Technology Services and Financial Services.”
in the business and finance world, offering a range of products and services through its
The Corporate Services segment provides
investment arm Rogers Capital.
fiduciary, outsourcing and consulting services to an established customer base in Europe,
“Rogers Capital delivers on our ambition
the US, Africa and Asia (India and China),
to combine world-class financial expertise
while the Technology Services division is an
with leading edge technology to provide
end-to-end provider of integrated business
sophisticated solutions to businesses,
solutions, cloud computing and mobile
institutions and individuals in their evolution
connectivity services in Mauritius, the Indian
under a solid and respected brand.
Ocean islands and South Africa.
“Our fintech served market currently employs
“As for Financial Services, it is in the process
SERVICES | Rogers
African Business Network
of introducing some disruptive fintech
and was the largest single contributor to the
offerings in respect of credit and electronic
group’s overall profitability in 2017 with a
payment on the domestic market,” Espitalier-
profit after tax of R974 million.
Noël reveals. Ascencia was founded by Rogers in 2007 to In its remaining focus areas, Rogers
manage its property portfolio, which includes
continues to perform to a high standard, with commercial, industrial, agricultural and the logistics sector recording a 14% increase
office properties in prime locations across
in profit during the last financial year and a
the island. The fund has since grown into
long-term strategy in place to expand the
one of the largest property companies listed
reach of the logistics business beyond its
on the Stock Exchange of Mauritius, with
current footprint under the brand Velogic.
an investment portfolio currently valued at R10.7 billion.
On the property front, Rogers’ listed property fund Ascencia continues to perform well
“The sector remains dynamic with the recent
SERVICES | Rogers
African Business Network opening of a new mall in November 2017,
The company has also been able to provide
and the construction of a new one in the
tangible success in this respect after both
South of the Island in the pipeline.”
its upmarket resorts in Bel Ombre received
A proud SEMSI firm
the Green Key label, awarded to hotels that promote sustainable tourism.
Aside from its operational performances, Rogers takes great pride in being one of
Over the last three centuries, Rogers has
just 13 companies listed on the SEMSI – the
continually developed in tandem with
sustainability index on the Stock Exchange of
Mauritius, but how will it maintain this growth
Mauritius.
curve in the rapidly-changing globalised world of the future? The answer lies in having
“We at Rogers believe that energy drives
a clear strategy, says Espitalier-Noël.
sustainability and in conjunction with our different business sectors, we intend to
“We have well-structured businesses
continue integrating the sustainability
equipped with the right mix of leadership
philosophy into our business strategies.”
skills and dynamism to seize new opportunities and drive organic growth.
It is worth noting that the group’s responsible and inclusive approach to sustainable
“Our three main pillars will be the expansion
development has been singled out by the
of our fintech-related activities, the expansion
UN for its work undertaken at national level.
of our hospitality business with a sizeable
“We are proud to have been included in
leisure arm as well as the enhancement
the Global Compact International Yearbook
of our existing operations with a property
2017 for the work done over the past few
component on our Southwestern estate.
years with respect to lagoon and marine environment protection.
“The overall objective is to achieve a more balanced contribution to group profits from
“The balance between economic, social and
each of our served markets.”
environmental goals has become a constant in our projects. We are also working hard to reduce our carbon footprint in environmental metrics such as energy, water and waste consumption.”
abj
To tell the resource market your story, contact: jacob@africanbusinessnetwork.co.za WWW.AFRICANBUSINESSNETWORK.CO.ZA Published by Anderson Murray Media Ltd