Conntrak Catering Services provides world-class catering, housekeeping and su clients offshore. Having quickly established itself as a market leader across the M Southeast Asia, Conntrak Catering is gearing up to grow once more. Commercia Russell divulged more, during an in-depth interview. Report by Imogen Ward.
upport to its Middle East and al Director Nathan
When it comes to catering within the offshore, marine and renewables sectors, Conntrak Catering Services maintains a strong market lead. Each year, the offshore service specialist produces around 8.5 million meals with the help of its 2,000 hardworking employees.
“Conntrak Catering was established in 2017 by myself and my business partner and Managing Director Craig Ogden,” explained Commercial Director Nathan Russell. “The business was established in the UAE, started from the ground up, without any sales pipeline or existing clients.”
Before long, the two partners were ready to develop the business further, and, in 2019, they sealed the deal with the acquisition of a multinational caterer in Thailand.
“It was our first ever acquisition, and Thailand has been extremely successful,” said Mr Russell. “The acquisition also helped us expand into the greater Southeast Asian region, and now in Thailand we are the market leader for our sector.”
Building a solid foundation
Just last year, the company expanded once more with the acquisition of another major multinational competitor in the GCC. This was a major benchmark for Conntrak Catering, as it allowed for a swift expansion across the UAE, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, and also opened the doors to other segments of the market.
“The acquisition involved four entities that spanned three countries,” revealed Mr Russell. “This investment also provided us with a much larger access to the drilling market within the GCC. By adding this acquisition to our roster, we have benefited from stronger consolidation. It has enabled us to combine resources across regions and support clients with additional managerial support.”
Although the transition was challenging, Conntrak Catering’s team worked exceptionally hard to ensure the changeover was completed in just 90 days.
As Conntrak Catering takes the time to learn more about the acquisition and how it operates, the new owner will continue
to update and improve the business, with several more changes planned over the next 12 months.
Today, the company operates out of offices situated within the Middle East, Southeast Asia, the UK, GoM and Africa.
“Our main service is catering for offshore vessels, rigs, and platforms,” said Mr Russell. “We also provide housekeeping, laundry and pest control services to our clients.
“Our offshore management, chefs, bakers, assistant cooks and stewards support daily tasks, which include
providing three meals a day, plus midnight snacks and meals as required, housekeeping, and laundry services on their designated vessel. The entire opera tion is then overseen by our regional offices.”
Every quarter, Conntrak Catering provides its clients with business and quality reviews where it discusses operational successes, challenges, customer satisfaction surveys, Captain surveys, HSEQ statistics, financial performance and any training needs. These reviews have been implemented since Conntrak Catering was founded.
Nurturing a greener tomorrow
Conntrak Catering firmly believes in protecting the environment, from the work of its HSEQ and Operational teams (which ensures the use of locally sourced produce and environmentally friendly chemicals) to partnerships with suppliers that align with its commitments. By carrying out
biannual audits across its entire supply chain, Conntrak Catering can ensure its suppliers remain committed to the cause.
“These audits are an important step in the process, and our suppliers are very accepting of them,” explained Mr Russell.
“It can be difficult for startups to gain the support of suppliers, so we are very grateful for their continued loyalty and understanding. There are several that have been with us since day one and without their support, we would not have the level of success we have right now.”
Conntrak Catering has also implemented a rigorous CSR programme.
“Most recently, we have started to expand our CSR programme across multiple countries,” commented Mr Russell. “We are currently implementing our CSR programme in Thailand, where we’re supporting and sponsoring culinary education at a training centre to provide local members of the community with greater opportunities for employment.
“Some of the places we work are extremely challenging. Hiring locally benefits the communities we work in and also has the added benefit of reduced transportation emissions.”
Glimpsing a brighter future
Each year, Conntrak Catering also looks forward to meeting up with suppliers, customers and potential clients at ADIPEC, and this year will be no different.
“We have a number of clients in attendance, that we support every year,” said Mr Russell. “At ADIPEC, many of our clients have stands in the marine hall, and we make sure to drop by and say hello ,
speak to the team and ensure they are happy with the service we are providing and to keep in touch with their business successes.
“Five to ten years ago, the event was more of an opportunity to speak to new clients, but we are quite well known in the industry now. So, it is more about keeping in touch with our colleagues and our customers, and we also catch up with a lot of other companies from outside of our region that we wouldn’t normally see, which is nice.”
While ADIPEC 2024 is on the horizon, the rest of Conntrak Catering’s future is very bright indeed. Having already experienced a strong growth trajectory since 2017, the company hopes to enhance this even more with organic growth and acquisitions closing out 2024 and to 2025.
“We would also like to expand further across our North Sea business and enter the Gulf of Mexico for the first time in 2025,” added Mr Russell, in conclusion. “The future is an exciting prospect and one that we are grateful to have. I started a sales job in Abu Dhabi back in 2006, which allowed for a natural progression to setting up our own company, and the entire experience has been amazing.
“We really enjoy the challenge of winning competitive tenders whilst supporting the needs of our existing clients. We have been to grow from literally nothing into a medium-sized global enterprise has been incredible in the short time we have been operating.
“That, without a doubt, is my biggest driver, and I am so grateful to have accomplished it with my business partner and our amazing team.” n
