Founded: 2005
Founder: Farida Gibbs
Turnover 2009: £1.8m
Turnover 2010: £10.3m
Web: www.gibbs-s3.com
Right from the start, Farida Gibbs was determined to keep her business close, her employees even closer. Her IT recruitment business, set up in 2005, is predicated on the tireless efforts of her loved ones; the second employee Farida took on was her sister, Ameera, and she has since recruited brother Mo and husband Paul to drive the venture forward.
Keeping it in the family has proved a remarkably successful policy for Farida thus far. Gibbs S3 (the name derives from a strategic alliance with the American company S3, forged in 2009) is currently Europe’s fastest-growing IT Staffing and IT Workforce Solutions business, having achieved 456% growth in 2010 and forecast 150% revenue increase this year. As revenues have continued to climb, the company has steadily expanded beyond its Surrey base; Gibbs S3 now runs three offices across the UK (Surrey, London and Cheshire) and able to service US and Europe.
Farida and her team have also moved beyond their initial focus on financial services, a sector decimated by the recession, to secure big-name deals with companies in the energy, pharmaceutical and petrochemicals industries. New clients are proactively pursued via networking events, and each new business pitch is based on forensic research into the target company. Little wonder that Gibbs S3 is now a Tier 1 supplier to companies in the FTSE100 realm.
Gibbs S3 boldly claims its mission is to “break the mould and dispel the myth of an IT recruitment firm.” By providing a dedicated account management team, equipped with industry knowledge, for each client, Gibbs S3 encourages long-term relationships with the companies it deals with; furthermore, helping clients realise significant financial savings – one client has reduced its recruitment costs by £600,000 by adopting a Gibbs S3 workforce solution. With such obvious gains on offer, it’s hardly surprising that big-name companies are turning to Gibbs in ever-increasing numbers. This family affair is set to continue as Farida ensures that the people working and joining the business feel very much part of that family culture.
Judges' comments: This is truly a family business, with the CEO, her brother, sister and husband all involved. But what impressed the judges more was their incredible growth of well over 400% in the last year, achieved by impressing a blue chip client list across the globe. Gibbs S3 is a shining example of British entrepreneurial talent.
Farida Gibbs, Founder and CEO, Gibbs S3 said, “Finally all the hard work is paying off, to be recognised as a winner at the Fast Growth Business Awards is truly spectacular and an amazing achievement after all the years of believing that I could do it”
http://www.gibbs-S3.com