In an exclusive interaction, Karan Aggarwal, executive director, BLS International Services (BLS), specialist provider for outsourcing of visa, passport and attestation services, shares about the company’s market position, growth and future plans
What is BLS’ current market presence?
Our business has expanded to 48 countries worldwide. To name a few we are present in Canada, Russia, China, the UAE, Austria, Hong Kong, Kenya, Lithuania, Malaysia, Norway, Oman, Philippines, Poland, Singapore and Azerbaijan. The latest feather in our cap has been of bagging a contract from Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation – Spain, under a five-year contract worth 175 million Euro, where BLS International will open an estimated 129 Spanish visa application centres across 43 countries. The company expects to process approximately 1.8 million applications annually. At present India, Spain, China and Russia are our biggest contributors in terms of service delivery and collection of applications.
What has been the growth marked over the years?
With the increase in number of travellers globally, the application numbers will rise with each passing year of the operations. Every year we add millions of applications to our credit. For the third quarter and nine months ended December 31, 2016, the company reported net profit of Rs 16.67 crore for Q3FY17, up by 30.34 per cent, as compared to Rs 12.79 crore in the corresponding quarter of last fiscal. Total income for the quarter ended December 31, 2016 stood at Rs 162.80 crore, up by 10.82 per cent, as compared to Rs 146.91 crore in the same period last year.
What sets BLS International apart from competing companies?
At BLS, our endeavour is always to facilitate affordable services to our customers while creating value for our stakeholders, invest in human capital and best practices to develop a truly global enterprise. We are in sync with the Government of India vision of ‘Digital India’ by providing 2174 Sewa Kendras as part of the e-governance initiative across Punjab. It has helped us reach people living in the small of town and provide them hassle free citizen services. BLS plays the catalyst in making travelling easy and effortless.
How important is the MICE/ business travel segment for BLS?
MICE is the fastest growing segment in the travel and tourism industry. India is an attractive MICE destination. Dubai, Malaysia and Hong Kong are the most sought after MICE destinations. With our widespread operations in these countries, the customers prefer our services for a smooth application procedure.
What is the company’s strategy ahead?
The vision of BLS International is to become the number one government-to-consumer service provider globally, partnering with governments around the world and also to achieve the ‘Digital India’ objective through e-governance and service delivery through Seva Kendras. With the constant growth in the visa outsourcing industry, BLS International aims to enhance its global foot print. BLS International in 2017 aims at expanding its foreign mission category through bagging Canada. We are already up and running with 2259 VACs including our e-governance project. We aim at opening 150 visa offices for Spain in 45 countries. Our future strategy is to be established as a market leader in outsourcing and technology services for diplomatic missions and governments industry.
