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36 : Lebara Group
Sales 2007: £55.2m
Sales 2004: £6.9m
Annual growth: 99%
Ranked 8th in our Hot 100 list last year, Lebara sits at number 36 this year. But while its growth has slowed down, that’s not to say its ambitions have. The virtual mobile operator has since expanded into three new countries: Switzerland, Spain and the UK, increasing its presence to seven European countries.
More than 600,000 customers now use Lebara’s service to make low-cost international calls from their mobile phones, and the company generates annual sales in excess of £55m. “Our customers are predominantly ethnic students, ex-pats and small businesses dealing with foreign suppliers or distributors,” explains CEO Yoganathan Ratheesan, who founded the company in 2001.
Upon entering the UK market in October last year, Lebara launched a new pay-as-you-go SIM card, giving ethnic residents a simple, low-cost way to call or text abroad from their mobile phones. A multilingual customer support service was launched in conjunction with the SIM cards, which are available through national and independent retailers as well as online. Lebara is hoping to migrate customers from fragmented and poor-quality calling card services: “UK customers have been crying out for a reliable, low cost alternative to calling cards.”
Lebara has grown annually by 99 per cent over the past four years and the company’s growth to date has been entirely self-funded.
HOT 100 PROFILES
Sales 2007: £53m
Sales 2004: £1.4m
Annual growth: 234%
Sales 2007: £53m
Sales 2004: £700k
Annual growth: 206 %
Sales 2007: £6.3m
Sales 2004: £151k
Annual growth: 201 %
Sales 2007: £7.4m
Sales 2004: £386k
Annual growth: 169%
Sales 2007: £7.8m
Sales 2004: £445k
Annual growth: 160%
Sales 2007: £20.6m
Sales 2004: £1.19m
Annual growth: 159%
Sales 2007: £6.89m
Sales 2004: £402k
Annual growth: 158%
Sales 2007: £9.3m
Sales 2004: £278k
Annual growth: 156%
Sales 2007: £5.1m
Sales 2004: £327k
Annual growth: 151%
Sales 2007: £10.4m
Sales 2004: £687k
Annual growth: 148%
Sales 2007: £5m
Sales 2004: £343k
Annual growth: 145%
Sales 2007: £6.7m
Sales 2004: £488k
Annual growth: 140%
Sales 2007: £169.8m
Sales 2004: £12.7m
Annual growth: 137%
Sales 2007: £68m
Sales 2004: £5.1m
Annual growth: 137%
Sales 2007: £143m
Sales 2004: £15.7m
Annual growth: 135%
Sales 2007: £7.1m
Sales 2004: £585k
Annual growth: 130%
Sales 2007: £9.8m
Sales 2004: £809k
Annual growth: 130%
Sales 2007: £6.7m
Sales 2004: £561k
Annual growth: 129%
Sales 2007: £13.6m
Sales 2004: £1.2m
Annual growth: 127%
Sales 2007: £5.5m
Sales 2004: £510k
Annual growth: 121%
Sales 2007: £6.9m
Sales 2004: £640k
Annual growth: 121%
Sales 2007: £8.4m
Sales 2004: £780k
Annual growth: 121%
Sales 2007: £5.1m
Sales 2004: £492k
Annual growth: 119%
Sales 2007: £13m
Sales 2004: £1.2m
Annual growth: 119%
Sales 2007: £35.2m
Sales 2004: £3.4m
Annual growth: 118%
Sales 2007: £44m
Sales 2004: £4.2m
Annual growth: 118%
Sales 2007: £5.9m
Sales 2004: £580k
Annual growth: 117%
Sales 2007: £92m
Sales 2004: £9.4m
Annual growth: 114%
Sales 2007: £5.1m
Sales 2004: £564m
Annual growth: 109%
Sales 2007: £6.9m
Sales 2004: £775k
Annual growth: 108%
Sales 2007: £23.7m
Sales 2004: £1.8m
Annual growth: 106%
Sales 2007: £46.6m
Sales 2004: £5.9m
Annual growth: 105%
Sales 2007: £11.7m
Sales 2004: £1.2m
Annual growth: 101%
Sales 2007: £42.2m
Sales 2004: £5.2m
Annual growth: 100%
Sales 2007: £12.8m
Sales 2004: £1.6m
Annual growth: 100%
Sales 2007: £55.2m
Sales 2004: £6.9m
Annual growth: 99%
Sales 2007: £7.7m
Sales 2004: £998k
Annual growth: 98%
Sales 2007: £10.2m
Sales 2004: £1.3m
Annual growth: 96%
Sales 2007: £17.3m
Sales 2004: £2.3m
Annual growth: 95%
Sales 2007: £27m
Sales 2004: £3.6m
Annual growth: 95%
Sales 2007: £87.8m
Sales 2004: £11.8m
Annual growth: 95%
Sales 2007: £71.9m
Sales 2004: £10m
Annual growth: 93%
Sales 2007: £18.2m
Sales 2004: £2.5m
Annual growth: 92%
Sales 2007: £8.7m
Sales 2004: £1.2m
Annual growth: 91%
Sales 2007: £13.5m
Sales 2004: £1.9m
Annual growth: 90%
Sales 2007: £7.1m
Sales 2004: £1.5m
Annual growth: 91%
Sales 2007: £20.6m
Sales 2004: £3m
Annual growth: 89%
Sales 2007: £36.3m
Sales 2004: £5.4m
Annual growth: 89%
Sales 2007: £5.3m
Sales 2004: £808k
Annual growth: 88%
Sales 2007: £18.8m
Sales 2004: £2.8m
Annual growth: 88%
Sales 2007: £73.7m
Sales 2004: £11.1m
Annual growth: 88%
Sales 2007: £67.6m
Sales 2004: £10.5m
Annual growth: 86%
Sales 2007: £7.3m
Sales 2004: £1.1m
Annual growth: 86%
Sales 2007: £6.5m
Sales 2004: £1m
Annual growth: 85%
Sales 2007: £6.5m
Sales 2004: £1m
Annual growth: 85%
Sales 2007: £5.3m
Sales 2004: £849k
Annual growth: 85%
Sales 2007: £5.3m
Sales 2004: £849k
Annual growth: 81%
Sales 2007: £37.1m
Sales 2004: £6.3m
Annual growth: 81%
Sales 2007: £109m
Sales 2004: £23.8m
Annual growth: 79%
Sales 2007: £11.2m
Sales 2004: £2m
Annual growth: 77%
Sales 2007: £29.5m
Sales 2004: £5.3m
Annual growth: 76%
Sales 2007: £17.6m
Sales 2004: £3.2m
Annual growth: 76%
Sales 2007: £7.6m
Sales 2004: £1.4m
Annual growth: 73%
Sales 2007: £109.4m
Sales 2004: £21.2m
Annual growth: 73%
Sales 2007: £11.2m
Sales 2004: £2.2m
Annual growth: 72%
Sales 2007: £7m
Sales 2004: £1.3m
Annual growth: 72%
Sales 2007: £1.19bn
Sales 2004: £239.5m
Annual growth: 71%
Sales 2007: £5.7m
Sales 2004: £580k
Annual growth: 71%
Sales 2007: £45.1m
Sales 2004: £9.1k
Annual growth: 70%
Sales 2007: £12.7m
Sales 2004: £2.6k
Annual growth: 70%
Sales 2007: £19.5m
Sales 2004: £4m
Annual growth: 69%
Sales 2007: £76.6m
Sales 2004: £14.4m
Annual growth: 67%
Sales 2007: £18.2m
Sales 2004: £3.9m
Annual growth: 67%
Sales 2007: £29.7m
Sales 2004: £6.7m
Annual growth: 64%
Sales 2007: £121.5m
Sales 2004: £28m
Annual growth: 63%
Sales 2007: £25.1m
Sales 2004: £5.8m
Annual growth: 63%
Sales 2007: £76.7m
Sales 2004: £17.8m
Annual growth: 63%
Sales 2007: £24.6m
Sales 2004: £5.8m
Annual growth: 62%
Sales 2007: £16.4m
Sales 2004: £3.8m
Annual growth: 62%
Sales 2007: £7.4m
Sales 2004: £1.9m
Annual growth: 62%
Sales 2007: £9.5m
Sales 2004: £2.3m
Annual growth: 60%
Sales 2007: £11.3m
Sales 2004: £2.8m
Annual growth: 60%
Sales 2007: £8.1m
Sales 2004: £1.7m
Annual growth: 59%
Sales 2007: £24.5m
Sales 2004: £6.1m
Annual growth: 59%
Sales 2007: £35m
Sales 2004: £9m
Annual growth: 57%
Sales 2007: £22.3m
Sales 2004: £5.7m
Annual growth: 57%
Sales 2007: £5.9m
Sales 2004: £1.5m
Annual growth: 57%
Sales 2007: £29.8m
Sales 2004: £7.7m
Annual growth: 57%
Sales 2007: £8.3m
Sales 2004: £2.2m
Annual growth: 57%
Sales 2007: £15m
Sales 2004: £3.9m
Annual growth: 56%
Sales 2007: £51.3m
Sales 2004: £13.5m
Annual growth: 56%
Sales 2007: £20.1m
Sales 2004: £5.3m
Annual growth: 56%
Sales 2007: £8.5m
Sales 2004: £2.2m
Annual growth: 56%
Sales 2007: £15.7m
Sales 2004: £4.2m
Annual growth: 55%
Sales 2007: £43.6m
Sales 2004: £11.8m
Annual growth: 55%
Sales 2007: £24.8m
Sales 2004: £6.8m
Annual growth: 54%
Sales 2007: £59.2m
Sales 2004: £16.7m
Annual growth: 54%
Sales 2007: £42.1m
Sales 2004: £11.9m
Annual growth: 52%
Sales 2007: £10.5m
Sales 2004: £3m
Annual growth: 51%
Sales 2007: £16m
Sales 2004: £4.7m
Annual growth: 51%