Elior grew by borrowing, sold its best division, then got swallowed by a waste firm

Elior Group was founded in 1991 and grew into France's second-largest contract catering company through an aggressive acquisition spree, buying dozens of businesses across Europe and the United States. The strategy was funded mostly by debt, and by 2019 Elior was heavily leveraged.

In July 2019, under pressure from its debt load, Elior sold its most valuable division — Areas, the airport and highway concession business — to PAI Partners for about €1.4 billion. The sale was meant to strengthen the balance sheet, but Areas had been Elior's most profitable and recession-resilient operation.

When COVID-19 hit in 2020, Elior's remaining catering businesses — serving corporate offices, schools, hospitals, and events — were devastated. The company posted a net loss of €483 million for 2019–2020 and cut 1,888 jobs in France. A further loss of €100 million followed in 2020–2021.

In 2022, Derichebourg Group — a French waste management and industrial services company — became Elior's largest shareholder and eventually raised its stake to 48.4% by contributing its own services business. By April 2023, Derichebourg had taken control of Elior, with Daniel Derichebourg becoming Chairman and CEO of the combined entity with over €5 billion in revenue.