"How do the world’s leading companies pass on perks to their employees? They Sodexho Pass them." If the punchline of the Sodexho Pass ad is a bit obscure, the plans that this organisation has for its operations in India are anything but that.

Ravi Saxena, marketing director at Sodexho, says, "We are here, and to stay," adding that the aim of the organisation is to attain the status of the parent organisation, Sodexho Alliance, the world over -- that of a leader in the service vouchers and catering business.

Sodexho passes are food coupons or vouchers that employers can offer to employees as perquisites. These passes can be used up at a number of Sodexho affiliate restaurants and outlets, at present numbering about 4,000 across India, and avail of food items. The company in turn redeems these vouchers.

Sodexho has capitalised on a Central Board of Direct Taxes rule. While food allowance is categorised as income, and is taxable under CBDT rules, "any amount of up to Rs 35 per day in the hands of an employee is not treated as an income, provided that the amount is paid by the employer directly to the service provider". Sodexho passes thus do not come under the purview of taxes.

The employer in turn can treat these passes as an expense for tax purposes. The accounting procedure is also rendered simple as a single invoice acts as genuine proof of expense, and the expenses can be booked without having to sift through piles of bills from a host of service providers. Sodexho passes are generally in denominations of Rs 35 or less, unless a company specifically seeks them in higher denominations.

Sodexho’s revenue accrues from commissions, approximately two to three per cent, earned from companies buying the vouchers and about the same from the affiliates. Besides hotels and restaurants, Sodexho passes can be used at food and grocery stores too. The cities of Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Calcutta, Chennai, Hyderabad, Mumbai, New Delhi and Pune are at present covered by the company.

Besides food passes, Sodexho also offers gift coupons. These were introduced by the company last year. These are gift cheques which can be used for purchase of items from about 1,000 establishments in major cities across the country.

, the French food management giant, is planning to double its investment in its Indian operations to $10 million, and will set up another subsidiary, which will exclusively offer catering services, within the next one year. In addition, it will dilute its holding in the present subsidiary. Till now the group has invested $5 million in its food vouchers and gift coupons business in India and plans to invest another $ 5 million in catering services.

Sodexho Services India Pvt Ltd, which provides the service in India, is at present a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sodexho Alliance, a $9.2 billion French multinational in the food vouchers and gift coupons business. Sodexho Alliance has over 30 years of experience in the field of food and catering services and is today the world’s largest food catering organisation.

Mr Saxena says that the company is planning a separate subsidiary for providing catering services to corporate clients, which should be established by the year 2000. At present, it has a number of affiliated caterers in major cities, who do provide catering services for clients. Payments to these caterers can be made with Sodexho passes.

According to Sodexho's marketing manager for international development, Thierry Asselin, catering services in India, unless managed by reputed catering organisations or hotels, are highly disorganised, and do not conform to international hygiene norms. Since Sodexho cannot compromise on hygiene and quality standards, it will face a price disadvantage when it enters this sector on its own. It is scouting for a joint venture partner among Indian companies for its food catering business.

According to other company sources,
in India the company is scouting for avenues to introduce petrol vouchers and medical care vouchers. The company has performed satisfactorily ever since its service was launched in India in August 1997, clocking a turnover of Rs 25 crore in the first year of operations. It has over 250 customer organisations, with over 30,000 persons using Sodexho passes.