One of Malta's oldest companies, P. Cutajar & Co. Ltd, is this year celebrating the 140th anniversary of its foundation.
The business remains in the hands of the founding family now in its fifth generation and, while evolving in new directions, it still represents brands it was marketing in its early years such as Martini & Rossi (1880), Benedictine (1886) and Dewar's (1905) to mention a few.
Tony Zammit Cutajar, managing director of P. Cutajar Group, expressed his satisfaction at the company's success story achieved through "years of continued market presence and commitment to improvement".
Mr Zammit Cutajar said: "P. Cutajar & Co. Ltd has evolved into a major player in Malta's commercial sector. This has been possible thanks to our forward-looking strategies and a dedicated and professional workforce. We are extremely confident that our past successes can be repeated and we now look forward to the challenges ahead".
The current management team of P. Cutajar Group includes two fourth generation members of the Cutajar family and one member of the fifth generation. The board of directors includes two non-family members one of whom, Helga Ellul, is the chairman.
It was in 1861 that Paul Cutajar, aged 17, started trading business that prospered. In 1865 he changed the name of the firm to P. Cutajar & Co.
In 1897, following Mr Cutajar's death, the business passed on to his nephew, Arthur Zammit Cutajar but since he was too young, his father, Francesco Zammit, Paul Cutajar's brother-in-law, ran the business until 1907.
In the early part of the 20th century, P. Cutajar & Co.'s main strength was ship agency business. In 1913 it was the largest steamship agent, according to the book Malta & Gibraltar (published by Macmillan Allister, 1915).
In between the two world wars, the company concluded agreements with Eastman Kodak (1937) and has been the Kodak distributor here ever since.
Arthur Zammit Cutajar died in 1958. His sons Alfred, Francis and George succeeded him. They became the first directors when the firm was made a limited liability company in 1958.
The P. Cutajar & Co. Ltd business has now moved away from the ship agency sector. It is mainly focused on the importation and distribution of fast moving consumer goods among the company portfolio are Canon cameras, Ferrero chocolates and Lavazza coffee.
In more recent years the company added JP Chenet wines, Highland spring mineral waters, Pasqua and Bersano wines, Gonzalez Byass Sherries, Pellito nuts and Lexar digital media.
In 1968, a photo-finishing laboratory was established in Valletta. The company remains a leader in the photographic business. It operates four shops trading under the Realfoto/Kodak Digital World brand.
Since the late 1970s, it has also manufactured a range of maintenance and car care products under the Solvit label.
In the early 1980s, the company moved to custom-built premises in Mriehel in 1986, its operational base.