About Us
George Steuart & Company Limited was founded in 1835 by James Steuart, a gallant British sea captain who sailed the southern seas to Ceylon and discovered the island's great commercial potential. James together with his brothers Joseph and George Steuart became Merchant Bankers and then established an agency house that became a large-scale exporter of Ceylon coffee. Sri Lanka's coffee industry was ravaged by blight in the 1870s and the Steuart brothers were at the frontlines of the plantation industry's transformation from coffee to tea.
Captain James Steuart
1790 - 1870
George Steuart
1808 - 1896
The company named after his brother George, took shape as a modern corporate establishment with its incorporation as George Steuart & Co., in 1954. By the 1970s, George Steuart & Co., was managing the largest acreage of tea plantations in the country but Sri Lanka's government began nationalising its plantation assets in 1975, and the firm thus became one of the most affected. Undeterred by this setback, the company set forth to re-establish its eminence in tea while diversifying into new industries and expanding its footprint.
Today, George Steuart & Co., is Sri Lanka's oldest company and one of the oldest in the world, widely respected for its dynamism, its sustained ability to stay competitive and relevant and its capacity to thrive. It has a significant presence in seven key sectors: tea exports, healthcare, travel, leisure, financial services, industrial solutions and FMCG.
George Steuart & Co., is one of the founding members of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, established in 1939. It has lasted the test of time over almost two centuries and has journeyed through cycles of global and local volatilities. Today the George Steuart group employs approximately 1,650 people.
Vision
To be a globally recognized conglomerate respected for our excellence and loved for our values
Mission
Happiness for All
GS Culture
Ours has been an endeavour fuelled by Belief.
Belief in our purpose;
Belief in our collective strength;
Belief in the positive impact of what we do.
We, George Steuart & Co., - the oldest mercantile establishment in Sri Lanka, promise the delivery of excellence inspired and powered by Belief.
Our George Steuart & Co., family is driven by Belief
in ourselves - individually and together.
That's why Belief is at the heart of our boldness to venture forth, our spirit to keep reaching higher, our passion to learn and our fire to win.
Believe.
Brief Timeline of George Steuart & Co.
- George Steuart & Company (GS & Co.,) was founded as a partnership by James Steuart, a gallant British sea captain who sailed the southern seas to Ceylon and discovered the island's great commercial potential
- James together with his brothers Joseph and George Steuart became Merchant Bankers and then established an agency house that became a large-scale exporter of Ceylon coffee
1835
1870
- Sri Lanka's coffee industry was ravaged by blight and the Steuart brothers were at the frontlines of the plantation industry's transformation from coffee to tea
- GS & Co., became the founding member of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce
1939
1954
- The company named after George, took shape as a modern corporate establishment with its incorporation as George Steuart & Co., Limited
- GS & Co., was managing the largest acreage of tea plantations in the country
1970
2011
- GS & Co., was acquired by Divasa Equity (Pvt) Ltd (Change of ownership)
- GS & Co., entered the leisure sector with Citrus Leisure PLC joining the group
- Citrus Waskaduwa, a 150 roomed 4 star resort was constructed and commenced operation
- GS & Co., commenced operations as an industrial solutions provider through George Steuart Solutions
- George Steuart Tea entered the local market
- GS & Co., entered the detergent market by acquiring a small detergent manufacturing company
2014
2015
- GS & Co., transformed its head office building in Colombo into a business boutique hotel and commenced operations as The Steuart by Citrus
- GS & Co., entered the personal care market with the acquisition of Seri Naturals (Pvt) Ltd
2017
2018
- George Steuart Insurance Brokers was relaunched with a fresh infusion of resources
- George Steuart Health entered the optometry market through wholesale business
2020
2021
- George Steuart Health entered the reatil gym equipment market by opening its first outlet in Colombo 03 and subsequently opened two outlets in Madiwela and Negombo (GS Sports)
- George Steuart Consumer was formed as the consolidated marketing, sales and distribution (FMCG) arm of the Group for its Beverages, Personal Care products and Detergents
- HVA Foods PLC was acquired by George Steuart & Co. adding a second tea export company to its portfolio which expanded its product offering into ice teas, tea syrups, cinnamon and other value added products and super foods
- A new restaurant, Ceylon Curry Club and a tea lounge, Heladiv Tea Club commenced operations at the Colombo Dutch Hospital under Citrus Leisure PLC
- A second tea lounge (Heladiv Tea Club) was launched at the Galle Fort under Citrus Leisure PLC
2022
2023
- George Steuart Tea constructed and declared open its own new tea processing and packaging facility in Kelaniya, one of the largest in Sri Lanka
- GS & Co., obtained License from SEC to operate a wealth management company called George Steuart Asset Management
- George Steuart Health acquired a pharmaceutical manufacturing company and plant in Horana (Seregen (Pvt) Ltd)
- George Steuart Insurance Brokers commenced Insurance Brokering services in the Maldives
- George Steuart Health opened its 1st retail outlet for optometric care, “George Steuart Optics” in Colombo
- Citrus Leisure was awarded a management contract for some of the iconic spaces at the Colombo Lotus Tower, South Asia's tallest self standing tower. Accordingly it launched Sri Lanka's first revolving restaurant, 'Blue Orbit' and the tallest banquet hall in Sri Lanka, 'Cosmic'