Key Events that Shaped GP Group for Over a Century

1868
One of Devjee's sons and a business partner Bombay established an office in Rangoon of what was then Burma, and the GP Company became a bona fide business, carrying on the rice-trading enterprise their father had begun in Bombay.
 
 

1918 
The Gangjee Premjee & Co sowed new seeds by moving its operational base to the Thai capital of Bangkok.  Premjee's sole son Chimanlal was the only, non-Chinese rice trader in Bangkok.

 

1976 
Chimanlal’s only son, Kirit—then aged 22—circumnavigated the globe,returning with the idea to diversify Gangjee Premjee & Co with many different goods, services and agricultural products.

1980s 
Kirit started forming new companies, including the first Thai enterprise tomanufacture raw pharmaceutical chemicals.  Captains of high-seas industry, the company also launched Precious Shipping PCL, which became the first dry bulk company to sail its way onto the Stock Exchange of Thailand.

1990s 
As Thailand boomed, the G Premjee Company as it was now called, added real estate and construction ventures to its portfolio, building residential high-rises and the palatial Amari Atrium Hotel.  Meanwhile, joint ventures in other countries offered everything from diamond imports and jewelery design to bank cards, travel services and IT.
 

1996 
By then G Premjee owned, or had interests, in over 150 different companies,so the group’s slogan at the time, “Enterprise Without Frontiers,” took on a world-class significance.

1997 
Although the Asian Economic Crisis affected the G Premjee Company as it did countless other businesses, the company--now called the GP Group--enjoyed a remarkable recovery. 

2006 
PSL became Thailand's second largest shipping company, with 44 vessels and 18 more on the way.  Its financial performance was ranked No. 1internationally by the prestigious Marine Money magazine in 2006.  Stillsailing smoothly, PSL is making waves in crucial markets like China, Indiaand the Middle East. 

2007 
As the Group’s Managing Director, Nishita Shah has helped to make the GPGroup a global brand by enhancing the profiles of its affiliated companiesaround the world.  In 2007, the young and photogenic Nishita captured thepublic eye, and snagged a few covers, after Forbes Asia included her on its Top 20 list of the richest tycoons.  

2008 
GP took a fashion tangent with a new line of high-end women's wear called Nsha, taken from an abbreviated Sanskrit word that means "intoxicated" and the name of the Managing Director, Nishita.