History

Our company was founded in Odessa in 1881 by the present Chairman's great grandfather, Captain Richard McNabb. Our main business was as shippers and charterers of grain out of the Black Sea, returning with coal from South Wales.

Captain McNabb retired from the sea after making a record passage from London to Melbourne in 1874 in command of SS "St Osyth." He opened offices at Odessa, Nicolayev, Kherson, Novorossiysk, Taganrog and Rostov-on-Don as well as in London and at Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

We chartered the vessels of virtually every shipowner trading into the Black Sea, of which there were a large number at that time. For many years a considerable business was carried on until, with the advent of the First World War, the Dardanelles were closed and business in the Black Sea came to a standstill.

After the war, business continued for many years from the United Kingdom, on the Baltic Mercantile and Shipping Exchange, of which the present Chairman's grandfather, T.B. McNabb, was a prominent member, as well as being a founder member of the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers.

During the Second World War shipping everywhere suffered greatly. Much effort was needed by the owners on returning from the war to resuscitate the business and to adapt it to changing circumstances. As one of the leading chartering houses in London, McNabb Rougier was chosen to represent the British Ministry of Food for chartering purposes, an appointment which continued over the post-war years.

Other substantial chartering business was transacted in a number of fields, including grain from the River Plate and sugar from Cuba. For some years we chartered a greater tonnage of sugar than any other firm worldwide. McNabb and Co. Inc. was opened in New York where it traded successfully for many years.

The present Chairman's father died prematurely as a result of war injuries. After a period in the office, National Service in the Royal Navy and some years working in client offices overseas, Benbow McNabb, the present Chairman and Managing Director, returned to London and joined the business.

Old connections were revived, new ones made. The business has since included West Indies merchanting and been extended into ship management, commodity trading, and sale and purchase agency work. The firm became heavily involved in the chartering of pig iron, wheat from the North Pacific and rice in South Asia. In recent years we have chartered more than 800 vessels with steels and cement for one of our clients alone, acting as a branch office, managing their chartering business in every respect.