Our Story
It all began with Walter Duncan
Walter Duncan, a Scotsman from Glasgow, sailed from Southampton for Calcutta on 20 November 1858 to start business in India. The firm he set up on arrival, in partnership with Patrick Playfair, was named Messrs Playfair, Duncan and Company, located at 64 Clive Street, now Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Road. The long story of Duncan Brothers began with Walter Duncan starting a cotton business in January 1859.
- 1859 A cotton trader arrives in Calcutta
Walter Duncan arrives in India and sets up Playfair, Duncan and Company with Patrick Playfair, at 64 Clive Street in Calcutta. The business begins with cotton.
- 1860–61 A first taste of tea
In the same building, Walter meets Charles Stewart Leckie, agent for two Cachar tea gardens, Doloo and Jalinga. When Leckie leaves India because of ill health, Walter takes on his business and buys shares in Doloo. The Duncans' long journey in tea begins.
- 1875 Duncan Brothers is born
Walter and his brother William set up on their own: Walter Duncan and Co in Glasgow, and Duncan Brothers & Company in Calcutta.
- 1890 Tea takes over
As cotton declines, the brothers turn to tea. By 1890, the agency manages twelve gardens covering 2,350 hectares.
- 1898 Octavius Steel enters the story
Octavius Steel & Company becomes managing agent for the Lungla Company gardens: Shumshernugger, Lungla, Etah and Karimpore. Seventy years later, it will join the Duncan family.
- 1910 The trio estates
Duncan Brothers acquires a controlling interest in Allynugger Company and three estates from the McMeekin family: Madhabpur, Patrakhola and Kurma.
- 1919–1945 Weathering the storms
Through a post-war recession, the slump of 1931–32 and the hardships of the Second World War, the gardens keep going, often with minimal staff and through food shortages.
- 1923 Sixty gardens strong
The agency now manages around 60 estates, covering 20,000 hectares and producing 14.5 million kg of tea a year.
- 1949 A new chapter in the East
After partition, Duncan Brothers (Pakistan) Ltd is formed on 20 January 1949, with its head office in Chittagong.
- 1950 Chittagong Warehouses opens
To get tea to market through its new port, Chittagong Warehouses Ltd opens at Fouzderhat, with links to the railway and the port.
- 1967 Two histories come together
Duncan Brothers and Octavius Steel come under the same ownership.
- 1970 Moving to Dhaka
The head office moves from Chittagong to Dhaka.
- 1971 Independence and rebuilding
The Liberation War leaves the tea industry badly damaged. Duncan Brothers (Bangladesh) Ltd is formed, and a small team of young Bangladeshi planters begins rebuilding: restoring gardens, finding new markets and introducing Bangladesh tea to the world.
- 1974 Joining Camellia
After years of losses, Lawrie Group Plc takes a controlling interest in the holding company of Duncan's Bangladesh estates, and Duncan Brothers becomes part of Camellia Plc. Bangladesh tea begins building an international reputation.
- 1985 Growing beyond tea
Duncan Brothers diversifies into bottled water, warehousing, insurance and leasing, deepening its long-term commitment to Bangladesh.
- 2025 Built for growth
A second warehouse unit opens at Chittagong Warehouses, making it one of the largest tea warehouses in the country.