 | |
| Formation | 1956 |
|---|---|
| Type | Multinational Conglomerate |
Region served | Africa |
Founder | Michael Ibru |
The Ibru Organisation, established in 1956, is one of the largest conglomerates in Africa. [1] By 1990 it had between 9,000 and 11,000 employees. [2] By 2009 the Ibru Organisation was a multi-billion dollar conglomerate with interests that included Shipping, Port management, Hospitality, Real estate, Agriculture, Aviation, Banking, Media ,Oil and gas, amongst others [3]
The Ibru Family are Urhobo people from Agbara-Otor near Ughelli in Delta State. The family patriarch was Chief Peter Epete Ibru. His wife, Janet Omotogor Ibru was the matriarch of the Ibru dynasty. She was closely involved in the organization. [4] The founder of the firm was their son Michael Ibru. Michael gained a secondary education at Igbobi College, then worked for the United Africa Company from 1951 until 1956. That year, aged 24, he partnered with Jimmy Large, an Englishman, to form the Laibru general trading company, and also bought a share of Ace Jimonma, a construction firm. [2]
Starting in 1957, Ibru was a pioneer in distributing frozen fish in Nigeria. Although freshwater fishing was a major agricultural activity in Nigeria at the time, Ibru saw that this would change with economic development, opening a market for frozen fish. [5] At first he ran into technical problems with supply and also met consumer resistance. Two joint ventures both failed. He then formed Ibru Sea Foods as the sole owner, importing the frozen fish and at first trading from the back of a truck. He expanded quickly, chartering his first fishing boat in 1963, and in 1965 founding a fishing company with three freezer trawlers as a joint venture with a Japanese firm. Despite setbacks, the fishing fleet had grown to as many as 25 trawlers in the 1970s, and Ibru had 200 transport vehicles. Ibru had also expanded into vehicle distribution and fruit growing. [6]
The organization continued to grow through acquisitions and joint ventures in diverse businesses including brewing, construction and petroleum distribution, with varying degrees of success. The company also acquired extensive holdings of real estate for agriculture and industrial activity. The recession of the early 1980s caused by falling oil prices, combined with import restrictions, forced contraction and a restructuring at the end of the 1980s. By this time, Michael's eldest son Olorogun Oskar Ibru had joined the boards of companies in the organization. [7]
Rutam Motors was established in 1969, the firm took over management of Ibru's 200 fleet vehicle that were acquired from expatriate firms and were used to service the organizations various operations. The new firm acquired vehicle franchises and focused on after sales maintenance of vehicles from brands such as Mazda, British Leyland Peugeot and Jeep. The company also expanded into commercial tractor sales and maintenance. [7]
The Ibru Dynasty is close with all members involved in the business. Cecilia Ibru led Oceanic Bank but she was arrested for a multi-billion dollar corporate fraud in 2010. She was sentenced and given a fine of $1.2B (£786m) in cash and assets [8] Cecilia Ibru had started her career at this corporation. [9]
Talking at Michael Ibru's 80th birthday celebration in January 2011, his eldest son Oskar said "The only thing I can say about my family is that we grew up as a team. We were like a bunch of broom sticks". [10] Michael Ibru helped his brothers with their education, gave them stakes in the Ibru organization and helped them to branch out on their own. Alex Ibru, chairman of Rutam Motors, met with newspapermen Stanley Mecebuh of the Daily Times of Nigeria , Patrick Dele-Cole also formerly of that paper and Olusegun Osoba, formerly of the Nigerian Herald. With 55% funding from the Ibru family, they launched The Guardian in 1983, with Alex Ibru as chairman. [11] Alex was minister of Internal Affairs from 1993 to 1995. [4] Goodie Ibru, who had qualified as a commercial lawyer, became president of the Nigerian Stock Exchange and chairman of Ikeja Hotels Plc (owners of the federal palace hotel & Sheraton hotels) [3] Felix Ibru studied architecture in Israel, and after teaching at Yaba College of Technology established an architectural firm, Entering politics, in 1992 Felix became the first executive governor of Delta State. [12]
In 2014, the Ibru Organization was listed by Forbes as one of the ten leading family businesses in Africa. Michael Ibru’s first son, Oskar Ibru, took the helm of the multinational organization in the late 1980s and has been responsible for steering the wheel since then. [13]
Delta State is a state in the South-South geopolitical zone of Nigeria. Named after the Niger Delta—a large part of which is in the state—the state was formed from the former Bendel State, on 27 August 1991. Bordered on the north by Edo State, the east by Anambra and Rivers states, and that south by Bayelsa State while to the west is the Bight of Benin which covers about 160 kilometres of the state's coastline. The state was initially created with 12 local government areas in 1991, but was later expanded to 19 and now has 25 local government areas. Its capital city is Asaba which is located along the River Niger on the northeastern end of the state, while the state's economic center is the city of Warri on the southwestern coastline.
Aba is a city in southeastern Nigeria and the commercial centre of Abia State. Upon the creation of Abia State in 1991, the old Aba township was divided into two local government areas, being Aba South and Aba North, while the suburban neighborhood of what was then known as Obioma Ngwa L.G.A. was divided into three L.G.A.s for administrative convenience. Aba South is the main city centre of Aba and Abia State at large, being located on the Aba River. Aba is made up of many villages such as Aba-Ukwu, Eziukwu-Aba, Obuda-Aba, Umuokpoji-Aba and other villages that have been merged for administrative convenience. Aba was established by the Ngwa clan of the Igbo people in Nigeria as a market town. Later, a military post was placed there by the British colonial administration in 1901. It lies along the west bank of the Aba River and is at the intersection of roads leading to Port Harcourt, Owerri, Umuahia, Ikot Ekpene, and Ikot-Abasi. The city became a collection point for agricultural products following construction of a British-made railway running through it to Port Harcourt. Aba is a major urban settlement and commercial centre in its region, which is surrounded by small villages and towns. The indigenous people of Aba are the Ngwa. Aba is well known for its craftsmen and is the most populous city in southeastern Nigeria. As of 2016, Aba had an estimated population of 2,534,265, making it the biggest city in South Eastern Nigeria.
The United Africa Company of Nigeria is a Nigerian publicly listed company based in Lagos. Its areas of operation include manufacturing, services, logistics and warehousing, agricultural and real estate. UACN's food operations include UAC Franchising, UAC Restaurants and UAC Dairies. It also has equity stake in UACN Property Development Company, a quoted firm, CAP Plc, makers of Dulux paints and Portland Paints, manufacturers of Sandtex paints.
Henry Oloyede Fajemirokun, CON was a trade unionist who later became a prominent Nigerian industrialist and businessman and one of the country's dynamic indigenous entrepreneurs who had established and built one of the foremost indigenous private sector business concerns in his time. He was a strong believer in, and promoted West Africa's economic integration alongside Adebayo Adedeji which subsequently led to the formation of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
Michael Onajirevbe Ibru was a Nigerian industrialist, founder of the Ibru Organization and patriarch of the Ibru family.
Alhadji Waziri Kolo Ibrahim was a Kanuri business man from Borno State, Nigeria, who became a prominent politician and party leader during the Nigerian Second Republic. He was one of the original founders and financiers of the Nigerian People's Party, but in 1978 left the party to form the Great Nigeria People's Party (GNPP). As a candidate of the GNPP, he won almost 10% of the national vote in the Nigerian presidential elections of 1979.
Young's Seafood Ltd. is a British producer and distributor of frozen, fresh, and chilled seafood, supplying approximately 40% of all the fish eaten in the United Kingdom every year. It is headquartered in Grimsby, England.
Oceanic Bank International, commonly referred to as Oceanic Bank, was a bank in Nigeria that provided individual, commercial and corporate banking services.
The Federal Palace Hotel is a luxury hotel and casino in Victoria Island, Lagos, Nigeria. The hotel is notable for having been the setting for the signing of Nigeria's Declaration of Independence.
Felix Ovudoroye Ibru was a Nigerian businessman, architect and politician. He was the first democratically elected Governor of Delta State and Senator for Delta Central Senatorial District. Until his death he held the position of President General of the Urhobo Progressive Union (UPU). As a traditional chieftain of his homeland, Ibru bore the tribal honorific Olorogun and often used it as a pre-nominal style. This title is also borne by the members of his large family in the same way.
Cecilia Ibru is the former managing director and chief executive officer of Oceanic Bank. She is Nigeria's first female bank CEO and was dubbed the first lady of banking. In 2010, she was convicted of corporate fraud and sentenced to prison as part of a multibillion-dollar banking scandal.
Alex Ibru was a Nigerian businessman, founder and publisher of The Guardian (Nigeria) newspaper, who was minister of internal affairs from 1993 to 1995 during the military regime of General Sani Abacha.
Oloye Sir Mobolaji Bank Anthony, KBE was a Yoruba Nigerian businessman and philanthropist. He was a council President of the Lagos Stock Exchange and was a minority investor in Aero-Contractors before indigenous shares were acquired by the Ibru Organization. At one time, he held the distributional rights to cars manufactured by Rootes Group. He was a board member of various companies and was a fellow of the Nigerian Institute of Management.
Isyaku Rabiu was a Nigerian businessman and an Islamic scholar who founded a major holding company in Kano State. He was a supporter of Ibrahim Niasse's Tijaniyyah brotherhood.
Frosta AG is a frozen food company headquartered in Bremerhaven, Bremen, Germany. The corporation owns production facilities in Germany and Poland, with sales and distribution subsidiaries in the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Poland and Romania. It had 1709 employees and revenues of Euro 501 million in 2017. FRoSTA is the market leader for frozen food in Germany and one of the largest in Europe.
Concord Group was the business name of a group of companies that included Concord group of Newspapers and Concord Airlines. It was founded by Moshood Abiola. Other ventures within the group include Concord Summit Capital, Abiola Farms and Wonder Bakeries. National Concord was founded in 1980 and by the end of 1983, it had become the most read newspaper in Nigeria.
Goodie Minabo Ibru is a Nigerian businessman, hotelier and former president of the Nigerian Stock Exchange.
Oskar Eyovbirere Ibru is a Nigerian billionaire businessman and investor who currently serves as the chairman and CEO of the Ibru Organization.
The Ibru family is a Nigerian business dynasty from Agbara-Otor, Delta State that rose to prominence with Michael Ibru, who founded the Ibru Organization.
Chinedu 'Chin' Okeke is a Nigerian-British entertainment entrepreneur and music executive. He is the founder of The Eclipse Group and co-founder of The Gidi Culture Festival. In 2020, he joined Universal Music Group as the General Manager for Nigeria and was later appointed as the Managing Director in 2021.
Sources
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