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The birth of the Roe Group of Companies was marked by the purchase of a defunct insurance agency, Horncastle (British Honduras) Ltd. from the H. Melhado Company by Mr. Gordon A. Roe in late 1963. The new agency soon opened in a one-room office in the Roe family's newly acquired home at 6 Fort Street in Belize City.
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| Gordon A. Roe, 1975 | 6 Fort Street Roe Home and Office, 1964 |
Success was not immediate but with the help of certain underwriters at Lloyds of London and hard work, the agency soon built a reputation for integrity and service and took its place as one of the most important and respected insurance agencies in British Honduras.
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 | | Gordon Roe loved roses and he chose the five petal rose in the logo to represent his five sons. |
The name of the firm was changed to G.A. Roe & Sons Ltd., clearly reflecting
Gordon Roe's leadership and his family's aspirations for the company.
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 | Military review in front of courthouse
Belize city, 1960's. |
G.A. Roe & Sons Ltd. acquired a 33.3% shareholding in Investment Finance Ltd., a company set up to purchase the company established in the early 1930's by the Maestre family to manufacture Cigarettes and Soap. In 1961 the manufacturing operation was moved to Cleghorn Street and by that time had become a manufacturing conglomerate making cigarettes, soap, aluminum windows, doors and wooden furniture. In 1962, the Maestre family sold the company to American investors who added to the company with their purchase of the San Miguel tobacco farm in the Cayo District of Belize. The farm traded under the name of Caribbean Tobacco Company. An unfortunate combination of absentee ownership, poor management and excessive union activity contributed to a downward business spiral. At the time of the purchase of the Roe 33.3% interest in the firm, the company was struggling to stay alive.
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 | | National Assembly Building in capital city of Belmopan in the early days of Independence. |
Recognizing a need to more clearly define its purpose, G.A. Roe & Sons Ltd. established an insurance company called Fire and General Assurance Company of Belize Ltd. Fire and General retained a part of the portfolio of business generated by the G.A. Roe & Sons Ltd. agency operation.
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As the Roe insurance businesses continued to grow, it was, once again, decided that it was necessary to clearly state the direction of their insurance operations. Thus, G.A. Roe & Sons (Insurance Services) Ltd. was established to carry on the operations of the agency business. By this time the Agency had developed the expertise of an underwriting agency, producing and underwriting business for the Fire & General Assurance Company and for certain Lloyds of London Underwriters.
This year also saw the establishment of a wholesale pharmaceuticals business that was developed in parallel with the company's insurance businesses. It was sufficiently important enough to be incorporated as a free-standing company named Farm-i-ceuticals Ltd.
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| One of the original fleet of Maya Airways planes flying over Belize City. |
The Roe family was invited and agreed to purchase an interest in Maya Airways which was established as a successor to British Honduras Airways in 1962.
This year also saw the Roe family purchase controlling interest of the, now, nearly bankrupt Investment Finance Ltd. A Roe Group management team was installed with instructions to "turn the business around!"
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