Another insurance company in Fiji?

Fiji’s largest and oldest retail group is expanding into the insurance sector. W.R Carpenter (South Pacific) Pte Ltd advertised 12 vacancies for its insurance company.

But the Insurance Association of Fiji – a registered industry body that should rightfully be in the know – was “surprised” when asked by SunBiz.

According to an advertisement under the group’s logo and letterhead, W.R Carpenter (South Pacific), a locally-registered company with its address at 34 Rodwell Road, has called for underwriters, claims and risk management officers, to take up the Fiji-based positions. Applications close December 31.

The Carpenter group comprises 27 companies.

Emails, calls and a personal visit to W.R Carpenter South Pacific office in Suva met with no response, as the group awaited approval from its Malaysian head office, for a media comment.

The Carpenter group are traders in groceries, hardware, light machinery, marine products, furniture, household appliances and white goods.

It also deals with properties. Construction of its multi-million dollar foreshore project in Suva remains at a standstill even after Carpenters Properties Ltd announced in 2018 the first phase of the project – a three-star, 180-bedroom hotel worth $30 million.

Its Malaysian parent company’s business interests include:

■Agribusi■ess,

■Water and Trading,

■Automotive,

■Commercia● Printing and Engineering,

■Educatio■,

■Ba■ki■g and Financial Services,

■Hea●thcare,

■Logistics

MBf Holding

Carpenters Fiji Pte Limited, a subsidiary of MBf Holdings, represents almost all sectors of MBf in Fiji with wholesale, retail, hardware, automotive, IT, finance, water bottling, shipping, and industrial and marine engineering industries.

A household name in Fiji, the initiations of the group goes back over 150 years in commerce and trading in the Pacific.

Recognised as one of the largest and most influential business groups in the private sector, Carpenters Fiji Pte Limited employs over 3,000 people, and has continued to contribute to the growth of the Fijian economy.