The Top Hundred Companies: an essential toolkit for decision-makers

Flagship publication of Business Publications Limited, The Top Companies is a must-have tool in the toolkit of corporates and all decision-makers in the private sector as well as for executives of the parastatals.

The journey started three decades ago. In 1992, Lindsay Rivière, a seasoned journalist and a forward thinker, decided to shake things up and bring about a revolution in the hitherto very traditional business world with the launching of Business Magazine. The first edition of the publication is a special issue dedicated to The Top 100 Companies. At that time, it was a colossal journalistic and research work. For several months, the editorial team of Business Magazine, which included Jyoti Jeetun, who is today the CEO of Mont Choisy Group, will work tirelessly and methodically to compile and analyse financial data on large companies in Mauritius, before establishing a proper and empirical ranking by turnover. 

This first issue of The Top Companies, which was published on April 17, 1992, marked a milestone in the history of the Mauritian press. For the first time, a business publication was speaking freely about corporates, the senior executives behind the success of these organisations and their financial statements. Until then, nobody knew who were the top 100 companies; it was a well-kept secret. We had to break down the walls, bring about a change in mentality. At first, many business owners were hostile. For them, the publication of their balance sheet was an intrusion in their business.

The advent of the Top 100 Companies reshaped the media landscape and has contributed significantly to the emergence of financial journalism in Mauritius. At the same time, it has led to a certain maturity within the business community. No doubt, it has also aroused a competitive spirit between majors. In an interview in 2022, the founder of Business Magazine, Lindsay Rivière, said that the publication “has been at the forefront of a great change of mentality. Its greatest contribution has been a psychological support to change; we have prepared minds for the future. We have upgraded the private sector by preparing for future debates.”

The first ranking by turnover of the Top 100 Companies was based on the financial performance for the financial year ended in 1991. A brief overlook of the top 10 performers is rich in lessons. One of them is that there were only six companies which exceeded the 1-billion rupees ceiling. The leader of the ranking was Rogers & Co. Ltd with a turnover of Rs 3.25 billion. Air Mauritius claimed second spot with total revenues of Rs 3 billion, followed by Ireland Blyth Limited (revenues: 1.89 billion).

The top 10 was completed by: Currimjee Group (revenues: Rs 1.5 billion), Shell (Mauritius) Limited (Rs 1.42 billion), Consolidated Investment (CIEL) (Rs 1.13 billion), WEAL Group (FUEL/Medine) (Rs 900 million), Harel Group (Rs 850 million), Espitalier-Noël Group (Rs 665 million) and Happy World Group (Rs 638.98 million).

Three decades later, the economic landscape have fully changed. Mauritius has successfully made the transition to a service economy. Large groups are today well-diversified, their activities spanning across different sectors and extending beyond our borders. Despite the pandemic, conglomerates still have a strong balance sheet. This is confirmed by the 2022 ranking of The Top 100 Companies which showed that 91 corporates exceeded the 1-billion rupees ceiling.

The philosophy of the Top 100 Companies is to celebrate success. It is a strong DNA, which we are strengthening. At the same time, we are embarking on our digital transformation. Going forward, our editorial team will make the best use of artificial intelligence and analytics in order to provide our readers with state-of-the-art comparative analysis. Our journey takes a new turn.

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