How it started
Founding and early history
The company (Singapore and Straits Aerated Water Company) was formed in 1883 by John Fraser and David Chalmers Neave, who diversified from their printing business (Singapore and Straits Printing Office) to pioneer the aerated water business in Southeast Asia in 1883.
In 1898, a new public company was formed and the two businesses were sold to the new company, named Fraser & Neave (F&N), for $290,000 in cash and shares.
Diversification, restructuring, and expansion
In 1931, Fraser & Neave formed a joint venture with Holland's Heineken to venture into the brewing business. The brewery, Malayan Breweries Limited produced Tiger Beer, and later acquired Archipelago Brewery, which produced Anchor Beer.
In 1936, F&N acquired the Singapore, Malaya and Brunei franchise rights for Coca-Cola drinks. Alongside its own range of F&N branded drinks, the company went on to acquire the rights to other PepsiCo, Coca-Cola, and Cadbury Schweppes brands – such as – 7-Up, Fanta, and Sunkist.
From Wikipedia’s article on Fraser and Neave, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.2