'When shocks came along, we would go back to what we do best’: Founded in 1887, Belfast firm named Northern Ireland’s oldest family-run business
Tea and coffee roaster founded by Samuel David Bell more than 135 years ago remains family-owned across four generations and continues to trade from its Belfast base
A Belfast tea and coffee company has been named the oldest family-run business still operating in Northern Ireland.
SD Bell & Co Ltd, founded in 1887, has remained in the same family for well over a century and continues to trade from its original premises in Belfast.
The company specialises in roasting coffee and blending tea, supplying both retail and business customers. Over its long history, it has built a strong local reputation for its traditional approach and continued commitment to craft production.
Despite operating through more than 135 years of economic and social change including wars, recessions, terrorism, the business remains independently owned and family-run, making it a rare example of long-term continuity in Northern Ireland’s business landscape.
The finding comes from research by Payroll Prices, which identified the oldest continuously family-owned businesses in each country. To qualify, companies had to still be actively trading and remain under majority family ownership.
The research highlights how unusual such longevity is in business. While around 82% of new firms survive past their first year, only around 35% remain active after a decade, with closures commonly driven by low sales, retirement or sale of the business.
However, analysts noted that business closure is not always a failure, but can represent transition or evolution, particularly in an era of rapid economic and technological change.
The study also pointed to what it described as a “golden age of entrepreneurship”, where new opportunities are constantly emerging even as older businesses disappear or change ownership.
Payroll Prices said it carried out manual research using news reports in native languages, requiring that companies remain operational and that founding families retain or regain majority ownership in order to be included in the rankings.
Delighted with the accolade, Robert Bell reflected on the company’s longevity surviving through periods of major upheaval by staying focused on its core strengths.
He said: “When we celebrated our 125th, we had a commemorative book launch, at which a journalist tellingly asked, “..If you’re that old, why aren’t you bigger than Starbucks?”!
"My response highlighted the ebb and flow of business over periods of massive industrial expansion, world wars, civil war, recessions, terrorism, positive taste-trends, and particularly over the ‘commercial nervous breakdown” that can occur when key individuals leave the firm.
"When shocks came along, we would retreat to our core areas of expertise, return to what we do best, rationalise, buy the best teas and coffees we could sell profitably…and go again, …and grow again.”
A spokesperson for Payroll Prices said businesses like SD Bell & Co Ltd were increasingly rare in the modern economy: “Family-run businesses like SD Bell & Co Ltd are incredibly rare in today’s world. Surviving for over a century, while being passed down through generations, shows an admirable level of resilience, adaptability and local support many companies struggle to achieve. "It isn’t just their age that make businesses like SD Bell & Co Ltd so interesting, but also the fact they’ve continued to grow and evolve while staying true to their roots. Local family-owned businesses become part of a city's identity and embedded in the communities they serve.”