Gollcher Group

Gollcher Group is one of the oldest names in Maltese shipping. Founded in 1854 and still family owned, it has grown from a ship agency into a group covering freight forwarding, courier delivery, ship and yacht registration, marine surveying and airline cargo. The head office sits in Valletta, overlooking St John's Square in the centre of the capital.

For UK readers the group is relevant in three ways: businesses sending or receiving goods, shipowners and yacht owners needing a local agent or the Maltese flag, and people shipping parcels or personal items. It is listed in our courier and freight directory for Malta.

A Swedish founder and a long Maltese story

The firm began when Olof Fredrik Gollcher, a Swede who settled in Malta a few years earlier, founded O.F. Gollcher & Sons. He operated his own ships to North African, Sicilian and Adriatic ports, acted as agent for leading shipping lines and pioneered the first services to Gozo as well as ferry services within the harbours. The steamer Gleneagles ran the first regular Malta to Gozo service from 1885 until 1914. Visitors planning a trip across can read our Gozo guide.

Generations of the family held consular appointments for Denmark, the Netherlands and Sweden, and the firm records well over a century as Lloyd's Agent in Malta. The group's motto, Framåt, is Swedish for forward. Its Valletta setting also connects it to the Knights of Malta story that shaped the harbours, and the nearby St John's Co-Cathedral is a short walk from the office.

Shipping agency and registration

The agency side serves shipowners, charterers and managers with RoRo cargo services, liner agency, cruise liner calls, superyacht services, offshore logistics, and bunkering and ship to ship transfers. Cruise passengers and yacht guests arriving by sea will find that the Grand Harbour offers twenty primary berthing facilities, with cruise liners using the Valletta Waterfront and superyachts using the Cottonera Waterfront marina. Our Three Cities guide shows that side of the harbour.

Ship and yacht registration under the Maltese flag is handled through a wholly owned subsidiary, Flagport Ltd, covering ship registration, yacht registration, and bareboat registration and mortgages. Owners weighing a purchase can also look at 73 Marine, a yacht broker, and take advice from CLA Malta on structures. The group also provides marine surveyors, emergency assistance and acts as P&I correspondent.

Freight forwarding and customs

Freight forwarding covers air, sea and road on a door to door basis, with groupage (shared containers), full containers, trailers, aerospace cargo, pet travel and international movers and relocation among the options. A direct computer link with Maltese Customs helps the team process documents, and the group is an Authorised Economic Operator, a status that eases some customs and logistics processes. Services are ISO 9001:2015 quality assured.

Anyone moving from the UK can combine this with our Malta relocation guide. Vehicles shipped to the island may also involve a dealer such as A&A Car Imports, and cover for goods in transit can be arranged through brokers such as ACCORD Insurance Brokers, based close to the Valletta office.

Courier and last mile delivery

Courier services run through Xpress Logistics Ltd, a Gollcher Group company. Options include express and economy import and export courier for documents and small parcels, last mile deliveries for online retailers across Malta and Gozo, returns for e-commerce, customs clearance and an on board courier service. A dedicated fleet of vans carries local deliveries, and the group serves international retail brands.

Separate quote forms exist for airfreight, courier, full container and groupage shipments. The group also acts as cargo general sales and service agent for several airlines, and works in more than 150 destination countries, handling over 170,000 shipments a year.

Contacting the group

The head office is in Valletta, within walking distance of the sights in our Valletta guide. Visitors based in the capital can look at hotels in Valletta.

Fees are not published. Say what you are sending, from where to where, and the weight or volume if you know it. Use the VisitMalta.co.uk enquiry form on this page and we will pass your message to Gollcher Group for a direct reply.