OUR STORY

Sourcing the world's finest food and championing what grows closest to home.

Established in Singapore in April 2020, Merchant Brothers was founded by José Rodrigues and Ray Poh as a trading company specialising in fine food products from Portugal.
We began in collaboration with the Rodrigues family, who operate Sabores Alentejanos, a respected Macau distributor supplying European foodstuff across Macau, Hong Kong and China. That heritage of careful, direct sourcing still runs through everything we do.
Since November 2023, we’ve broadened our portfolio well beyond our Portuguese roots, expanding into premium seafood, fine meats, and a wider world of curated ingredients sourced from the finest producers around the globe.
Today, we bring the Singaporean palate on an extraordinary voyage: from Europe’s culinary traditions to the freshest local harvests grown right here at home.

José had long shared his love for the Portuguese culture and tradition and often lamented the lack of Portuguese food products in the Asia region. His knowledge and passion for nature and agriculture led to his frequent trips back to his family’s hometown in the rural Alentejo region of Portugal. In 2015, he set up Casa do Porco Preto, a traditional Portuguese cuisine restaurant in the heritage area of Barra in Macau. With the understanding that good food stems from utlilising quality ingredients, José created one of the top Portuguese restaurants in Macau with the products he individually sourced and curated.

With this knowledge of fine food products, Merchant Brothers aims to bring the Singapore palate on a gastronomical voyage to discover the taste of Portugal and more.

 Ray founded Merchant Brothers together with José after a 5-year stint in the casino gaming industry. He previously managed Weike Gaming Technology, a casino gaming machine manufacturer based in Singapore, as its Chief Operating Officer. In his foray into the gaming world, Ray also served as the former Vice President of Business Development for HKEX-listed Success Dragon International Holdings, specialising in casino gaming operations in Asia.

After leaving the industry, he embarked on a journey to explore food which led him towards setting up Artisan Green in 2017, an indoor hydroponics farm in Kallang, and subsequently Merchant Brothers in 2020, a food distribution company specialising in fine food products.

With this knowledge of fine food products, Merchant Brothers aims to bring the Singapore palate on a gastronomical voyage to discover the taste of Portugal and more.