ESA Group

ESA Group was founded in Genoa in 1947 as Enterprise Shipping Agency by Frank Leslie Bradshaw, a former Royal Air Force officer.

Its original mission was to create employment opportunities for Italian seafarers by placing them on foreign-flagged vessels operated by international shipping companies.

Over the following decades, ESA expanded from crew management into a broader range of maritime services. In 1983, it established a Medical P&I Department to provide medical assistance to seafarers, and in 1989 it became an IATA-accredited travel agency. From the 1990s, its recruitment activities grew internationally.

A major step in the Group’s development came in 2010, when ESA expanded its operations in Malta, which gradually became the strategic hub of its international activities. In 2013, Mediterranean Ship Management Ltd. was established there, further strengthening ESA’s ship management capabilities and international presence.

At the same time, the Group maintained strong ties with Genoa, where Bradshaw Shipping & Crew Services S.r.l. continues to support vessels calling at Italian ports.

More recently, ESA expanded its focus on digital innovation and sustainability through the acquisition of Oceanly, developing solutions for vessel performance monitoring and environmental impact reduction.

Today, ESA Group combines its historic roots in Genoa with a global structure centred in Malta, offering integrated maritime services across crew management, ship management, digital solutions and operational support.