In 1833 Marcus Samuel opened a small shop in London, selling sea shells to Victorian natural history enthusiasts. It soon became a thriving import–export business: Marcus Samuel & Company. The Royal Dutch Petroleum Company had been formed in the Netherlands to develop oil fields in Asia. By 1896 they had their own tanker fleet to compete with the British, but in 1907 they combined their worldwide operations into the Royal Dutch/Shell Group of companies. In view of the unprecedented situation, Conference decided to appoint a non-executive director (NED) as Chairman. Members of the Steering Group met investors in July and made it clear that they were open to radical constructive ideas but that both a unitary Board and, if necessary, duplicated Boards were being considered. There were some remarkable special features about the Royal Dutch/Shell engagement which complicated matters: the dual company structure, the national sensitivities and the priority shares.