20. June 2023

This exquisite chocolate box from our collection unveils the exceptional history of Russian-Jewish immigrants who from the 1920s to 1940s, built a vast chocolate production empire, spanning across four factories in four Chinese cities and operating seven outlet stores.

05. December 2022

The crumb trail of Bakerite leads us back to the American James David Sullivan, who after serving in the Spanish American War, came to China at the turn of the century and established the Denniston & Sullivan photo supplies store on Broadway (today’s Daming Rd.) in the Shanghai International Settlement. In June 1906 Sullivan sold the business to former employees Messrs. L.L. Hopkins and J.J. Gilmore who continued to operate it but moved it to Nanking Rd. (todays Nanjing East Rd.)

17. October 2022

-“Gee, honey look there’s a dragon in the sky!” -“Yay!” A classic example on how symbolism in marketing differs between the West and East-Asian countries. While in the culture of the former dragons are depicted as evil, in China they are traditionally seen as friendly and the bringers of good luck. A fact the historic Yutai flash light factory (裕泰电筒厂) from Shanghai cleverly used for its “Dragon head” brand (龙头牌).

22. July 2022

Probably our favorite panorama of Old Shanghai from our collection: an illustration from Harpers Weekly, September 12, 1900. Also an amazing reminder on how developed both the Bund on the Puxi side, as well as the Pudong side were already at that time. From a viewpoint most likely on top of the American Cigarette Company Co factory, on the Pudong side, we can see the building of the British Cigarette Company Ltd to the left (BAT was only established in 1902), on the right the Pootung Hotel, the...

25. June 2021

Some time after 1913 independent competitors Crosfields, Brunner Mond & Price's Candle Company founded The China Soap & Candle Company, Shanghai; it was cheaper to manufacture in Shanghai than ship from Liverpool. In 1919 Lever purchased Gossages & Crosfields from Brunner Mond and resolved the competitive altercation. A new Lever company was formed in Shanghai as “The China Soap Company” and it’s factory was built in 1923 in Yangpoo District’s No. 2310 Yangtzepoo Road. The...

22. June 2021

More background on the China Soap Company here.

12. May 2021

Originally erected in 1907 as godown but then totally transformed and modernized between March 1924 & August 1925. B.A.T. (英美烟公司 or Yee Tsoong Tobacco Co. in Chinese) was the largest foreign cigarette company & at the zenith of its activities in 1937, manufactured and distributed around 55 billion machine-made cigarettes to Chinese consumers. Famous brands owned or distributed included Ruby Queen, Chienmen, Hatamen, Pirate, Capstan, Kingfisher, Three Castles as well as London...