Belber
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| Founded | 1891 |
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| Founders | Aaron and Henry Belber |
| Headquarters | 22nd Arch Street, Philadelphia, United States |
| Products | Trunks, Luggage, Leather Goods, Handbags |
| Website | www.belber.com |
Belber is a heritage American leather goods company founded in Philadelphia in 1891.
The Belber company was established in 1891 when two school-age brothers, Aaron and Henry Belber, scraped together $200 and started making luggage in a South Philadelphia basement. The Belber brothers, ages 14 and 17, worked 10 hours a day, six days a week, hand-stitching luggage.
The Belber brothers opened a first factory in 1903.
The Belber brothers were soon joined by their 2 other brothers, Herman and Maurice.
In 1919, the Belber Trunk and Bag Company acquired the Oshkosh Trunk Company and became the world's biggest manufacturer of traveling goods.
In 1920, the company purchased the Larkin Building on Arch Street in Philadelphia to house its main office, a factory and a salesroom. In addition, Belber built a national network of production, distribution and direct sales which by 1926 included manufacturing plants at Woodbury and Newark, New Jersey, and Oshkosh, Wisconsin, as well as branch warehouses and offices in Pittsburgh, New York, Minneapolis, Chicago and San Francisco.
The Belber Trunk and Bag Company continued its expansion by acquiring the Schmit Bros. Trunk Company (which included the Eagle Trunk Company) in 1926 and the trunkmakers Innovation and Neverbreak in the 1930s.
In 1930, Belber moved its headquarters to Woodbury, New Jersey, into a building that used to house the Blasius piano factory.
In 1947, Belber closed its plant in Philadelphia and transferred all its activities to Woodbury, New Jersey.
In the 1950s, Belber starts to lose momentum with the development of air travel and eventually went dormant in the middle of the 1970s.
In the roaring twenties, Belber's trunks, suitcases, and collapsible silk cord hangers were symbols of luxury travel.
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Wikipedia