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The family arrived in Shanghai in December 1938. They were received in Shanghai by a group of Russian Jews who put them up in an apartment in the run-down Hongkew district. Rudolf and his brother, Richard, decided to set up a leather goods business by the name of Brosan Brothers. It appears that the brothers may have used funds from a variety of sources to establish the business. In a letter Alfred wrote to his grandchildren, he mentioned that they had received a loan from the Jewish community.[1] Alfred’s daughter, Debra Brosan, believes the family received additional financial help for the business as well as for their residence. She explains that opening the store in Shanghai was only possible through calling people who owed money to the old business in Austria, “One British company sent money to Shanghai, and they were able to take that money and buy a house and start a business.”[2] As Alfred recalled, “We arrived in Shanghai with the 40 dollars [Marks] that the German government allowed us to take out; however, my father had money outstanding from various customers in England, France, etc., etc. And he had written to them before we left Vienna to not send the money to Austria…but to send it to Shanghai. There was only one British company that sent us money, and I think it was in the vicinity of about three or four thousand pounds…. And that money enabled us to start a business in Shanghai again, a leather goods business.”[3]
[1] Alfred Brosan, “A Letter to My Grandchildren,” 2.
[2] Debra Brosan Interview by Mikayla Higgins, February 27, 2020.
[3] Alfred Brosan Interview, December 5, 1991.
brosan_interview_brosan_brothers_beginnings.mp3Listen to Debra Brosan talk about how her grandfather was able to open the business, Brosan Brothers in Shanghai.
brosan_interview_partners.mp3Listen to Debra Brosan discuss the Brosan Brothers work relationships.
Like the Brosans, many Jews started over in their new environs by establishing and running businesses. Businesses provided a way to interact with and become a part of the Shanghai community in addition to a means of economic survival for families. Businesses also provided a way for people to keep busy and use their skills to contribute to the economy.
Entering Shanghai was a difficult process and setting up a business was even harder. The formation of a business in Shanghai was out of necessity. People needed to find a way to make money and feed their families but work was scarce. The Brosan Brothers leather goods store was initially successful. The Brosans sold an array of items including: handbags, ladies dresses, suits, raincoats, sport jackets, and wallets. Rudolf and Richard employed between 30 and 40 Chinese workers at the store. Alfred explained:
“My father and my uncle…established a business…within six months after we arrived in Shanghai, and because of his connections—and there was also, of course, a tremendous export trade out of Shanghai—and with my father and uncle’s knowhow of European leather goods, with the Chinese skill—because these Chinese people were excellent workers, they had very fine workmanship—we were able to establish ourselves within a year’s time and had a thriving business going. Not only did we do leather goods, but eventually we went into the raincoats and clothing business and by 1941—when the war broke out—we had enough money…to live all through the war without charity.”[4]
[4] Alfred Brosan Interview, December 5, 1991.
This is a photo of a wallet similar to one that would have been sold in the Brosan Brothers store. Customers had the option of purchasing leather wallets made out of sheepskin, English goat, Chinese calf, and more.
Running the business involved interacting with the community through employing Jewish refugees and Chinese residents.
brosan_interview_employees.mp3These images are of the catalog for Brosan Brothers. The business had many items to choose from including wallets, suits, sport jackets, raincoats, handbags, and ladies' dresses.
Owning their place of residence was somewhat unique to the Brosan family because not every Shanghai refugee could afford to buy a house, and most refugees who arrived in Shanghai had to live in barrack-style shelters known as Heime or cramped apartments with numerous families in the Hongkew district.
In addition to helping out his father and uncle, Alfred took employment at an import and export business and enrolled in a trade school.[5] He later explained: “When we got to Shanghai, I had little various jobs to help my family get on their feet, and then my father started the business with my uncle and there wasn’t any room for extra people… So, I went to [a trade] school to learn the export business, and…help my father later on.”[6]
[5] Affidavit in Support of Visa for Alfred Brosan by Marvin A. Edison, October 16, 1946.
[6] Alfred Brosan Interview, December 5, 1991.
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