Frister & Rossmann

CB  sewing machines after WWII

Imports stopped between 1939 and 1945 then after the war the U.K. importer, Quitmann, with offices located at 350-356 Old Street, London, EC 1, bought all the rights to the Frister & Rossmann trade marks and became a British registered trading name.

Durlach was a borough of the German city of Karlsruhe. After the war the city was destroyed by 40%.

In 1945 an American military base was established in Karlsruhe. Factories were reconstructed in record time and export business activities begun again.

In 1955 a major  fire destroyed Gritzner-Kaiser factory in Durlach.               Weakened  Gritzner-Kaiser is easy prey for a competitor based in Kaiserslautern, GM  Pfaff  AG.

In 1957 the factory was rebuilt by the GM Pfaff AG that takes over the majority of shares.

In 1959 Frister & Rossmann Sewing Machines Limited was incorporated.

The Frister+Rossmann brand is now solely owned by SMD Retail Limited, the parent company of Sewing Machines Direct and the range is now designed and manufactured by Jaguar International Corp, Osaka, Japan who have a long established relationship with many other UK brands including Singer and Bernina.

to be continued