Fabric wholesale - Bank business - Leopold Epstein

In the address book of the trading bodies and factories of the imperial and royal capital and residence city of Vienna, then of several provincial cities for the year 1845, the following entry can be found: Mr. Epstein Lazar, from Prague, under the company name recorded here and in Prague: L. Epstein;  has the defeat of his k. k. privil. The brothers Israel and Ephraim Epstein from Prague laid the foundations for the economic rise of the Epstein family towards the end of the 18th century. They specialized in the printing of cotton fabrics, known as calico printing. Thanks to their entrepreneurial skills and the trade embargo imposed by Napoleon against Great Britain in 1806, the brothers achieved renown and prosperity. In 1815, the Brüder Epstein family parted ways. In 1819, Israel Epstein handed over the factory to his son Lazar ( Leopold), under whose management the calico printing factory soon became the most important in Prague and in 1843, with almost 1,000 workers, the second largest in the country. As early as 1818, Israel Epstein had a small branch in Vienna, which Lazar ( Leopold)  Epstein successfully developed into a fabric wholesaler. The associated business activities and transactions led to the entry into the banking business. With the transfer of business interests from Prague to Vienna, Lazar, now Leopold Epstein, also moved the family's residence and the majority of the company's headquarters to Vienna. As one of the richest bankers in Vienna, Leopold Epstein was appointed director of the National Bank, among other things. He died in 1864 as a result of a stroke and was buried in the Jewish cemetery in Währing.