Platnauer Brothers (P.B)
13 January 2025

Victoria Court and the old Platnauer Brothers shop
The Platnauer Brothers, (Michael Joseph, Samuel, George and Louis) were originally Polish Jews who were suffering from anti-semitism in the nineteenth century. The family went to study jewellery, watch and clock-making at Chaux de Fonds, Switzerland and emigrated to England around 1838 where they set up business in Birmingham and in Bristol. Their premises were part of Victoria Street's community from 1875 to the 1940s. Interestingly, there is a report in the London Gazette of 1891 of the original firm being dissolved and George retiring, but the other brothers retaining some accountability for the business.