Kuppenheim founded a joint venture in Pforzheim, Germany in 1854 but struck out on his own three years later, in 1857. A gold and silver maker, when Kuppenheim died in 1889 three of his sons – Albert, Hugo and Moritz – took over the company and in 1900, at the Universal Exhibition in Paris, the firm won a gold medal for a paper knife – more than four decades after the business was founded.
The three sons seized upon this accomplishment, building the firm up to become a renowned gold and silver production house focussing predominantly on small objects such as smoking requisites and stationery and vanity sets, with high quality companies such as Cartier and Boucheron among their clientele.
At its height, the firm employed more than 200 craftsmen at the Pforzheim factory as well as running a Paris store and a thriving export business. Whilst the silverware was usually cut by machine, it was engraved and soldered together by hand; an elaborately crafted vanity case comprised up to twenty items. The Kuppenheim enamel, which was engine turned with enamels, achieved worldwide recognition for its exceptional quality. The company went into liquidation in 1939 after the outbreak of WWII.
