Why did the Einem factory workers refuse to speak out against their exploiters? Luxury housing project on the site of the Red October factory
Despite the efforts of Moscow leaders, especially in previous years, there are still historical places in Moscow. One of them is the complex of buildings of the Red October confectionery factory on Bersenevskaya embankment, which is located in the very center of the city - on the spit formed by the Vodootvodny Canal and the Moscow River opposite the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, where I was recently invited on a tour.
Theodor Ferdinand von Einem - founder of the factory
Theodor Ferdinand von Einem is the founder of the factory. When he was a little over 20 years old, he came from Prussia to Russia to organize a confectionery business here. What kind of faith did a person have in Russia to leave everything in his homeland and come to this hungry and cold country, where serfdom still existed? I started with simple things - chocolate and sweets. Thus, the founding date of the factory is 1851, when Einem began producing his first products (let me remind you that serfdom in Russia was abolished only in 1861).
How many entrepreneurs do you know who, at the age of 20, arrived in a foreign country and were able to successfully organize their business like this?
At first, everything that was produced was sold out within a day. Production gradually expanded, and soon he met his compatriot Julius Geis, with whom he continued to develop his business.
The Einem factory is a supplier to the Kremlin
Soon their products become very popular, the Einem factory begins supplying products to the Kremlin. At the same time, they produce products in completely different price ranges, so their popularity is growing among all segments of the population.
After Einem's death, the factory was run by Julius Geis, who in 1889 bought several plots on Bersenevskaya Embankment - a very advantageous location in all respects - right next to the Kremlin. And the construction of production workshops begins, which were used for their intended purpose until recently.
This is, for example, what a mine looks like in one of the buildings.
The business is expanding, the products receive awards at the All-Russian Industrial and Art Exhibition in Nizhny Novgorod (1896) and Paris (1900).
Strikes of 1905
At the beginning of the last century, working in factories and plants lasted 15 hours with two short breaks for breakfast and lunch. Work started at 4 am. It is clear that no one really cared about the workers. At the Einem factory, they decided to reduce the working day to 10 hours and built spacious dormitories for the workers.
This was done, of course, not so that the workers would finally have a better life, but simply so that they would stop damaging the equipment and hating their work and the owners of the factory at the same time.
When a wave of strikes swept across the country in 1905, and workers from neighboring factories came to the factory to invite them to join them, Einem employees refused to participate.
Now, more than 100 years later, I don’t even know how to feel about this, whether to praise them for it or, conversely, condemn them. On the one hand, the proletarian solidarity of the working class, and on the other, it is no longer a secret to anyone that first of all, those who did not want to work and at the same time terribly hated those who had at least something came up for all such events , dreaming of taking it all away from them...
"Red October" - former "Einem"
In 1917, the factory was nationalized, in 1922 it began to be called “Red October” (however, for several years after this renaming, “Former Einem” was always indicated in parentheses on the packaging of the factory’s products - that’s the power of the brand!), and until 1935 it was led by one of Geis's sons. One can only guess what happened to him after 1935.
Luxury housing project on the site of the Red October factory
Now the factory territory belongs to Guta Development, which immediately after its purchase developed a project to build luxury housing here. Grandmas rule the world - who needs these old brick ruins if you can make good money in such a place?
From the roof of the factory you can just look around the surroundings,
You just need to know how to get there. Our guide helped us with this.
Fortunately, another crisis occurred, so now the buildings are simply rented out.
But the project to build luxury housing on the spit remains...
How do you, after more than a hundred years and having seen enough of coups, revolutions and Maidans with your own eyes, feel about the fact that the workers of the Einem factory refused to participate in the strike, thereby supporting the owners of the factory - the capitalists and exploiters of the working class?
P.S. Organizers of the excursion: Mosblog and the project "
Confectionery factory "Red October" until recently it was located at Bersenevskaya embankment, 6 on the spit of the island formed by the Vodootvodny Canal and the Moscow River, but in 2007 it was transferred to the territory chocolate factory"Babaevsky".
Photo 1. Former buildings of the confectionery factory "Partnership Einem" and "Red"
October" in Moscow
The beginning of the history of the Einem Partnership chocolate factory
The production was founded by Theodor Ferdinand von Einem, a native of Germany who arrived in the Mother See in 1850 from the German town of Württemberg.
Fyodor Karlovich (this is how the entrepreneur began to introduce himself in the Russian manner) noticed that sawn sugar began to be in special demand in Moscow, after which, showing his entrepreneurial spirit, the German began its production.
The profitable business worked out, and already in 1851 Einem opened a small workshop for the production of chocolates. Only four people worked in the workshop at that time.
The supply of sweet products to the front lines during the Crimean War and, of course, successful trade in the city of Moscow brought Einem profit, thanks to which he opened a chocolate factory.
Photo 2. Address of the former production Bersenevskaya embankment, No. 6
In 1857, Fyodor Karlovich made acquaintance with Julius Geis. The extraordinary entrepreneur first helped open a candy store in the center - on, and over time became Einem’s partner.
The business continued to develop successfully, which helped the partners purchase a special steam engine in one of the European countries and begin construction of a new factory in .
The first newly constructed building, a three-story building, housed production workshops for the production of caramel, marshmallows, different types cookies and gingerbread, chocolate and glazed fruit, as well as cocoa drinks and marmalade.
Although the Einem Partnership was officially registered in 1867, its products by that time already had a number of awards received at manufacturing exhibitions in the Russian Empire: Odessa (1864) and Moscow (1865).
It is worth noting that for every pound of cookies produced, the partners donated 5 kopecks in silver to charity, and half of the funds went to a German community school for the poor and orphans, and the remaining money was distributed among various Moscow charitable institutions.
And again, everything turned out well for Einem and Geis, which required them to begin the construction of new factory buildings already on Bersenevskaya embankment, opposite the one standing on the opposite bank of the Moscow River.
The production complex was impressive with its architectural appearance and “filling”.
For organization chocolate production Qualified European confectioners who had experience working with installed modern equipment were involved. It’s interesting, but thanks to the mechanization of processes, only a few dozen Russian craftsmen worked in such a large production, but only professionals from Great Britain were involved in the production of the first biscuits in Russia - traditional English desserts.
Before his death in 1878, Einem completely handed over the reins of the confectionery factory to his partner, to whom the founder’s widow subsequently transferred her shares. Even concentrating everything in his own hands, Julius Geis did not change the Einem Partnership trademark, correctly judging that this would only benefit his business.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the company owned several stores in large cities - Nizhny Novgorod and Moscow, the products of which were supplied from two Moscow confectionery factories and two production facilities in Riga and Simferopol.
In 1899, Geis bought from the merchant Ushakov the first of the eight plots he had in the neighborhood, and in 1914 the last of them went to the company. By that time, the Einem Partnership had become the largest confectionery production in the Russian Empire.
It will be interesting to learn about the organization of labor in the factories of Julius Geis.
During his reign, the working day lasted 10 hours. A hostel was set up and meals were provided for non-residents. A school was opened for children working as apprentices in the factory. After 25 years of work, the craftsmen were granted a pension and awarded a silver badge.
In 1914, during the First World War, workers and employees themselves raised funds and built a military hospital in Moscow, and the company itself, in addition to monetary donations, arranged to send wagons with cookies to the front line.
Also interesting, as they say today, is the marketing that Julius Geis established.
Being a creative person and also passionate about photography, he paid special attention to the packaging design and names of candies, as well as other sweet products. The boxes, covered with silk, velvet and even leather, contained photographic postcards, various theater programs and small cherubs made of tin.
The architectural ensemble was almost completely formed after the construction of the Caramel Shop in 1906, the design of which was carried out by the architect. In 1911, he also designed the new Administrative building at Bersenevskaya embankment, 6.
Confectionery factory after the revolution
The Bolsheviks who came to power nationalized the “Einem Partnership” in 1918 and already in 1922 at a general meeting of the team they approved a new name - “Red October”. True, for a couple of years the products were still produced under the old brand, it was so popular even in post-revolutionary Russia.
In the early 20s of the last century, the confectionery factory was in crisis, which almost led to its complete closure. New specialists were able to make changes to the production process, and also organized worker control and the fight against theft, which made it possible by 1925 to exceed the 1913 figures.
The Soviet authorities, in addition, allocated funds for the purchase of the latest machines from Germany. It was in those years that such famous candies as “Bear-toed Bear” and “Kis-Kis” toffees appeared on Soviet shelves.
More than 150 years have passed since the founding of the Einem confectionery factory. In 1850, the young and ambitious Ferdinand Theodor von Einem came to Russia to get rich. Ferdinand was the son of a simple German priest, Karl Einem. He grew up in Spartan conditions, excluding any “sinful” luxury. One day, Ferdinand's father discovered a piece of chocolate candy in his 10-year-old son's pocket. The evidence of the Fall was laid out on the table for general condemnation - how could a future priest spend the thaler given to him on base pleasure?! Who would have thought that 15 years later chocolate would become Ferdinand’s life’s work...
At first, Einem became an apprentice in the chocolate shop of master Oreole - in the very shop where the memorable “sinful” candy was bought. By the age of 20, the talented young man had mastered all the tricks of making chocolate and even surpassed his teacher. Master Oreole advised the young man to go to Russia and open his own business there. In those days, many Europeans left for Russia - a country of severe frosts and untold riches. Besides, in Russia they didn’t know how to make chocolate at all...
After arriving in Russia, Einem began producing sawn sugar, but trade did not take off, and after a year the business had to be closed. Then the resilient entrepreneur organized a small workshop for the production of cookies and sweets.
Einem loved Russia with all his soul. He even began to call himself in the Russian manner - Fedor Karlovich. During the Crimean War, he managed to obtain a state order to provide the front with sweets - the supply of syrup and jam for wounded soldiers. Einem fulfilled the government contract “with unparalleled honesty,” as the Vedomosti newspaper wrote. The company's business went uphill. In 1857, the smart and perspicacious Einem met the talented businessman Julius Geis, who contributed his entire fortune (20 thousand rubles) to the development of the business and became Einem’s partner. The partners ordered a steam engine from Europe and began building a large factory on Sofiyskaya Embankment - the same one that is now called “Red October”.
Einem's factory was the first in Russia to launch mass production of chocolates and cocoa. Its products regularly received Russian and international awards, the range expanded, and production grew. In 1900, at the World Exhibition in Paris, the factory's products were recognized as the best and received the highest award. On the occasion of the 300th anniversary of the House of Romanov in 1913, the factory was awarded the title “Supplier of the Court of His Imperial Majesty.” In a word, Einem's factory became the leading confectionery production in the Russian Empire, despite the fact that they had serious competitors - the oldest confectionery company in Russia "Aprikosov and Sons" (the current concern "Babaevsky"), the confectionery of Adolf Siu (factory "Bolshevik" ).
What was the reason for this success? Why was the popularity of the factory so great that even after nationalization in 1918, “Formerly” was added in parentheses to the new name “Red October” for twenty years? Einem"? Even the Bolsheviks did not immediately manage to get rid of her real name.
Here are a few marketing techniques from the Einem factory, tested in a time when no one had heard of marketing:
Luxurious packaging.
The best artists of that time were invited to decorate the sweets: Vrubel, Bakst, Bilibin, Benois. Candy boxes were decorated with silk, velvet or leather.
The idea to associate the new taste of candy with a painting by the fashionable artist Ivan Ivanovich Shishkin belonged to Julius Geis. This is what the first “Ballfoot Bears” looked like.
Educational inserts and wrappers for candies.
A great idea - a child eats candy and learns something new. Boxes of sweets and cocoa were filled with collectible postcards with geographic maps, animals, historical scenes, and reproductions of paintings by famous Russian artists. The most beautiful playing cards were drawn for adult buyers. To become the owner of a whole deck, you had to eat a lot of candies.
Look how beautiful it is! You can buy these chocolates just for the wrapper alone!
Having received chocolate
And having taken a bite,
Suddenly I saw Vasya Stepka -
Bully and disheveled...
What are you doing? Do you want half?
Would you like some clubs?
And he went to swing the club...
Styopka came out with a lantern.
Having received a great embarrassment,
Throwing away the stick and cap,
He ran as fast as he could
And I forgot about chocolate.
Victorious, brave Vasya,
Bragging about the strength of his muscles,
He said that to all of these -
He owes only Einem.
By the way, candies with the name “Come on, take it away” are still produced to this day. Only instead of a frowning toddler, a pretty girl playing with a puppy is printed on the wrapper.
Exclusive offer.
Composer Karl Feldman, at the special request of the Einem Partnership, wrote “chocolate melodies”: “Cupcake Gallop”, “Chocolate Waltz”, “Waltz Montpensier”, “Cocoa Dance”. These melodies quickly became popular. Sheet music for them could only be obtained with the purchase of chocolates. If you want to play a fashionable waltz, buy candy from Einem! For little customers, we developed cross-stitch patterns that were included in boxes of sweets and cocoa.
Branded machines for issuing chocolate.
By inserting a 10-kopeck coin into such a machine and moving the lever, the child received a small chocolate bar in a wrapper. These machines quickly became a fashionable innovation and a real “tempt” for young buyers.
Branded accessories.
Boxes of chocolates included free branded napkins or tweezers with the factory logo. Confectionery shops sold beautiful tin cans For bulk products, decorated with the Einem corporate logo.
To a modern reader these techniques may seem devoid of originality, but at that time it was a real breakthrough. They tried to imitate Einem, not only by direct competitors, but also by entrepreneurs not related to the confectionery business. It is surprising that their “teacher” was the son of a simple priest, who at the time of his arrival in Russia had neither a good education nor serious savings. Thanks to his amazing instinct, ability to find the right people and sincere love for his work, Fyodor Karlovich Einem became one of the richest people in Russia and earned respect and honor.
Shortly before his death, Einem sold his share to his partner Geis and returned to Prussia. He had no children. In 1876, newspapers reported Einem's death. At the time of his death, the famous chocolatier was only 50 years old. Fyodor Karlovich bequeathed his body to be buried in Moscow - in his new homeland, where he lived most of his life and found happiness and wealth.
The confectionery business under the leadership of Geis grew even more, but they did not rename the factory - the words “Einem” and “quality” were firmly associated among the townspeople. After the death of Julius Geis, his son Voldemar took over the management of the factory. Geis did not live to see the 1917 revolution. Probably fortunately...
In 1851, a small workshop for the production of chocolate and candy was opened on Arbat, in which only four craftsmen worked. It belonged to the German Theodor Ferdinand von Einem, who came to Russia “to do business.” During the Crimean War, Einem supplied his products to the front - the profit received allowed him to expand production and move the factory to Myasnitskaya Street. In 1869, entrepreneur Julius Heuss joined Einem. Together they open a confectionery store on Teatralnaya Square, import the latest steam engine from abroad and build the first factory building on the Sofia embankment of the Moscow River.
For every pound of new cookies sold, Einem donated five kopecks in silver, of which half the amount went to charitable institutions in Moscow, and the other half to the German School for the Poor and Orphans. The first official record about the company “Einem. The Partnership for the Steam Factory of Chocolate, Sweets and Tea Cookies appears in 1867 in the directory Factory Enterprises of the Russian Empire. By this time, the company already had awards from the All-Russian manufacturing exhibitions: bronze (1864) and silver (1865) medals. Einem produced caramel, candy, chocolate, cocoa drinks, marshmallows, cookies, biscuits, gingerbread, glazed fruit, and marmalade.
After Einem’s death in 1876, Julius Hayes began to manage the factory, but he did not change the company name, which had become popular among Muscovites.
In 1889, in connection with the expansion of production, Hayes acquired several plots on Bersenevskaya embankment. One of the first buildings built on the new site was the production building designed by the architect A.V. Flodin. Subsequently, according to the design of the architect A. M. Kalmykov, several more production buildings and apartment buildings were erected, which formed the basis of the factory ensemble. The formation of the factory ensemble was completed in 1914 with the addition of the Cloth Factory apartment building, converted into garages. In total, 23 buildings were built for the Red October factory on the Bersenevsky site, which became the main site.
In 1896, at the All-Russian Industrial and Art Exhibition in Nizhny Novgorod, Einem products were awarded a gold medal; in 1900, the company received the Grand Prix at the World Exhibition in Paris for the range and quality of chocolate. In 1913, Einem was awarded the title of supplier to the court of His Imperial Majesty.
By the beginning of the 20th century, Einem owned two factories in Moscow, branches in Simferopol and Riga, several stores in Moscow and Nizhny Novgorod. After the October Revolution of 1917, the factory was nationalized and became known as “State Confectionery Factory No. 1, former Einem”; in 1922 it was renamed “Red October”, a name it still retains.
During its heyday, Einem was one of the most famous confectionery brands in the entire country. But many of his contemporaries remembered him for producing a wide variety of postcards in addition to his candies and cookies. Today, most people are familiar with the “Moscow in the 23rd Century” series of eight futuristic postcards from 1914, which demonstrate what, in the author’s opinion, Moscow was supposed to look like in the 22nd and 23rd centuries: from 2114 (Central Station card) to 2259 (card “St. Petersburg Highway”).
Central Station. Winter is the same as it was with us 200 years ago. The snow is just as white and cold. Central Station of Ground and Airways. Tens of thousands of people coming and going, everything goes extremely quickly, systematically and conveniently. Passengers have access to land and air. Those who wish can move at the speed of telegrams.
Moskvoretsky Bridge. The Kremlin also decorates the ancient Belokamennaya and with its golden domes presents an enchanting spectacle. Right there, near the Moskvoretsky Bridge, we see new huge buildings of trading enterprises, trusts, societies, syndicates, etc. Against the background of the sky, carriages of the overhead airway glide gracefully...
Lubyanskaya Square. Clear evening. Lubyanskaya Square. The blue sky is outlined by clear lines of luminous airplanes, airships and airway carriages. Long carriages of the Moscow Metro, which we were only talking about in 1914, fly out from under the bridge square. On the bridge over the Metropolitan we see a well-ordered detachment of the valiant Russian army, which has retained its uniform since our times. In the blue air we spot the cargo airship Einem, flying to Tula with a supply of chocolate for retail stores
Moscow River. Busy, noisy banks of the large navigable Moscow River. Huge transport and commercial cruisers and multi-story passenger ships rush along the transparent deep waves of the wide commercial port. The entire fleet of the world is exclusively merchant. The military was abolished after the peace treaty of The Hague. In the bustling harbor one can see the diverse costumes of all the peoples of the globe, for the Moscow River has become a world trading port.
Petrovsky Park. We are transported mentally to Petrovsky Park. The alleys have been expanded beyond recognition. The ancient Petrine Palace has been restored and houses the Museum of the Petrine Era. Wonderful fountains gush out everywhere, sparkling. Devoid of germs and dust, the completely clean air is cut through by airships and airplanes. Crowds of people in bright 23rd century costumes are enjoying the marvelous nature in the same place where we, our great-great-great-grandfathers, used to walk.
Red Square. Red Square. The noise of wings, the ringing of trams, the horns of cyclists, the sirens of cars, the crackling of engines, the screams of the public. Minin and Pozharsky. Shadows of airships. In the center is a policeman with a saber. Timid pedestrians flee to the execution site. This will be the case in 200 years
Petersburg highway. Beautiful clear winter of 2259. A corner of the “old” merry Moscow, the ancient “Yar” still serves as a place of widespread fun for Muscovites, as it was with us more than 300 years ago. For the convenience and pleasantness of communication, the St. Petersburg Highway has been entirely turned into a crystal-ice mirror, along which graceful snowmobiles fly and glide. Here, traditional sbiten makers and sellers of hot aero skids are scurrying around on small aerial sleds. And in the 23rd century Moscow is faithful to its customs
Theater Square. Theater Square. The pace of life has increased a hundredfold. Everywhere there is lightning-fast movement of wheeled, winged, propeller-driven and other vehicles. The Muir and Merlise Trading House, which existed back in 1846, has now grown to fabulous proportions, with its main departments connected to the air railways. Numerous engines fly out from under the pavement. There is a fire somewhere in the distance. We see a car fire brigade that will end the disaster in a moment. Biplanes, monoplanes and many aerial overflights are rushing to the fire.
However, in addition to these futuristic postcards, there were many other series, published in huge quantities and serving not only for sending “open letters”, but also for broadening one’s horizons, and are also an excellent collectible item
episode "Quartet Game"
series "Hunting in Russia"
series "To the 300th anniversary of the reign of the House of Romanov"
series "1812"
series "Types of peoples of the globe"
and here, for example, are geographical cards depicting a map of Russia. Please note that it is called the "Constitutional Empire". There were cards with other countries, but I didn’t come across them.
Well, and other very different series of postcards:
All this is now a monument to an irretrievably lost era, which reaches us in postcards like these. They were published “for fun” for themselves, but it turned out that they are much more important for us as a memory of that country that we never knew...
