J. Strauss Brother & Co. occupied 108 Liberty Street in Manhattan, one of New York City's five boroughs.
The business belonged to Levi Strauss's older brothers, Jonas and Louis, who operated a wholesale dry-goods store in New York. Levi joined them after arriving in the United States in 1847, working as an itinerant peddler for the family business.
The store handled practical merchandise such as kettles, blankets, and sewing goods. This early experience in wholesale trade helped prepare Levi for his later move west, where he opened a San Francisco branch of the family business during the California Gold Rush era.
A common mix-up is to associate Levi Strauss's name only with San Francisco and blue jeans. The New York store came first, and Manhattan was the setting for this important early chapter. Levi Strauss & Co. did not begin manufacturing riveted denim garments until decades later, after Levi partnered with tailor Jacob W. Davis in the 1870s.