Women packing cream soda cracker boxes.
Business operated much differently in the late 1800s; by nature of the available technology, enterprises were often quite small. C. H. Doerr & Co. was reflective of Canadian business at the time, which was largely being conducted through small proprietary companies. Doerr’s production relied primarily on manpower, as electricity was still a relatively new development.
Transportation was limited to carriages, sleighs, early cars and trains (the Canadian Pacific Railway just having been completed in 1885), meaning that business focuses were local1. The first handbill was written in German and English to cater to the large immigrant population in what was then Berlin.
Doerr's delivery sleigh.
Exterior of Doerr factory.
As Doerr’s production capacity grew he travelled to small neighbouring communities to sell his products. Hitching up his horse to his carriage full of samples, Doerr relied on a good product and personal service to make sales. Buying pre-made or manufactured goods was a much greater luxury at the time than it is now.
To purchase cookies and candies would have to have been worth the expense. Fortunately the prospering Berlin economy could support such a venture. Doerr was making old favourites and since the products were handmade they could offer a great variety. Business was booming for Doerr & Co.
Doerr's Candies in wooden barrels.
1Taylor, Graham D., 1944-. The Rise of Canadian Business. Don Mills,
Ont.: Oxford University Press, 2009.
