On the first of February 1937 in Amsterdam a small business firm called ‘Looise & Co’ is established. It is a little company with only two partners, Mr. Looise and Mr. Bitter. The company mainly produces small metal ware and parts for some Amsterdam shipyards. When Bitter finds himself another job and leaves the firm, Mr. Looise decides to move his company to a well known working class quarter in Amsterdam, called the ‘Jordaan’. There, in the Bloemstraat on number 62, he rents a basement and continues his little metal wares business. During World War II, in the year 1942, Wim Vogel joins the firm as a 15 year old student-metalworker. That day, a long and intense co-operation starts between the two men, and in fact … more than just that.

Mr Looise (Leen) Three basements on Bloemstraat Street

Just as many other Dutch technical companies, the firm of Looise and Vogel is forced to produce metal ware for the German occupation army. But, they came up with a very daring solution: they put out to contract all the ‘German work’ to a Jewish person in hiding who possesses a small milling machine. That Jewish man secretly produces all the metal parts and Looise and Vogel deliver the goods - as if it’s all made by them personally- to the German commander in Amsterdam. In the meantime they are working on some other stuff, for instance record-changers. And make good money of it.

1942, Wim Vogel joins the firm as a 15 year old student-metalworker. Seen here on the phone much older and wiser!