barsalou had an early beginning in business with an apprenticeship in auctioneering at the age of 15. he quickly advanced in business and by 1853 was a partner in benning and barsalou, an enterprise mainly in auctioneering with some activity in real estate. he went on to other business ventures and bought a company with two partners which became the canadian rubber company (now uniroyal), and was its first president. the core of his business activities was the soap factory he founded with his sons in 1875 at the corner of rue durham (now rue plessis) and ste-catherines, which licensed soap recipes and brand names from a number of firms over the years, including the "tête de cheval" brand and "savon barsalou".