Our story begins in 1865, when Haïm de Botton opened his jewelry store. In 1920, de Botton was succeeded by his sons, Isaac and Robert, who decided to expand the family business. They bought a piece of land near Eleftherias Square and constructed a luxurious building in order to house their renowned jewelry store, calling it "Zenith". The two brothers, who were among the wealthiest Thessalonians and lived with their families in a country mansion on Vasilissis Olgas Avenue, traded diamonds, jewelry and watches from famous luxury houses. Like all Jewish businesses, the Zenith jewelry store closed its doors definitively on February 25th, 1943 by order of the German authorities, who confiscated all its contents. The de Botton family members, who survived the concentration camps, returned to Thessaloniki after the end of the war, only to find their shop and home pillaged.