In 1872 New York–born Ephraim Offner, a crockery salesman in New Orleans, partnered with other experienced ceramics dealers to sell china, glassware, crockery, and other “house furnishings” at low prices under the firm name E. Offner & Co. By the late 1870s, Offner was an agent for Haviland & Co., the largest exporter of French porcelain to the American market in the South. In 1885 the store had a special display of china in the window, showcasing a porcelain dinner service decorated specifically for the king of Carnival and an elaborate game service bearing the pattern Haviland custom designed for President Rutherford B. Hayes.