Born on 29 December 1909 in Posen, Prussia (now Poland), the son of a military outfitter whose customers included the eldest son of the Kaiser and Hindenburg, Ettinger moved to Berlin with his family after the First World War.
After he was dismissed in 1933 for being Jewish, he went to first Paris, then London to compile a book profiling Europe's leading actors.
In London he gained employment as an agent for German factories exporting leather and luxury goods to the UK.
[1] Ettinger was briefly interned at the start of the Second World War, then worked as a radio broadcaster and translator.
On his return to London he was commissioned by Asprey to procure luxury leather goods, which were then scarce.