Originally Posted by
martl
Also some source says the brand name originally was freyus.
Emmo Ghelfi started his company in 1896 selling Chater Lea. In 1911 he started his own brand, Frejus. The earliest known mention of Frejus, is in an announcement of a bike race winner on a Perale bike using "Frejus materials" Whatever that means. That said, a 1913 ad in La Stampa had the spelling as Freyus.
As you wrote, he did name the bike Frejus after the French town because of the monument outside his shop. But since the Italians pronounce words in Italian, he dumbed itb down for them.
