Alexandru Negrescu was born 14 March 1870, in Bucharest, Romania, to a half Jewish father, Jean Negrescu (born 1837), an innkeeper, and Maria Rădescu (born 1839). The family had lived in Mihăileni, Botoșani County prior to Alexandru's birth. He apprenticed with the confectioners Casa Capșa, in Bucharest, and Casa Boissier in Paris, settling in Paris by 1895, though he may have traveled there before that date as well.
