Beginnings of friendship in rough male company (4)
I believe the answer is:
firm
'company' is the definition.
(firm can mean a company or business)
'beginnings of friendship in rough male' is the wordplay.
'beginnings of' says to take the initial letters (the beginning letters).
The initial letters of 'friendship in rough male' is 'FIRM'.
(Other definitions for firm that I've seen before include "'Solid, unyielding (4)'" , "Tight; company" , "Resistant to pressure" , "Compact - company" , "Unflinching" .)