D-96450 Coburg-Cortendorf /
Germany
HERMANN-Spielwaren GmbH
D-96450 Coburg-Cortendorf /
Germany
LEVEN Bären
In 1951 a great marriage was celebrated in the renowned toy town of Sonneberg in Thuringia between Dorle Engel, heiress of the famous Sonneberg toy company "H. J. LEVEN" and Rolf-G. Hermann, son of the Teddy Bear maker Max Hermann. With this wedding two renowned Sonneberg toy families were united.
More Informations about Rolf-G. Hermann
More informations about the history of the HERMANN
company
Already in 1910 the old LEVEN company made Teddy Bears, thus making it one of the first old Sonneberg Toy companies to introduce Teddy Bears. The tradition of old LEVEN Bears is now continued by HERMANN-Coburg. Through this company, the third generation of Teddy Bear manufacturers Martin and Dr. Ursula Hermann, carry on the tradition established by their parents Dorle and Rolf Hermann, and their grandparents Max Hermann and Fred Engel.
On this page we want to introduce to you the LEVEN Bears and the old, traditional history of the LEVEN company.
The LEVEN Teddy Bear Collection
1996
For the International Toy Fair 1996 in Nuremberg,
the biggest toy fair in the world, HERMANN-Coburg introduced a brand new
LEVEN Bear Collection with 14 items. This refreshed new Teddy Bear line,
which connects old and new elements, shall tell the history of an old
Sonneberg trademark anew.
In the background you see the oil-painting of H. Josef Leven.
The
History of the LEVEN Bears
In 1891 the commercial house "Leven & Sprenger"
was founded in the town of Sonneberg, which was at that time the Toy Capital
of the world. As the old LEVEN catalogue page from 1910 shows, the manufacture
of the teddy bears was already in motion.
In 1912 already 150 workers and 10 administrators
were employed and soon the LEVEN company belonged to one of the largest toy
firms in Sonneberg. Many thousands of their dolls and Teddy Bears were shipped
year by year to England, France and across the ocean to South America and
the United States.
2. The take over of the LEVEN company by Fred
Engel
One of the employees was Fred
Engel, who entered the company in 1904 as an apprentice. Soon the childless
Hubert Josef Leven took pleasure in this ambitious young man. In 1906, when
he was just 17 years old, Fred Engel had to travel for several weeks to England
to visit the English customers, because he spoke English very well.
In 1923 Fred Engel invested in the LEVEN company and became partner and chairman. Later he bought the remaining parts from Hubert Josef Leven. The traditional toy company devolved to the family of Fred Engel, who admitted both of his daughters - Hildegard and Dorle - to the firm as joint owners.
3. The expropriation by the Communist Regime
After WW II Germany was divided into East and West. Thuringia with the famous toy town Sonneberg became part of East Germany. With the emerging Communist Regime in East Germany, the family of Fred Engel was expropriated step by step by the Communist Government of the German Democratic Republic (GDR or DDR) until the LEVEN company became completely state-owned and the old traditional LEVEN trademark disappeared from the toy stage for more than four decades.
4. The return of all titles to the old
rightfull owner family
With the collapse of the Communist Regime in East Germany in 1990, all buildings and all titles of the old toy company "H. J. LEVEN" were given back to the old legitimate owners, Hildegard and Dorle, the daughters of Fred Engel.
5. The rebirth and the connection between
LEVEN and HERMANN
In 1951 Dorle Engel, daughter of Fred Engel and
joint owner of the LEVEN company, married Rolf-G. Hermann, son of Max Hermann
and joint owner of the old Sonneberg Teddy Bear company "Max Hermann &
son". Together with the family of her husband, Dorle fled in 1953 from Sonneberg
in the East to Coburg in the West. In Coburg she helped to continue the renowned
tradition of the old Max Hermann Teddy Bears. Until her death in 1992, she
was responsible for all the beautiful designs for the Teddy Bears and soft
animals which HERMANN-Coburg had introduced.
It was always the grand dream of Dorle Hermann, that the old LEVEN trademark would rise once again. In 1990, Hildegard and Dorle decided that the HERMANN company should exercise the function of the LEVEN company, and the old tradition of the renowned LEVEN Bears would be continued by the family of Dorle and Rolf-G. Hermann.
The children of Dorle and Rolf have now taken
their place in the company to realize the dream of their mother. The old
trademark returned on the toy stage first in 1992 and 1993 with two Replica
Teddy Bears of 1910 and now to the International Toy Fair with a very new
LEVEN Teddy Bear range.
6. The gilded LEVEN neck mark and the Numbering of the Bears
One of the very valuable particularities of the LEVEN
Bears is the newly developed pure gilded LEVEN neck mark. The individual
number of the Bear is coined in this neck mark. In addition all LEVEN Teddy
Bears bear the old traditional red LEVEN hang tag.
7. The first TOBY © Nomination for LEVEN
Only a few weeks after their first introduction, the LEVEN
Bears received their first international recognition. One Teddy Bear of the
1996 LEVEN Bear range, the "LEVEN Nesthäkchen" - was
now nominated for the TOBY © Award 1996 in the category "Small Manufactured
Bear, dressed". In the whole world, the TOBY ©Award is undoubtly
known as the most respected decoration for Teddy Bears.
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