Japan Celebrates All Things Othello At The Upcoming Teddy Bear With Friends Convention in Tokyo

It's the perfect time for a little get-away... even if it's just virtual! The Japan Teddy Bear Association is holding its 34th Japan Teddy Bear With Friends Convention on October 19th-20th, 2024 in Tokyo. This year, the weekend-long gathering celebrates Othello, the AMAZING and all original 1912 Steiff Titanic Mourning Bear that set a new world's record for the most expensive antique Steiff bear sold at auction in July, 2023. Steiffgal spoke with Shuya Tanaka, the Director of the convention, to learn more about this can't miss event.

Please introduce yourself and tell us about your experience with Steiff and this Teddy bear festival. 

Shuya Tanaka: My name is Shuya Tanaka. I am the youngest director of the Japan Teddy Bear Association and an antique Teddy bear dealer. I was born in Hiroshima in 1991. I studied Western Art at the University of the Arts in Kyoto, and then trained at Ladenburger Toy Auction in Germany. I studied under Mr. Götz Seidel and learned about antique Teddy bears though this internship. After that, I returned to Japan at the age of 26 and started my own business. My company sells antique Teddy bears to regular customers at high-end Japanese department stores. I also work for the Japan Teddy Bear Association to develop the Japanese Teddy bear market. Ladenburger Toy Auction is a business partner and I take my clients to their auctions in Germany several times a year.

 

Tell us about the 34th Annual Japan Teddy Bear With Friends Convention to be held on October 19th and 20th in Tokyo at the Haneda Airport Garden convention center. How many people will attend?

 

Shuya Tanaka: The Japan Teddy Bear Convention is the largest Teddy bear show in Asia. We have a partnership with Teddy Total in Germany and Hugglets in the United Kingdom. Our event features over 200 exhibitors. We expect to welcome about 5,000 attendees over the two day celebration. In addition to selling Teddy bears and animals, we also hold charity raffles and auctions, and offer seminars and programs given by Steiff and antique experts from the international Teddy bear community. The event is being held at the new Haneda Airport Garden complex, which is conveniently located to Tokyo International Airport, Terminal 3. You can see a photo of this huge facility here on the left. This all-inclusive space, which could be a travel destination on its own, includes two premier hotels, a rooftop hot-spring bath with views of Mt. Fuji, more than 60 retail stores, and 20 restaurants.

 

The star of the convention is Othello. Can you tell us about Othello and why he lives in Japan now?

Shuya Tanaka: Othello was sold at auction last summer in Giengen, Germany - also the location of Steiff's world headquarters. The buyer is a client of mine here in Japan, and they entrusted me with Othello's management. When Othello finally arrived in Japan, we decided to have a grand welcoming party for him at our annual Japan Teddy Bear Convention. As such, we will have many delightful black Teddy bear souvenirs available for purchase at this event to celebrate all things Othello. These include a Steiff's 1912 limited edition replica bear, key chains, bags, cookie boxes, and Teddy bears, among many others. 

 

The festival has a competition for Teddy bear artists. Please tell us about this contest.

Shuya Tanaka: Every year, the Japan Teddy Bear Association holds a contest to determine Japan's number one Teddy bear artist. This year, in addition to the regular contest, there will also be an Othello contest. The theme for this special contest is "Black and Red." We have invited artists to design and sew their best interpretation of Othello for this competition. We expect about 100 entries to the Black and Red contest. Our panel of expert judges comes from all over the world and even includes the President of a Teddy bear company. The judging criteria is confidential, but individual judges will score different elements of each contest bear. The grand prize will be awarded to the bear with the highest overall total score as determined by the judges. 

 

This event also includes an auction of sorts. Can you please describe this part of the convention. 

 

Shuya Tanaka: The auctions we hold at the convention are not formal auctions, but simple ones designed to raise money for local and regional charities. The items on offer include Steiff items and other Teddy bears that have been gifted to the Japan Teddy Bear Association. All have very low opening bids. The proceeds from this auction, minus expenses, will be donated to support reconstruction efforts following the major earthquake that occurred in Ishikawa Prefecture in January of this year. And speaking of traditional auctions, you can see a picture of Othello being sold in Giengen in July, 2023 here on the left. He set a new world's record price for the sale of an antique Steiff bear... realizing nearly $250,000!

 

For our readers outside of Japan and Asia, can you tell us what it is like to collect or be interested in Steiff in Japan?

 

Shuya Tanaka: There are many individuals in Japan who collect Teddy bears. Of course, there are classic Teddy bear enthusiasts, but Japan has many famous fictional and media characters and a well-developed stuffed animal culture, too. Emotional education that enriches the soul is important here in Japan. So collecting these soft, playful, and appealing items is meaningful to many people for lots of reasons. There are Steiff distributors in Japan, and you can buy new Steiff Teddy bears at many department stores. Although there are few antique shops, our Teddy Bear Convention brings together everything from 100-year-old Teddy bears to the latest Steiff Teddy bears that have yet to be released.

 

I hear you saying is that this upcoming Teddy bear convention is the ideal destination for anyone - anywhere - that loves Steiff, Teddy bears, artist bears, and other collectible soft toys and playthings! I could not agree more! And thank you for chatting with us!

For more information on the 34th Annual Japan Teddy Bear With Friends Convention to be held on October 19th and 20th in Tokyo, please click here... you will need to use your English (or other preferred language) website translator as the site is in Japanese. 

Have a question about one of your Steiff treasures? Let's talk! Click here to learn more!

Having A Ball With This Wonderful And Unusual Steiff Play Pony

Check out this bouncing bundle of joy!  No, Steiffgal is not talking about a precious new baby here, but one of the wonderful Steiff birthday gifts she received a few days ago from a dear friend.  Although this treasure is not technically vintage, it is based upon a delightful and beloved toy that has its roots in the early 1980's.  Do you recognize her from your childhood, or perhaps your kid's or grandchildren's toy box?  

Check out the "Toy Story" behind this unusual play pal.  Here we have Steiff's "Rody" pony.  She is unjointed and about 17 cm tall and 17 cm long.  Steiffgal's Rody is made from bright red mohair, but she was also produced in a mostly yellow version, which is pictured here on the left.   Steiffgal's Rody has a heart-shaped patch of orange mohair on her back and a white embroidered heart on her forehead.  She is embroidered with six orange circles and the word "Rody" on each side of her body.  Her face is detailed with white and brown embroidered eyes and a happy white embroidered smiling mouth.  Rody has a distinctly round, ball-like look and feel to her overall.  As noted above, Steiff produced Rody in two color versions:  red and orange and yellow and red.  Each version was made in an edition size of 1,000 pieces exclusively for Japan in 2007.  

Let's rein in the history behind this colorful colt.  Rody is based on a globally recognized and beloved inflatable child's toy designed for riding fun and exercise; she is pictured here on the left.  The Rody character was introduced in 1984 by an Italian company called Ledraplastic.  Rody's general pattern was created by "melting" together play balls of various sizes in order to give her a friendly and juvenile appearance.  The original Rody is 54 cm tall and 45 cm long and made from a very durable and bouncy latex free vinyl.  Believe it or not, Rody can support up to 400 pounds, according to the manufacturer!  Originally, the company wanted to name the toy "Rodeo" but were concerned with patent infringement and other legal issues.  Today, Rody is manufactured in a spectrum of 16 rainbow colors, and is also produced in a larger size (Rody Max) that can support adults, as well as a smaller companion size called Rody Jr.   

Although Steiff has been known and collected across Asia for many years, it was not until the early 1990's that the company began regularly producing country-exclusive items for Japan for the general market.  One of the first was called Teddy Bear 1907, which was produced in a 5,000 piece edition in 1991 and 1992.  He is pictured here on the left.  Traditionally, the majority of Japanese Steiff exclusives have been Teddy bears, or well recognized cultural figures or icons, like Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Snoopy, Pingu and Pinga, the penguin claymation characters, and of course, Rody.  Steiff also created a series of bears dressed as pilots and flyers for Japan Air Lines in the early 2000's.  Today, Steiff is as popular as ever in Japan.  Most recently, Steiff produced a 1,500 piece run of Teddy Bear Kumamon, a charming, cartoon like black bear mascot created to promotes rural Kumamoto prefecture in southern Japan.  This fantastic edition sold out on the online shop within five seconds!

Steiffgal hopes this discussion on Rody has been a wonderful play-date for you! 

Have a question about one of your Steiff treasures? Let's talk! Click here to learn more.