An Interview with Dick Franz

Interviewed by Charlie Dale

 

When Dick Franz, North American Steiff Archivist, was here for the Spring Steiff Event, he agreed to an e-mail interview for this blog about Steiff. Hope all of you enjoy this as much as I did putting it together.

 

Dale: How many hands work on a Steiff piece before it's finished?

Franz: It can vary from animal to animal depending on the complexity of the design but there are over twenty stations in the manufacture of one Steiff. These range from cutting material, sewing the body, placing eyes, , stuffing bodies, sewing noses, and detail painting. Of coarse at every stage there are quality control check points before the product proceeds to the next phase. 

Dale: How many kinds of stuffing are there?  Are they ever combined? What determines what kind of stuffing?

Franz: There are two basic types of stuffing for non replicas. These are foam or fiber. Both are non allergenic. These are sometimes used in combination with pellets for ballast. The ballast is used to help make the animal more posable or feel or more realistic. For example we might weight the paws so that they dangle or weight the bottom so the animal will sit easily.

Dale: How are the artist's picked for Steiff?  Is there a reason they are not credited on the merchandise like the "Charlie Bear" line?

Franz: In Germany many Companies use internships or work study programs. Steiff takes advantage of these and uses them in many skilled areas including the design department. As with most artists, Steiff artists have a style. Some are better at designing teddy bears and others do better with animals. Artists are put on projects according to there strengths. At Steiff we refer to the "Steiff Look". It is unique and the overall objective is to obtain the best Steiff design possible.    

Dale:  Have you ever designed a bear/animal Steiff?

 

Franz: Steiff is a worldwide company selling to countries that have very different tastes. We have our worldwide line that is the same for all countries but we also manufacture Country specific items. I attend the US product development meeting where a small group develops concepts and designs for our US market. In these meeting we develop the concept, the pattern and size, and pick the fabrics. These notes are sent to the design department in Germany to be formulated into a pattern which is then sent to the sample department where a sample is created. The sample is then sent back to us for changes and then finally approval. Many of my concepts and ideas have been used over the years. But a Steiff creation is ultimately a group effort. 

Dale: Is there a "job" at Steiff that you would like to do but haven't had a chance to do yet?

Franz: This year begins my 44th year with Steiff. I have always liked variety in my work and my time at Steiff has certainly provided that. I can't think of any other job that would suit me as well as what I am doing. I love being involved with the new product, meeting collectors and retailers all over the US. 

 

Dale:  Would there be a "Holy Grail" ( a piece a collector would kill for) Steiff piece, and if so what would it be?

Franz: This is a great question. In my experience in meeting thousands of collectors, I have found that Steiff has something for everyone. Steiff has created many one off pieces that have turned up over the years. They were samples for buyers or made just for a special display. I quickly learned "with Steiff that you never say never". As soon as you say "they never made a piece like that" , one will turn up.


Thanks to Dick Franz for the interview, and his time.  Please be aware that the Steiff pieces shown in this post can be ordered through Keillor's A Teddy Bear Shoppe,  and are part of the new Fall Steiff Line. 

I can be contacted at Keillorsteddybears@yahoo.com or call 330-854-0481.