The history of Clemens Spieltiere GmbH
A piece of teddy bear history
When Hans Clemens came to Kirchardt/Baden with his family in 1948, he – like many people of his generation – was literally left with „nothing“ as a result of the Second World War. Nevertheless, the newly awakened optimism of this time, which was the dawn of the era that has gone down in history as the „economic miracle“, also gripped entrepreneur Hans Clemens.
The founding of a retail store for glass, porcelain and gift items also marked the beginning of the „rebirth“ of the unforgotten, much-loved teddy bear: demand was so great that Hans Clemens specialized in the production of the first „post-war teddy bears“ at an early stage. Customers at the time kept asking for teddy bears, as they were no longer available after the war.
Hans Clemens decided to help the customers and also the children and started making teddy bears from old Wehrmacht blankets.
His sister lovingly made them by hand and each teddy was an individual and lovingly crafted one-off. Demand soon began to increase and the business was continually expanded. The first employees were added. With the economic upturn came the final breakthrough for the company. It was almost impossible to cope with the many requests, as many other plush toys had been added in the meantime, but the absolute bestseller and everyone’s favorite was still the teddy bear.
In the following years, as everywhere in the industry, crises had to be overcome, but thanks to the cohesion, the well-known Clemens quality and the unmistakable style, the company overcame them. Today, these unique pieces, painstakingly handcrafted from old Wehrmacht blankets, are coveted collector’s items – and relics of a bygone era. The new company grew as the tasks grew: Employees were hired permanently and the production program was expanded to include a variety of plush toys – the „breakthrough“ was achieved.
Founder Hans Clemens comes to Kirchardt/Baden with his family and is literally left with „nothing“ as a result of the Second World War. The newly awakened optimism of this time also captures Hans Clemens and he founds a retail store selling, among other things, teddy bears handmade by his sister – the birth of Clemens Spieltiere.
As the tasks grew, so did the new company: Employees were hired permanently and the production program was expanded to include a variety of plush toys – the „breakthrough“ was achieved.
The successful consolidation was already mainly the work of Peter Clemens. The son of Hans Clemens, who had joined the company in 1953, took over the sole management of the company. Peter Clemens consistently focused on quality in design, materials and workmanship and won over specialist retailers as partners for his strategy. The emergence of the collectors‘ market for teddy bears facilitated this path.
Son Peter Clemens – managing director of the 2nd generation and advisor to the company – passes away after a short, serious illness. The company Clemens-Spieltiere GmbH will continue to produce teddy bears in the spirit of the Clemens family and continue their life’s work.
The Clemens philosophy of consistently realizing quality, imagination and unmistakable design in all products has prevailed to this day. Today, Clemens-Spieltiere GmbH is a well-known soft toy factory in Germany, whose teddy bears and animals have won the hearts of many children at home and abroad since its foundation.
The company was continued in the 2nd generation by his son Peter Clemens. In 2002, Peter Clemens passed the company on to the American entrepreneur Ren H.C. Lee for reasons of health and age. Even after handing over the reins to Mr. Ren H.C. Lee, Peter Clemens remained in the company as an advisor, keeping a watchful but loving eye on the continuation of the family’s life’s work. He was always at the company’s side with advice and support and his wealth of experience. Peter Clemens passed away in July 2023 after a short, serious illness.
The company Clemens-Spieltiere GmbH will continue to produce teddy bears in the spirit of Clemens.
One thing hasn’t changed since „back then“: The number one favorite of all children is – and remains – the teddy bear. And because it is inextricably linked to the history of the company, every toy bears the red Clemens triangle with the symbol of the teddy bear.
Die Clemens-Philosophie, Qualität, Phantasie und unverwechselbares Design in allen Erzeugnissen konsequent zu verwirklichen, hat sich bis heute durchgesetzt. Heute ist die Firma Clemens-Spieltiere GmbH eine bekannte Plüschtierfabrik in Deutschland, deren Teddybären und Tiere seit ihrer Gründung schon viele Kinderherzen im In- und Ausland erobert haben.
In der 2. Generation wurde das Unternehmen durch den Sohn Peter Clemens weitergeführt. Peter Clemens gab das Unternehmen im Jahr 2002 aus Gesundheits- und Altersgründen an den amerikanischen Unternehmer Ren H.C. Lee weiter. Peter Clemens befand sich, auch nachdem er die Leitung an Herrn Ren H.C. Lee übergeben hat, weiterhin als Berater in der Firma und beobachtete argwöhnisch, aber mit viel Liebe, die Fortsetzung des Lebenswerks im Sinne der Familie. Mit Rat und Tat und seiner geballten Erfahrung stand er dem Unternehmen immer zur Seite. Im Juli 2023 verstarb Peter Clemens nach kurzer schwerer Krankheit.
Die Firma Clemens-Spieltiere GmbH wird auch weiterhin im Sinne der Clemens-Gesinnung Teddybären herstellen.
Eines hat sich seit „damals“ nicht geändert: Liebling Nummer eins aller Kinder ist – und bleibt – der Teddybär. Und weil er untrennbar mit der Geschichte des Unternehmens verbunden ist, trägt jedes Spieltier das rote Clemens-Dreieck mit dem Symbol des Teddybären.