The Leica Centennial celebrations are boosted today by a bewildering array of merchandise which will be released throughout the year. Enhanced by leading brands like Steiff and Faber-Castell, the eclectic collection is aimed at both collectors and at the casual centennial celebrator. There’s something for everyone.
Witness to a century
To help celebrate the Leica Centennial, the Leica Anniversary Collection has been created in partnership with companies which are also steeped in tradition. Accessories and collectors’ items carry the motto “100 years of Leica: Witness to a Century”.
The curated Leica Centennial accessories are made with Leica enthusiasts in mind and include limited edition Teddy Bears made by Steiff, as well as a Graf Von Faber-Castell pencil and pen. There is also a Leica M crafting set which comes with colour pencils, and a Leica 1 3D puzzle, consisting of 98 wooden parts. The accessories will be available globally, released throughout the year with some available now, followed by launch dates in February and May 2025.
Leica Centennial: Steiff for Leica
Collectors’ Teddy Bears: “Elsie” and “Ernst” are named after leading members of the Leitz dynasty — Elsie Kuhn-Leitz and Ernst Leitz II — and are part of a limited edition of 500 for each character. Furthermore, “Cuddle” is a bear in the Leica look that will appeal to photography enthusiasts of all ages.



Leica Centennial: Graf von Faber-Castell for Leica:
The Leica Centennial accessory line-up includes an association with Graf von Faber-Castell, the highly regarded manufacturer of superb writing instruments. The company has created a high-quality pencil with a built-in sharpener and eraser in a limited edition of 500 pieces. It features the Leica logo and an engraving of Ernst Leitz II’s iconic quote Ich entscheide hiermit: Es wird riskiert. (I hereby decide: We will take the risk).


Leica centennial accessory collection
In addition to the branded souvenirs, the centennial collection introduces many smaller items including a colour crafting set with model Leica camera and crayons, pins, keyrings, cufflinks, bracelets and, even, a centennial shopping bag. Camera accessories include centenary hotshoe covers and “100” soft releases.













Witness to a century: 100 Years of Leica
Accessory collection details and prices
Steiff for Leica, details and prices
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I’d love one of the bears, but the release seems like it was a bit of a mess. I never saw them in stock anywhere.
The press release states: “Richard Steiff, as the inventor of the Teddy bear and a passionate
photographer, combined both passions back in the day. To mark 100 years of the Leica I, the red Leica
dot and the famous button-in-ear now meet in a special collection of Steiff Teddy bears.” However Morris Michtom, a Russian-born businessman and inventor, living in Brooklyn, together with his wife Rose came up with the idea for the teddy bear in 1902. This was around the same time as Richard Steiff in Germany marketed a toy bear. Leica can’t claim to be the sole inventor. Teddy of course refers to Teddy Roosevelt. Is this a good topic for a Macfilos article?
Chris
Interesting. But I think we’ve all been teddy beared (or is it borne?) to death this week! For many years, we were hooked on buying the annual Harrods Bear, and currently have some 30 of them in a box in the attic. They were around the house for years, gathering dust as only teddies can, but eventually, I had to break the spell. It was a tough decision to stop buying them because I had associated the fateful day as the start of Armageddon. But, like with “the year 2000” and its computers, we survived.
Mike
if I get another email or IG post from Leica about teddy bears, I’ll scream !!!
I stopped by Leica Store Mayfair today and the salesperson told me the Steiff bears sold out within 2 hours. They still have the pins. The other stuff will arrive over the course of the year.