3944. Little Brown Bear

Copyright 2006 Bloomingdales GUND

Gund is a manufacturer of plush stuffed animals. It was founded by Adolph Gund in 1898 and is the oldest manufacturer of plush toys in the U.S. On July 1, 2008 Gund was sold to Enesco, a gift company known for among other things the Cherished Teddies line.
Gund created many of the industry standards today including safety standards and the manufacturing processes for toys.Sweldin, who bought the company from Gund when he retired in 1925, became the first licensor of cartoon characters, producing plush toy versions of Popeye, Mickey Mouse, Felix the Cat, and Tigger.
Gund became one of the 50 most recognized companies in America in the 1980s marketing the brand slogan, "Gotta Getta Gund."
In the 1980s, Gund had an extremely successful launch with Snuffles, a polar like bear with black eyes, sueded nose and a sewn thread mouth. Snuffles was offered in White, Tan, Brown, and Pink. They also offered a Platinum Edition which had white and silver like fur. Gund recently celebrated the 25th Anniversary of Snuffles and introduced a Giant Snuffles which was nearly twice the size of the one which made the brand famous. Gund products were always more expensive than those offered via mass retailers, but they became the gold standard as their quality was exceptional versus brands like Commonwealth, Dakin, and Russ Berrie. 1980s Gund plush and older still have a viable retail market thanks to eBay and other websites.
Today Gund sells over 1500 products including Gund, Baby Gund, Gund Bears, Gund Snuffles teddy bears, and Gund Holiday. Gund is known for under-stuffing their products to make them softer than competing teddy bears. It also makes the "Barnsie" bear, made exclusively for Barnes & Noble.