Mr. Martin Frechen

• 
  www.toytowngermany.com/lofi/index.php/t137887.html - [Cached Version]
  Published on: 6/9/2009    Last Visited: 7/13/2009  

  A lawsuit for alleged sexual harassment and rape has been brought in an American Court against Steiff CEO Martin Frechen by a female employee of the American arm of the company in Massachusetts. She claims to have never contacted the police because she was fearful of losing her job. However she did claim to have kept a diary of the incidents and she also alleges that she complained to the head of the North American division but that he did not act. She is still employed by the company and is asking for $80million.

• 
  www.eastcountynews.com/us_world_news/story.php?story_id - [Cached Version]
  Published on: 7/12/2008    Last Visited: 7/12/2008  

  "A Steiff animal has to look cute, it has to look at you and say, 'take me in your arms and hug me, I'm here for you, I'm your friend,"' Steiff Managing Director Martin Frechen told Reuters.
  
  "If the symmetry is off and if it looks like it's been run over by a car, it's not what we want.People don't pay for that."
  
  Consisting of around 35 parts and with an average price of 40 to 70 euros ($63-$110), the toys take up to a year to learn to make and around 80 percent of the work is done by hand.
  
  But with twisted legs, bald patches and open seams, a "cumbersome" number of the Steiff toys made in China had to be rejected, Frechen said, because high staff turnover in a fast-growing economy meant workers did not have long enough to train.
  
  "We don't really fit in over there," he said, pointing out that Steiff's typical orders of around 500 lots were also too small to reap good cost savings in factories more accustomed to mass production.

• 
  mobilephonesuk.ulitzer.com/node/994237 - [Cached Version]
  Last Visited: 7/8/2009  

  Martin Frechen
  ...
  Martin Frechen
  ...
  Ironically, Ms. Collins was at one time Mr. Frechen's executive assistant, considering him both a mentor and a friend.
  ...
  The claims are in striking contrast to the public image of Mr. Frechen, who serves as the human face of Steiff, regularly posing with the company's adorable stuffed animals at toy shows and in the media.
  ...
  In addition to alleging that the CEO stalked and propositioned her personally, Ms. Collins recounts numerous instances where Mr. Frechen made sexually-charged comments in front of groups of employees, as well as discussing visits to strip clubs.
  ...
  That opportunity apparently did not last long and Mr. Frechen was soon back at Steiff, this time as chief executive of the entire firm.
  
  Although Mr. Frechen's new position was based in
  ...
  When Mr. Frechen arrived with his family in 2002 to become CEO of Steiff North America Inc., Ms. Collins was reassigned as his executive assistant.
  ...
  The professional demeanor Mr. Frechen had maintained with his executive assistant completely disintegrated in
  ...
  Outlined in the complaint, Mr. Frechen first tried to make sexual contact with Ms. Collins in 2004 during a Steiff corporate event in a
  ...
  After asking her to accompany him to his room to retrieve some papers, Mr. Frechen confided in Ms. Collins that his wife and young son were out shopping.
  ...
  Ms. Collins claims that her boss's overtures grew far more aggressive days later, as Mr. Frechen made final preparations to return his family's possessions to
  ...
  According to the complaint, once the car was enclosed in the storage unit, Mr. Frechen shut the container door, returned to the car and, suddenly positioning himself on top of Ms. Collins, raped her.
  ...
  Ms. Collins fiercely resisted the much stronger Mr. Frechen, who repeatedly told her, "It is okay.
  ...
  Bizarrely, after raping Ms. Collins, Mr. Frechen confessed to her that it was the first time he had cheated on his wife.
  ...
  Her earliest entries explain in part her hesitancy about informing on Mr. Frechen either to the police or to anyone at Steiff.
  ...
  Mr. Frechen continued to call Ms. Collins from
  ...
  On another occasion, Ms. Collins claims that Mr. Pitocco pressured her to accompany Mr. Frechen on a shopping excursion during one of his U.S. visits.
  ...
  It is astounding that a business whose principal products are meant to evoke joy and comfort would exhibit such a lack of sensitivity and accountability to issues raised by a loyal and hard-working employee, especially given the egregious nature of Ms. Collins' allegations and the number of occasions on which she tried to inform her direct supervisors that there was a problem with Mr. Frechen.
  ...
  Mr. Frechen has made semi-annual business trips to the U.S. for toy fairs and strategic meetings over the last several years, endeavoring to see Ms. Collins on each occasion and resuming his aggressive and suggestive posture toward her.
  ...
  This past February, while the company's employees stayed at New York's Crowne Plaza Hotel during the annual Toy Fair, Mr. Frechen constantly phoned Ms. Collins' room and hounded her in person with requests for her to have drinks with him.
  ...
  At one point Mr. Frechen grabbed Ms. Collins' cell phone and used it to call his own mobile phone, thereby programming her number into his phone.
  ...
  According to Ms. Collins, Mr. Frechen then called her a "scaredy cat" because of her continued reluctance to meet with him alone.
  ...
  Frustrated by the lack of results from her repeated discussions with Mr. Pitocco, Ms. Collins ultimately reported Mr. Frechen's harassment to the Steiff head of human resources in the U.S., who asked her to record the events on paper.
  ...
  if Martin had sexually harassed her also. She told me yes. My colleague confided that for years Martin had pressured her to have sex with him and she was repeatedly required to rebuff his advances. My colleague asked me how I knew she was being harassed also, and I told her that there was something in her face when I saw Martin around her.

• 
  golf.ulitzer.com/node/994237 - [Cached Version]
  Last Visited: 7/15/2009  

  Martin Frechen
  ...
  Martin Frechen
  ...
  Ironically, Ms. Collins was at one time Mr. Frechen's executive assistant, considering him both a mentor and a friend.
  ...
  The claims are in striking contrast to the public image of Mr. Frechen, who serves as the human face of Steiff, regularly posing with the company's adorable stuffed animals at toy shows and in the media.
  ...
  In addition to alleging that the CEO stalked and propositioned her personally, Ms. Collins recounts numerous instances where Mr. Frechen made sexually-charged comments in front of groups of employees, as well as discussing visits to strip clubs.
  ...
  That opportunity apparently did not last long and Mr. Frechen was soon back at Steiff, this time as chief executive of the entire firm.
  
  Although Mr. Frechen's new position was based in
  ...
  When Mr. Frechen arrived with his family in 2002 to become CEO of Steiff North America Inc., Ms. Collins was reassigned as his executive assistant.
  ...
  The professional demeanor Mr. Frechen had maintained with his executive assistant completely disintegrated in
  ...
  Outlined in the complaint, Mr. Frechen first tried to make sexual contact with Ms. Collins in 2004 during a Steiff corporate event in a
  ...
  After asking her to accompany him to his room to retrieve some papers, Mr. Frechen confided in Ms. Collins that his wife and young son were out shopping.
  ...
  Ms. Collins claims that her boss's overtures grew far more aggressive days later, as Mr. Frechen made final preparations to return his family's possessions to
  ...
  According to the complaint, once the car was enclosed in the storage unit, Mr. Frechen shut the container door, returned to the car and, suddenly positioning himself on top of Ms. Collins, raped her.
  ...
  Ms. Collins fiercely resisted the much stronger Mr. Frechen, who repeatedly told her, "It is okay.
  ...
  Bizarrely, after raping Ms. Collins, Mr. Frechen confessed to her that it was the first time he had cheated on his wife.
  ...
  Her earliest entries explain in part her hesitancy about informing on Mr. Frechen either to the police or to anyone at Steiff.
  ...
  Mr. Frechen continued to call Ms. Collins from
  ...
  On another occasion, Ms. Collins claims that Mr. Pitocco pressured her to accompany Mr. Frechen on a shopping excursion during one of his U.S. visits.
  ...
  It is astounding that a business whose principal products are meant to evoke joy and comfort would exhibit such a lack of sensitivity and accountability to issues raised by a loyal and hard-working employee, especially given the egregious nature of Ms. Collins' allegations and the number of occasions on which she tried to inform her direct supervisors that there was a problem with Mr. Frechen.
  ...
  Mr. Frechen has made semi-annual business trips to the U.S. for toy fairs and strategic meetings over the last several years, endeavoring to see Ms. Collins on each occasion and resuming his aggressive and suggestive posture toward her.
  ...
  This past February, while the company's employees stayed at New York's Crowne Plaza Hotel during the annual Toy Fair, Mr. Frechen constantly phoned Ms. Collins' room and hounded her in person with requests for her to have drinks with him.
  ...
  At one point Mr. Frechen grabbed Ms. Collins' cell phone and used it to call his own mobile phone, thereby programming her number into his phone.
  ...
  According to Ms. Collins, Mr. Frechen then called her a "scaredy cat" because of her continued reluctance to meet with him alone.
  ...
  Frustrated by the lack of results from her repeated discussions with Mr. Pitocco, Ms. Collins ultimately reported Mr. Frechen's harassment to the Steiff head of human resources in the U.S., who asked her to record the events on paper.
  ...
  if Martin had sexually harassed her also. She told me yes. My colleague confided that for years Martin had pressured her to have sex with him and she was repeatedly required to rebuff his advances. My colleague asked me how I knew she was being harassed also, and I told her that there was something in her face when I saw Martin around her.

• 
  english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/60EABCE5-EBD0-4934-A292 - [Cached Version]
  Published on: 4/6/2007    Last Visited: 4/7/2007  

  Martin Frechen, director of German toy maker Steiff, presents a "Knut" teddy bear [GALLO GETTY]

• 
  www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/features/featuredetail.asp?fi - [Cached Version]
  Published on: 7/12/2008    Last Visited: 7/12/2008  

  "A Steiff animal has to look cute, it has to look at you and say, ‘take me in your arms and hug me, I'm here for you, I'm your friend,'" Steiff Managing Director Martin Frechen said."If the symmetry is off and if it looks like it's been run over by a car, it's not what we want.People don't pay for that." Consisting of around 35 parts and with an average price of 40 to 70 euros ($63-$110), the toys take up to a year to learn to make and around 80 percent of the work is done by hand.But with twisted legs, bald patches and open seams, a "cumbersome" number of the Steiff toys made in China had to be rejected, Frechen said, because high staff turnover in a fast-growing economy meant workers did not have long enough to train. "We don't really fit in over there," he said, pointing out that Steiff's typical orders of around 500 lots were also too small to reap good cost savings in factories more accustomed to mass production.

• 
  www.ytlcommunity.com/commnews/shownews.asp?proc=1&page= - [Cached Version]
  Published on: 7/14/2008    Last Visited: 7/14/2008  

  "A Steiff animal has to look cute, it has to look at you and say, 'take me in your arms and hug me, I'm here for you, I'm your friend,'" Steiff Managing Director Martin Frechen told Reuters.
  
  "If the symmetry is off and if it looks like it's been run over by a car, it's not what we want.People don't pay for that."
  
  Consisting of around 35 parts and with an average price of 40 to 70 euros (32 - 56 pounds), the toys take up to a year to learn to make and around 80 percent of the work is done by hand.
  
  But with twisted legs, bald patches and open seams, a "cumbersome" number of the Steiff toys made in China had to be rejected, Frechen said, because high staff turnover in a fast-growing economy meant workers did not have long enough to train.
  
  "We don't really fit in over there," he said, pointing out that Steiff's typical orders of around 500 lots were also too small to reap good cost savings in factories more accustomed to mass production.

• 
  steiffteddybearclub.com/2008/07/steiff-moves-teddy-prod - [Cached Version]
  Published on: 1/1/2008    Last Visited: 8/25/2008  

  "If one of the glass eyes is even a millimetre off, it means the adorable devoted look on the teddy bear's face ends up looking more like some kind of a stupid stare," managing director Martin Frechen was quoted as saying.
  
  He added that the company had found it difficult during four years in China to maintain the quality of its expensive stuffed animals, toys and dolls because of high staff turnover.
  
  "We had to keep training new people all the time, especially lately," Frechen said, "More and more of the products were rejects."
  
  He said producing Steiff teddy bears in China had appeared to make economic sense at first but turned out to be more costly, especially when logistics and a three-month shipping time to Germamy were added to the calculation.

• 
  www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20070404.RBER - [Cached Version]
  Published on: 4/4/2007    Last Visited: 4/5/2007  

  German toy maker Steiff is already taking advantage of Knut's popularity -- managing director Martin Frechen shows off a line of stuffed bears below.

• 
  mobilephonesuk.ulitzer.com/latest/news?page=5 - [Cached Version]
  Last Visited: 7/8/2009  

  Steiff assistant marketing manager Jane Collins accuses company's CEO Martin Frechen of relentless, aggressive sexual advances - including 2004 rape in his wife's car; despite Collins' repeated pleas to her superiors about Frechen's behavior, Steiff refused to investigate charges or di...

Page:  1 2 3