The Messemännchen celebrates his 60th birthday

A small, charismatic hero of the trade fair world will be 60 years old in 2025: Leipziger Messe’s Messemännchen. With a beaming smile and tireless energy, he has been welcoming visitors from all over the world for six decades. With his briefcase and globe head, the little travelling salesman has also been around the world himself.

The Messemännchen was sold for the first time at the 1965 Spring Fair. However, the most famous employee of the Leipziger Messe was actually created a year earlier. The Berlin puppet designer Gerhard Behrendt (1929 – 2006), who was also responsible for the popular figure of the Sandmännchen, designed the Messemännchen on behalf of the Leipziger Messe. The latter wanted “a movable, artistically designed doll”. It was intended not only as a souvenir, but also as a means of advertising and to represent Leipzig as a central hub in the East-West trade of the time.

The successful result: a friendly, smiling figure with a briefcase in hand and a blue hat atop his globe head – the Messemännchen. His hat and briefcase are adorned with the world-famous double M, which has been the official logo of Leipziger Messe since 1917. This dates back to the first sample fair in 1895, which revolutionised trade fairs worldwide. The Leipziger Messe mascot has hardly changed over the decades. His globe head continues to stand for global trade. However, for some years now he has mostly given up the pipe that he liked to smoke in his younger years.

The Messemännchen has made many friends over the years and still brings together people from all over the world. This is how he welcomes his guests to events at the Leipziger Messe. He is equally popular as an advertising medium in the city and region. City festivals, mascot meetings, award ceremonies – he is everywhere and a beloved photo opportunity for young and old alike. He has even learnt to take selfies for his fans.

Even at 60, the Messemännchen is a long way from retirement.