Neal Hoffman and the Mensch on a Bench

Abstract

Neal Hoffman and his wife, Erin, were an interfaith couple out shopping when they ran right into the dilemma of how to balance Hanukkah and Christmas. Hoffmansaw his young son feeling left out by the Elf on the Shelf, a Christmas toy that was experiencing a huge amount of popularity in 2012. He suspected there were other Jewish and interfaith families that would appreciate a character for themselves.Hoffman decided to write a book to help Jewish kids appreciate and celebrate Hanukkah. He inserted a new character, Moshe, into the Hanukkah story. Moshe was a mensch—a good and honorable person in Yiddish—and Hoffman called his character the Mensch on a Bench. With a book and a character, Hoffman knew he could instill a sense of culture and celebration into his idea for a toy.This case details Hoffman's struggle to produce the Mensch--from earning money via Kickstarter and dealing with overseas production problems to trying to get the word out about the new holiday toy. Excerpt UVA-ENT-0205 Jul. 30, 2014 NEAL HOFFMAN AND THE MENSCH ON A BENCH Hoffman instinctively joked, “Jews don't do Elves on Shelves. We do Mensches on Benches.”Hoffman had a great name, but that wasn't enough reason to create a new toy. Hoffman saw his son feeling left out by the Elf on the Shelf craze, and he suspected there were other Jewish and interfaith families that would appreciate a character for themselves. But a mensch sitting on a bench wasn't a compelling idea on its own.Hoffman decided to write a book to help Jewish kids appreciate and celebrate Hanukkah. He inserted a new character into the story of the Maccabees, who returned from a fight to find they only had enough oil in the temple to last for one night. Hanukkah, the festival of lights, celebrates the fact that the oil lasted for eight nights instead of one. The new character Hoffman added was Moshe. He would watch over the oil and help everyone by letting the Maccabees know when the oil ran out. Moshe was a mensch—a good and honorable person in Yiddish, the historical language of Ashkenazi Jews. Hoffman instinctively joked, “Jews don't do Elves on Shelves. We do Mensches on Benches.” Hoffman had a great name, but that wasn't enough reason to create a new toy. Hoffman saw his son feeling left out by the Elf on the Shelf craze, and he suspected there were other Jewish and interfaith families that would appreciate a character for themselves. But a mensch sitting on a bench wasn't a compelling idea on its own. . . .