Mary Tyler Moore Gets Her Own Santabear for $129 at Dayton's Holiday Market

Mary Tyler Moore is now a Santabear. The Minneapolis holiday tradition's 2026 collectible takes the form of Moore's Mary Richards, complete with peacoat, anchor buttons, black handbag and beret, and it sells for $129 at Dayton's Holiday Market.

Presale runs November 11 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., with regular sales from November 12 through December 24. Ten percent of every bear sold goes to the Mary Tyler Moore Vision Initiative.

Why this particular bear?

The outfit is a deliberate callback. It mirrors the downtown Minneapolis statue of Moore tossing her hat at the corner of Nicollet and South 7th Street — the gesture that opened every episode of The Mary Tyler Moore Show.

The charity connection is personal, not decorative. Moore lost her vision to diabetes and spent years advocating for research and fundraising toward a cure. Her husband, Dr. S. Robert Levine, founded the Vision Initiative in 2018; the organization funds diabetes research, provides tools for people affected by the disease, and raises awareness. Levine will appear at the presale market on November 11.

What is a Santabear, exactly?

A plush collectible bear that debuted on Dayton's shelves in 1985 and became an annual tradition, refreshed each year with new outfits and themes. The bears vanished for 15 years before local boutique Shop in the City revived them in 2022. Last year's model wore a suit jacket, golden sunglasses, birthday crown and bowtie.

Shop in the City owner Jack Sanders told Mpls.St.Paul Magazine in 2025: "Something strange like a Santabear can unite people. I never realized it until we brought it back and saw the reactions to the bear, but new traditions are being formed, which is fun to see."

Sanders added: "Growing up, you see it maybe in your own house, but you don't see the wider picture—I mean, we're getting calls from all over from people interested in finding the bears. There's community."

What else is at the market?

Dayton's Holiday Market features more than 100 local makers, brands, and food and beverage vendors. New names for 2026 include:

• Millie's Farmyard Bakery
• Kats Ceramics
• Christopher Straub's fashion line

The market also hosts shops tied to causes: the J.B. Hudson space houses the Anti Cancer Club and Fresh Eye Gallery, which supports artists with and without disabilities.

How much is the traditional bear?

The 2026 traditional Santabear, themed "next generation" and designed by Shop in the City, gets unveiled on Black Friday, November 27. The original 1985 size costs $69.95; a smaller version runs $49.95. Both are available for preorder on the Shop the City website or in person at Dayton's Holiday Market.

One price for a Mary Richards in miniature, another for the standard-issue bear — Minneapolis shoppers can decide how much nostalgia weighs. The Moore bear's presale on November 11 will show whether a beret and a peacoat can move a decades-old tradition into a new decade of buyers.