That one man is Juan Mann (pun intended), and that gesture was/is the free hug.

You may or may not know the back story.

Every Thursday afternoon in 2004, Juan would stand in the busy Pitt Street pedestrian plaza in the City of Sydney holding a cardboard sign that bore the hand blocked words “Free Hugs” on both sides … dishing out same to the bewildered, amused, comforted and delighted.

A 2006 YouTube video featuring Juan and telling the Free Hugs story accompanied by a sound track of All the Same by Australian metal band “Sick Puppies” has been viewed tens of millions of times.

Juan’s gesture is celebrated and mimicked all over the world. He’s even been on Oprah. Free Hugs has become a global phenomenon and an ongoing and feel good grassroots campaign.

So, how did it all begin?

Here’s how Juan explains the genesis of his calling:

“I’d been living in London when my world turned upside down and I had to come home. By the time my plane landed back in Sydney, all I had left was a carry on bag full of clothes and a world of troubles. No one to welcome me back, no place to call home. I was a tourist in my hometown. Standing there in the arrivals terminal, watching other passengers meeting their waiting friends and family, with open arms and smiling faces, hugging and laughing together, I wanted someone out there to be waiting for me. To be happy to see me. To smile at me. To hug me. So I got some cardboard and a marker and made a sign. I found the busiest pedestrian intersection in the city and held that sign aloft, with the words “Free Hugs” on both sides. And for 15 minutes, people just stared right through me. The first person who stopped, tapped me on the shoulder and told me how her dog had just died that morning. How that morning had been the one year anniversary of her only daughter dying in a car accident. How what she needed now, when she felt most alone in the world, was a hug. I got down on one knee, we put our arms around each other and when we parted, she was smiling. Everyone has problems and for sure mine haven’t compared. But to see someone who was once frowning, smile even for a moment, is worth it every time.”

REMO is proud to be associated with Free Hugs. In collaboration with Juan we developed a range of REMO merchandise bearing a faithful reproduction of the Free Hugs sign.

Story Idea: Remo Giuffré
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Free Hugs exists in printed form as chapter 27 of RR#1 available to order HERE
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Images

1. Free Hugs design at REMO drawn from original sign
2. All the Same by Sick Puppies tells Free Hugs story, 2006
3. Juan Mann with CustOMER Lola Champtaloup
4. Juan Mann the Free Hugs Guy
5. Juan Mann with Remo in 2007
6. REMO Bondi Road Corner, June 2009