A well maintained typewriter. The paint is in mint condition. The Olympia SM2
is a machine that was only made during a few years. This is a beautiful copy
from 1950 (according to the serial number).
It is one of the first compact, modern typewriters. The serial number comes
from 1950, the year of the start of this series.
The machine still works and looks perfect, see the photos.

The Olympia brand began life in Berlin in 1903 when European General Electric
(AEG) sought to develop a German-made typewriter to capitalise on the demand
for typewriters. The first model, the Mignon mechanical typewriter, failed to
make a dent in the market, mainly due to its high price being too expensive for
many customers at the time. AEG, however, continued to improve and develop upon
the original design and the result was the 1912 launch of the Mignon “AA” line.
Despite these improvements, the first real commercial success for the brand did
not come until 1921 with the release of the popular Model 3. Following this
success, the company set up its factory in Erfurt, Germany.

By 1933, the company had changed its name to Olympia in honour of the last
Mignon model, the Olympia Plurotyp. During this changeover period, the Model 7
and Model 8 typewriters were marketed under both the Olympia and AEG names.
Towards the end of the 1930’s the brand continued to gain popularity as cheaper
models such as the Model 8a and 8b were released. The company also broke new
ground with the release of a one-handed version of the Model 8 typewriter for
disabled users. Olympia, however, was soon to find itself tested as World War
Two broke out in Europe.

Although the Olympia factory survived the capture of Berlin by Allied forces,
following the Soviet takeover when the new East German government took control
and renamed the company Optima, a number of employees fled to West Germany and
in 1948 re-established the company in Wilhelmshaven. A location where they
continued to produce typewriters until production ended in 1992.