Erika's Originals Celebrates 10 Years of MN Straps

Erika's Originals, the watch strap manufacturer known for patented MN™ elastic straps, is celebrating 10th anniversary. Founded in 2016 by Erika, who began by hand-stitching MN straps on her own, the company has since grown into a full operation with a dedicated team and an international customer base. And what a journey it has been!

Nenad Pantelic • February 27, 2026

I first heard about Erika's Originals through The Grey Nato podcast, hosted by Jason Heaton and James Stacey, and I suspect many of you did too. That early exposure played a huge role in bringing the brand to a wider audience. In the years since, the MN-style strap category as a whole has absolutely flourished, branching out into all sorts of designs and construction methods from various makers around the world. But Erika's Originals remains a true pioneer of the format. She is one of the earliest names to bring this type of strap to market and build a real community around it.

On a personal note, I have to say that elastic straps in general have completely won me over. The material has a bit of a "bite" to it. It grips the wrist and holds the watch firmly in place without any of that annoying in-between feeling where a strap is either too loose or too tight. Once you get used to that, going back to a traditional strap feels like a compromise.

Anniversary Editions

To commemorate the milestone Erika's Originals is releasing a limited-edition strap on the 10th of each month throughout 2026. Each edition has a special anniversary buckle engraving and is available for a limited window of approximately 30 days.

January Edition: Black Ops Anniversary

The series launched on January 10th with a special edition of the brand's all-time bestseller, the Black Ops. The anniversary version stays true to the strap's clean and functional character, with a few tasteful additions: a smaller logo on the buckle, a 10-year anniversary engraving on the interior, a subtle grey print, and the larger XL slider. It was available through February 9th.

February Edition: Anniversary Mistral

The February release, available from February 10th through March 9th, is (was) the Anniversary Mistral, priced at €100. Erika chose grey as the base colour for this edition as a nod to The Grey Nato podcast, which she credits as a contributor to her early success.

This edition also draws inspiration from a project with Finnish watchmaker Stepan Sarpaneva, for whom Erika produced straps for 100 watches commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Finnish Air Force.

Looking Ahead

I'll be following the remaining year-round anniversary editions as they drop and sharing my thoughts here on StrapHunter. Congratulations to Erika and her team on 10 years of success. I can't wait to see what the future holds 🙌