When was build a bear founded

Plucky Katie was undeterred and observed that they would be easy to make. Clark was struck by the idea—a store where customers could make their own stuffed teddy—and opened the first Build-A-Bear storefront just nine months later. According to Forbes , the co-owner of the Basic Brown Bear Factory sued Clark for copyright infringement and trade secret misappropriation in , asserting that she had seen his store next to a Minneapolis-area Payless in and later made an offer to buy him out.

Clark told the Chicago Tribune that she proposed a purchase but never did anything illegal. The two settled out of court confidentially in The Tribune also reported that Build-A-Bear sent threatening letters to another plush-build chain, Friends 2B Made, for trademark infringement and for possibly creating consumer confusion.

The corporate offices of Build-A-Bear are never in danger of running low on bear puns. For each collectibear purchased one dollar is donated to the WWF. It was settled out of court. Eric and Merrilee Woods were interested in selling the business to Clark to expand it nationally, with the agreement that the Woodses would remain as officers. The Woodses assert that Clark was exposed to the inner workings of the business and signed a confidentiality agreement.

She then made an offer that the Woodses rejected, resulting in Clark quickly departing to organize Build-A-Bear Workshop with their trade secrets. Maxine Clark has stated "We have never claimed that we were the first to have make-your-own stuffed animal businesses in the United States". Though Build-A-Bear Workshop has since applied for or acquired many patents, copyrights, and trademarks related to the business of "create-your-own-animal", controversy, contention, and litigation over the intellectual property abound.

Build-a-Bear Fans Wiki Explore. Wiki Content. When I started Build-a-Bear Workshop, most malls had little to offer children. The stuffed-animal business was mostly seasonal, but I didn't let the way others made or sold stuffed animals deter me. Our concept was based on customization and guest entertainment. Adults told me my idea wouldn't work. But every kid said, "Where is it? When can I do it? I spent almost a year researching, writing and redefining the business plan.

How can you expect someone else to fund your company if you're not willing to ante up? However, I benefited from early publicity. Louis Business Journal story about Build-a-Bear's unique hands-on concept. The article caught the eye of Barney Ebsworth, who owned a private investment firm in St. Ebsworth and his partner, Wayne Smith, invested in Build-a-Bear. Their financial support gave me a tremendous advantage.

We knew we had a winner in our first year, when we achieved more than double our projected sales. We grew quickly after that. By the end of we had four stores. Our biggest leap came between and , when we went from 14 stores to In we opened our th store, at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minn. When customers create toys at Build-a-Bear Workshop, they make something that is theirs alone. Louis Galleria provided a model for market demographics, as a location with many families and a family friendly environment in an upscale regional mall.

Clark considered prime family-oriented entertainment and tourist retail venues as other options. While Clark expected to meet her operational goals, she did not expect immediate popularity with the public and the resulting sales. One aspect of successful sales involved the company's responsiveness to customer feedback. Build-A-Bear learned about customer preferences and changed the product mix accordingly.

New products focused more directly on the workshop experience, eliminating the greeting cards and the photo booth, and adding fresh choices to an expanded line of teddy bear-sized apparel and accessories. The company diversified its product selection by offering different animals, including horses, dogs, cats, and turtles, as well as limited-edition animals for holidays and nonprofit fundraising.

A changing selection of prerecorded sound chips fit product offerings. In addition, the company introduced sound chips that allowed customers to record personal messages.

The company web site, with a simulated trip through the Build-A-Bear assembly process, proved to be a very successful means of attracting new and repeat business. The Cub Advisory Board played an important role in product development, holding meetings quarterly to discuss product ideas, making decisions about what animals to offer, fur colors, clothing styles, and accessories.

Clark took the board's opinions seriously--if the board did not approve a product idea, the company did not use it. With additional investment funds Build-A-Bear accelerated expansion, as Clark aimed to meet her goal of operating stores in Louis Galleria continued to provide a model for ideal store locations.

Although Clark's preference for premier, regional shopping malls directed expansion, Build-A-Bear expanded in an organic way as well. For instance, information obtained from the store in Myrtle Beach, a popular tourist destination, showed an unusually large number of visitors from Columbus, Ohio.

While the company included Columbus in its long-term growth plan, the strong response from residents prompted the company to open a store in that area earlier, in April In addition, the company received an unusually large number of requests for a store from residents in the Dallas area, prompting Build-A-Bear to open a store in Arlington in May , followed in late summer by stores in Frisco and Fort Worth.

The company's low-key marketing approach involved print advertising in community newspapers and parenting magazines, rather than television or major city newspapers. Promotion involved direct mail marketing to customers whose addresses were obtained at naming stations during visits to stores in other cities.

The most successful marketing, for new and existing stores, occurred through the enthusiasm of children who told their friends about their memorable experience at Build-A-Bear. Build-A-Bear continued to develop and change the merchandise mix at its stores and the clothing line expanded to more than outfits. Build-A-Bear entered its first licensing partnership for co-branded products with Skechers footwear company.

The Skechers for Bears line provided paw-shaped athletic footwear for teddy bears. The line was modeled on the company's Sportline of Energy joggers and featured metallic accents. During the company's new store expansion, Build-A-Bear obtained a space at one of the premier tourist locations for families, at the Downtown Disney District at Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California.

The store is located in a fee-free area outside the theme park, in a dining, entertainment, and shopping district.