Press Release

ST. LOUIS (October 19, 2011) — Build-A-Bear Workshop®, the interactive entertainment retailer of customized stuffed animals, is opening a new store location in Corpus Christi, Texas at La Palmera Mall on November 17, 2011. The store will make the experience of Build-A-Bear Workshop available to many more holiday shoppers this season and give customers the chance to discover the fun of making their own stuffed animals and great personalized gifts.

“We have many Guests from this area who have visited our stores and requested that we bring the furry fun to La Palmera,” said Maxine Clark, founder and chief executive bear of Build-A-Bear Workshop. “We are beary excited about opening this new location and continuing to spread teddy bear hugs!”

Build-A-Bear Workshop is based on the premise that nearly everyone, regardless of age, has a special fondness for stuffed animals. When Guests visit a Build-A-Bear Workshop store, they enter a lighthearted teddy-bear-themed environment. Guests choose from over 30 stuffed animals to make, including bears, dogs, cats, bunnies, monkeys and a series of Beary Limited® edition Collectibear® animals. They stuff their new friend, give it a heart filled with wishes – a Build-A-Bear Workshop trademark – and make a personalized birth certificate. Guests can further personalize their new friend by recording their own message to add inside the animal and choosing from a wide selection of unique fashions and accessories.

The fun doesn’t stop when a Guest leaves the store. Guests can experience more fun and play at home on Bearville.com™. Each stuffed animal’s birth certificate contains a code that allows Guests to bring their new best friend to life for free in the company’s virtual world and entertainment destination. In this world stuffed with fun, Guests can create their own unique character, play games and quests to earn Bear Bills® (the in-world currency), purchase clothing and furniture for their Cub Condo® and even trade items they have created or acquired with other citizens in the world. Membership to the site is free and does not expire.

Clark knows what families want in a shopping experience, and Build-A-Bear Workshop is her response to happy memories of shopping as a child. The Build-A-Bear Workshop innovative store concept takes children’s interactive entertainment retailing to a new level, combining the process of making your own stuffed animal with an exciting atmosphere and providing excellent customer service.

“We truly listen to our Guests’ ideas and requests,” said Clark. “We've created a unique retail experience by putting the heart back into retailing and putting our Guests at the center of every aspect of our business.”

Pawsome Parties
Build-A-Bear Workshop will also be the place to celebrate in Corpus Christi, Texas. At a customized Build-A-Party® celebration, Guests make their own stuffed animal friend starting at only $10 per Guest.

About Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc.
Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. is the only global company that offers an interactive make-your-own stuffed animal retail-entertainment experience. There are more than 400 Build-A-Bear Workshop stores worldwide, including company-owned stores in the U.S., Puerto Rico, Canada, the United Kingdom and Ireland, and franchise stores in Europe, Asia, Australia, Africa, the Middle East, Mexico and South America. Founded in St. Louis in 1997, Build-A-Bear Workshop is the leader in interactive retail. Brands include make-your-own Major League Baseball® mascot in-stadium locations, and Build-A-Dino® stores. Build-A-Bear Workshop extends its in-store interactive experience online with its award winning virtual world Web site at bearville.com™. The company was named to the FORTUNE 100 Best Companies to Work For® lists for the third year in a row in 2011. Build-A-Bear Workshop (NYSE: BBW) posted total revenue of $401.5 million in fiscal 2010. For more information, call 888.560.BEAR (2327) or visit the company's award-winning Web site at buildabear.com®.

TRADEMARKS
We would like to thank you for your interest in covering our business. As you write your story, we would ask that you use our full Name: Build‑A‑Bear Workshop® and that when referencing the process of making stuffed animals you use the word “make” not “build” .

Build‑A‑Bear Workshop is our well-known trade name and our registered trademark of Build‑A‑Bear Retail Management, Inc.
Build‑A‑Bear Workshop® should only be used in capital letters to refer to our products and services and should not be used as a verb.

Contact: Shannon Lammert
314-423-8000 ext. 5379
314-422-4523 (cell)
shannonl@buildabear.com

Jill Saunders
314-423-8000 ext. 5293
314-556-8841 (cell)
jills@buildabear.com