Press Release
BUILD-A-BEAR WORKSHOP® Opens at Westfield Shoppingtown Fox Valley
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 consisting of eight bear-making stations. Guests choose, stuff, stitch, fluff, name and dress their very own stuffed animals. The company is also known for the memorable heart ceremony that takes place during the bear-making process. This station allows Guests to choose a red satin heart, make a special wish and place it safely inside their stuffed animal.
As Guests enter a Build-A-Bear Workshop store they are introduced to a variety of stuffed animals including bears, dogs, cats, bunnies, monkeys and a series of Beary Limited™ edition Collectibear® animals. Build-A-Bear Workshop stuffed animals are very affordable, ranging in price from $10-$25. Hundreds of coordinating outfits and accessories are also available to further personalize new furry friends. Guests in Chicago have the chance to show their team spirit by purchasing special bear-sized Cubs and White Sox uniforms, tiny tees and accessories. In addition, Chicago Bulls jerseys are available for all basketball fanatics!
With existing store locations in the malls at Navy Pier, Westfield Shoppingtown Hawthorn, Orland Square, Westfield Shoppingtown Southlake, Woodfield Shopping Center and Oakbrook Center, Maxine Clark, Founder and Chief Executive Bear of Build-A-Bear Workshop®, is looking forward to opening the 7th store in the area. She notes, "Our plan is always to open in the premier malls across the country, and we will continue this approach as we open at Westfield Shoppingtown Fox Valley. We have had many Guests who have visited our other Chicago area locations ask us when we will be opening in Westfield Shoppingtown Fox Valley. Now, we will be able to reach even more of our friends in the Chicago metro area and we are thrilled to be here."
Build-A-Bear Workshop continues its aggressive expansion plan nationally by opening in new markets this year, including Mobile, AL, Jackson, MS, Toledo, OH, Hamilton, Ontario, Charleston, WV, Tucson, AZ, Bakersfield, CA - as well as opening franchise stores internationally. The company has been planning its global strategy for the past several years, and has opened stores in United Kingdom, Japan, Denmark, and Australia.
Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. (NYSE: BBW), with fiscal 2004 total revenue of $302 million, is the only national company that offers Guests an interactive make-your-own-stuffed animal retail-entertainment experience. The first store opened in St. Louis in 1997; at the end of 2004 the company operated 170 stores in 40 states and Canada. With the opening of its store in Sheffield, England, in the fall of 2003 and the addition of international stores in Japan, Denmark and Australia in 2004, Build-A-Bear Workshop® has become the global leader in the teddy bear business. In November 2004, the company opened two friends 2B made® stores, the newest concept based on the doll-making experience. For more information about the company and its products, call 888.560.BEAR (2327) or visit the company's award-winning Web site at www.buildabear.com.
TRADEMARKS
We would like to thank you for your interest in covering our business. As you
write your story we would like to 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 Workshop, 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: Jennifer Mansell
314.423.8000 Ext. 5402
414.801.1146 cell
jenniferm@buildabear.com
Shawn Bertani
314.423.8000 Ext. 5366
314.452.6391 cell
shawnb@buildabear.com